Product Photo Requirements: A Complete Overview for Online Marketplaces

The same product shot can go live without a problem on one marketplace and immediately fail moderation on another. The reason is almost always the technical requirements: one platform needs an exactly white background, another rigidly fixes the aspect ratio, a third limits file weight in megabytes. If you do not know these rules in advance, redoing listings eats up days, and the product stays invisible to shoppers the whole time.

This overview gathers the current product photo requirements in one place: sizes in pixels, aspect ratio, allowed formats, maximum weight, the number of photos and the separate rules for the main frame. Further on we break down what exactly the platforms forbid, why they most often reject listings, and how to pass review on the first try.

Here are several key requirements for processed photos to keep in mind when running a business through online platforms and marketplaces such as Amazon, eBay, Etsy and other online stores.

1. Image quality. It matters that retouched photos are high-resolution and sharp. This lets potential buyers examine products in more detail and make better-informed purchasing decisions.
2. A natural look. When retouching, keep the natural look of the products. Excessive processing can distort their appearance and cause distrust in buyers.
3. Color accuracy. Make sure the colors in the photos match the real colors of the products. This is important to prevent buyer disappointment when the items they receive differ from the images on the site. Otherwise you get justified complaints and returns.
4. Background. The background in the images should be clean and uniform so it does not distract attention from the product. A white background or other neutral tones are recommended.
5. Product detail. Close-up photos that convey texture and material are very important. Photos should emphasize the details and features of products. This helps buyers form a full picture of the item before purchase.
6. A consistent style. It matters that all photos on your site have a single editing style. This creates a unified visual impression and helps strengthen the brand in consumers' eyes.
7. Compliance with platform standards. When publishing photos on an online platform, make sure they meet the platform's requirements and standards, including format, size, resolution, aspect ratio and other technical aspects.

So you do not have to scroll the article hunting for one number, here is a fast cheat sheet. If you need one universal source for all your platforms, make it vertical 3:4 at a resolution of 1500 by 2000 pixels, on a pure white RGB 255, 255, 255 background, in high-quality JPG or PNG format, weighing up to 10 MB, with 10-15 percent margins around the product. From such a file, cropping produces both a 1:1 square for catalog platforms and a horizontal frame for classifieds. Below, each number is broken down in detail and by platform type.

A photo in a product listing solves two tasks at once. The first is obvious: show the product so a person wants to buy it. The second is less visible but no less important: pass the platform's automatic and manual moderation. Marketplaces invest serious resources in a uniform storefront, because the conversion of the whole catalog depends on it. A listing with a cropped product, a gray background or a stretched picture breaks the overall look of the results and lowers the shopper's trust in the whole platform, so such images are rejected automatically.

In practice, sellers lose money at exactly this stage. The product is bought, sitting in the warehouse, the description is ready, and the listing hangs in error status because the background turned out not to be pure white, the file weighs more than allowed, or the aspect ratio does not fall within the required proportions. Every day of downtime is lost impressions and sales. So preparing images to the specific requirements of a platform is not a formality but a direct saving of time and turnover.

What a bad photo actually costs

The price of a mistake is measured not only in hours of rework. The main photo directly affects CTR, that is the share of people who clicked on the listing in the results. The difference between a blurry frame on a gray background and a clean product on white is often one and a half to two times in click-through, and therefore in the number of orders at the same advertising budget. If you pay for impressions in promotion, a weak photo literally burns money: traffic comes but clicks do not convert.

Let us count roughly. Suppose a listing gets 10,000 impressions a month. At a 4 percent CTR that is 400 visits, at an 8 percent CTR it is 800. If the conversion to order is 5 percent, the difference is 20 orders a month solely thanks to a higher-quality main photo. A professional reshoot or preparation of a batch of listings pays for itself on a single such item within days.

Why a universal file does not exist

The difficulty is that every platform has its own rules, and they differ in literally everything: from the minimum resolution to whether a brand logo is allowed on the product itself. A universal file that fits equally well everywhere does not exist. A catalog-style platform such as Amazon loves a square 1:1 on a strictly white background, a classifieds platform such as eBay allows a horizontal frame and real shooting conditions. The same frame that is ideal for one platform will be either cropped, or framed with white bars, or rejected on another.

But there is a base set of parameters you can prepare a source to, so that adapting to each platform takes minutes rather than hours. The logic is simple: shoot and edit with a resolution reserve and with margins around the product, then cut derivative files for each storefront. We will start with this base set.

The main photo

The first photo should convey the essential nature and function of the product. Usually this is the whole product, turned at a slight angle. The main goal of the photo is simply to explain to a person what is in front of them, a coat, a car or a microwave, to convey the form factor and the general color scheme.

