Images and video: main image rules, image slots, bulk uploads, and product video

The main image is the one slot with hard rules. Shoppers see it in search results and atop the detail page; Amazon checks it by machine. In most categories:

• A pure white background, RGB 255, 255, 255 — not off-white, not a studio sweep.
• The product fills at least 85% of the frame.
• At least 1,000 px on the longest side; make it 1,600 px or more, which Amazon recommends so zoom works (a cap exists too, so skip print-resolution files).
• The product only: no text, logos, badges, watermarks, props or accessories that are not included, and no hands, mannequins or models unless the category convention uses them.
• JPEG preferred, in sRGB color (CMYK is accepted, but sRGB displays as intended in browsers), no borders.

Category conventions differ. Adult apparel is usually shown on a model; children's apparel is shot flat. Check the category style guide rather than guessing; it is what the image is measured against.

The other slots do the selling. Most product types accept a main image plus eight more; the page shows the first several as thumbnails, the rest behind a 'more' control; counts vary by category and device.

Give each slot a job:

1. Angles — back, side, open, in hand.
2. Scale — next to something familiar, or with dimensions drawn in.
3. Lifestyle — the product in use, in its setting.
4. Benefit callouts (infographics) — three or four short claims, large type.
5. Packaging — the back of the pack: ingredients, warnings or compliance text, readable at full size.

Variations need their own sets. Every child carries its own images; a color family also wants a swatch_image_url for the option selector, and the parent's own image is optional (Parenting and variations): give it a representative one, though shoppers see the selected child's images instead. On mobile the first two or three images do the work: order by importance and keep infographic text legible at thumbnail size.

One listing: the edit page. Open the SKU's images tab from Manage All Inventory.

Many listings: a bulk upload. The Upload Images page (Catalog menu) takes files or a zip. Name each file as identifier (usually the ASIN) plus slot code, such as B0XXXXXXXX.MAIN.jpg, or use its custom-naming option and assign files to products there. The flat file takes URLs, in main_image_url, other_image_url1–other_image_url8 and swatch_image_url; a PartialUpdate with only those filled (Listing creation) is the image flat file and overwrites nothing else.

URLs must be fetchable. Amazon's servers fetch each one, so it must point straight at the file, no login or redirect; a drive sharing link opens a viewer page instead and leaves the slot empty.

Then wait. Images process separately from text and can take hours after a clean report. If yours still does not show, contributions rank like text (Catalog fundamentals): a brand owner's or Amazon's image can outrank a reseller's; the fix is Brand Registry or a Seller Support case (an image case, covered in Seller Support cases), not another upload.

Some image problems hide the listing. A missing main image is a common search-suppression reason: the offer stays Active, but the listing drops out of search and browse until one lands. A main image that is not on white, carries text or promotional overlays, or breaks a category rule can be rejected or flagged, and in some categories suppresses the listing.

Where problems surface:

• the Listing Quality Dashboard, naming the image attribute per SKU;
• the Suppressed filter in Manage All Inventory, with the suppression reason;
• the image column in Manage All Inventory, a thumbnail per SKU; empty is the fastest sign of failure.

The image QA routine, whenever images change:

1. Prepare the files to spec — size, background, format, slot order.
2. Upload — edit page, Upload Images page or image flat file.
3. Wait for processing.
4. Check the live page on desktop and mobile.
5. Log what displays against what you uploaded; a gap is a rejection or ranking task.

Upload & Manage Videos (Catalog menu) is open to brand-registered sellers and, in some stores, to other sellers after a few months of selling; the page, not the menu entry, says whether you qualify. Upload once, attach to one or more ASINs, and Amazon decides where an approved video shows: the end of the image carousel, the Videos section lower down, or related-product videos elsewhere.

Requirements (the page has current values):

• A 16:9 (widescreen) aspect ratio, at least 1280 × 720 px; 1080p is standard.
• A maximum length, which has changed; a minute or two is typical.
• No URLs, prices, promotions, competitor references, customer reviews, or claims you cannot verify.
• The store's language, captioning any speech (good practice; the page says if your store requires it).

Review takes time. Amazon reviews every video for policy and quality before it goes live (hours to days, longer at peak); the page shows its status. Then verify on the live page, desktop and mobile. A+ Content, the brand-only surface below the bullets, belongs to Brand programs.