Close-up number one

The second task of retouching for online stores is to correctly convey the product's color palette. Especially if the palette is multi-part, for example black velvet with white metal. Calibrators and a color target are used to convey correct color and exposure. It matters that the product color in the photo matches reality as closely as possible. You do not want complaints and returns.

Close-up number two

The third task of photo editing is to convey the material of the product. The client should almost feel the touch of the object in the photo. After retouching, the texture should clearly read: if it is fur, all the fibers should be visible; if the material is leather, the grain; if the surface is smooth and polished, it should reflect and play with light. For this you need a very close-up photo of part of the object.

On a model, in the hand

The purpose of this photo is to convey the scale of the item to the client. For that we need to photograph the product on a person or next to them, in the hand, next to other things that convey scale. If it is a technical product, it is acceptable to put rulers and similar markings onto an infographic.

The packaging photo

Processing the packaging photo correctly matters. Yes, not every product has selling packaging, and sometimes there is none at all. But many manufacturers put a lot of effort into packaging so it sells the product on its own. Infographics are printed on packaging, the best designers style the logos. A brand built over years gives a reputational advantage, so why not make use of the fruits of that labor.

Catalog marketplaces and classifieds platforms work by different logic, but both are important for sales. Catalog platforms lean toward a strict white background in the spirit of a classic catalog, classifieds are more flexible and closer to a listings format where real photos of the product in ordinary conditions are acceptable.

Catalog marketplaces: photo parameters

Catalog marketplaces historically grew out of product search, so a clean catalog frame on a white background is especially valued here, since it is easier to show in results next to offers from different sellers.

• Aspect ratio: 1:1 (square) or close to it is recommended. For a number of categories a vertical format is allowed.
• Minimum resolution: from 600 by 600 pixels. Recommended is from 1000 by 1000 and up.
• File format: JPG, PNG. For catalog frames on a white background, high-quality JPG is more common.
• Maximum weight: on average up to 10 MB per image.
• Number of photos: usually up to 10-15 images per listing depending on the category.
• Background: strictly white for the main photo. This is one of the strictest requirements.

On catalog platforms the main photo must show the whole product, on a white background, without cut edges and without extraneous objects. The platform is oriented toward comparing products, and any non-standard background breaks that logic. Additional frames can be in use and with details, but the first is strictly a catalog shot.

Why a white background matters most on catalog platforms

On catalog platforms several sellers can sell the same product in one listing, competing on price and content. The platform assembles the results from offers of different stores, and a single white background lets it show them side by side without visual mismatch. So a gray or colored background on the main frame here is almost a guaranteed rejection. If your listing is merged with others, the one whose photo is cleaner and higher-quality wins: it is the one the system more often substitutes as the main image.

Classifieds platforms: photo parameters

Classifieds are set up differently. This is a listings platform, and here a buyer expects a real photo of the specific product rather than a studio frame. Nonetheless, for stores and product businesses, photo quality directly affects response.

• Aspect ratio: there is no hard requirement, but a horizontal or square frame of 4:3 or 1:1 is recommended, because the listings feed shows previews in that shape.
• Minimum resolution: from 600 pixels on the long side, recommended from 1280 pixels.
• File format: JPG, PNG.
• Maximum weight: up to 25 MB per image, on classifieds the limit is higher than on classic catalog marketplaces.
• Number of photos: up to 10 images in one listing.
• Background: there is no strict white-background requirement, but a clean light background noticeably raises trust and response.

On classifieds there is no automatic rejection for a gray background as on catalog marketplaces, but a rule of its own applies: other people's photos and photos with other sellers' watermarks are forbidden. The platform fights the reselling of the same pictures, so your own real shots are always preferable.

What raises response on classifieds

On classifieds a hybrid approach works. The first photo is better kept clean and clear, on a light or white background, so the product reads in the preview feed among dozens of other listings. But for the second and third frames it is useful to show the real product in real conditions: an unpacked box, the contents on a table, the item in the hand. This removes the buyer's main objection on classifieds, the suspicion that the photo is taken from the internet and the product does not really exist. Real shots from different angles and in daylight noticeably raise the number of responses and calls.

Comparison of a catalog platform and a classifieds platform

How to reuse one source across several platforms

If the base frame is shot vertically 3:4 on a white background at 1500 by 2000, then adapting it to each platform takes minimal action:

1. For a vertical catalog platform: use the source as is, the 3:4 format fits directly.
2. For a mixed catalog platform: the 3:4 source fits, and if desired you can make a square version by cropping to the center.
3. For a strict square catalog platform: crop the vertical to a 1:1 square, keeping the product centered with white margins.
4. For a classifieds platform: make a square or horizontal version, the background can stay white or you can show the product in real conditions as a separate frame.

The main thing with this approach is to leave sufficient margins around the product in the source from the start. Then any crop to a different proportion will not cut off important parts of the object.

Cheat sheet on proportions and sizes

Understanding the bans matters more than knowing the numbers. Numbers can be looked up in the platform's help, but the logic of rejections you need to hold in your head so as not to step on the same rake twice. Let us look at what practically all platforms forbid, and which technical mistakes most often send a listing back for rework.

What is forbidden almost everywhere

• Text on the main photo. Any captions, slogans, specs or sizes on the first frame. Text is allowed only on additional images in the form of infographics.
• Price tags and discount badges. Captions like "sale", "minus 50 percent", arrows and stars over the product. Price lives in the listing as a separate field, it should not be on the photo.
• Store logos and watermarks. Semi-transparent copyrights, your store name across the diagonal, contacts. Platforms forbid this so the buyer does not leave the platform. The brand's own logo on the product is another matter, it is allowed.
• Collages on the main photo. Several products in one frame, a grid of small pictures, stitched-together shots. The main photo is one product, large.
• Extraneous objects and props. A catalog frame should have no extra things, hands or parts of an interior unless the category calls for it.
• Other people's photos. Shots from the internet, competitors' photos, images with other watermarks. This violates both copyright and platform rules.
• A cut-off product. When part of the object goes beyond the edge of the frame. The product must fit entirely with margins.
• Adult content, forbidden symbols, inadmissible content. Obvious violations that block not only the listing but sometimes the account.

Contact information and QR codes

It is worth mentioning the attempt to sneak in contacts separately. Phone numbers, links to third-party sites, messenger addresses, QR codes leading beyond the platform, all of this is forbidden and is recognized well by automation, including the text inside a QR code. The marketplace earns a commission on sales inside its own system, so it cuts down any attempt to lure a buyer outside, up to blocking the listing and account sanctions. Contact details are given only in the allowed fields of the seller profile, not on images.

Top reasons for technical rejection

Beyond content bans, there are purely technical reasons why automation turns a listing away even before manual review:

Edge cases people forget

• The shadow under the product. A soft natural shadow is acceptable and even desirable, it gives volume. A harsh black shadow from a flash or a shadow from another object reads as an extraneous element.
• Transparency in PNG. If you save the product on a transparent background in PNG, some platforms will show their own background under it, and some will reject it. For the main photo it is safer to fill white rather than leave transparency.
• Reflections and glare. On glossy products, bottles, dishware, electronics, glare from a softbox is normal, but a reflection of the photographer or a window in frame will lead to rejection.
• Over-aggressive retouching. If the color in the photo does not match the real product, this threatens not a rejection but a wave of returns and bad reviews. The color must be honest.

How to pass moderation on the first try: a checklist

Before uploading, run through the short list and most rejections will drop away on their own:

1. Main photo is one product, large, on a clean white background, without text or logos.
2. Aspect ratio matches the platform: 3:4 for vertical catalogs, 1:1 for square catalogs, and so on.
3. Resolution no lower than recommended, better 1500 by 2000 pixels.
4. File format JPG or PNG, not HEIC or WEBP.
5. File weight within the limit, usually up to 10 MB.
6. Product color in the photo matches the real one, without a shift to blue or yellow.
7. Product in focus, without blur or noticeable noise.
8. The edge of the cut product is clean, without a black outline or halo.
9. Additional frames show angles, details, scale and a usage scenario.

Where to get a clean white background without a studio

The most common technical problem is exactly the background. Shooting a product on a perfectly even white without glare and shadows at home is hard: fabric, a table, natural light give casts that the auto-check reads as gray. There are several solutions. You can build a simple lightbox with lighting, you can shoot in a studio, or you can prepare the white background after the shoot. For the last option there are free browser-based tools that cut the product from any background and place it on an even white base right in the browser, without a heavy editor and without installing software. This closes the most common cause of rejections and saves time on rework.

You can prepare a photo to the platform's requirements both on a computer and directly on a phone. Below are specific steps for each scenario.

On a computer: white background and the right size

1. Open the product shot through File, Open.
2. Select the product with the Object Selection or Quick Selection tool, then refine the edge through Select and Mask.
3. In the Select and Mask window, shift the Shift Edge slider inward by 1-2 pixels and turn on Decontaminate Colors to remove the halo from the old background.
4. Invert the selection and delete the background, or add a layer mask so the background becomes transparent.
5. Create a new layer under the product and fill it with white RGB 255, 255, 255 using the Fill tool.
6. Open Image, Image Size and set the required resolution, for example 1500 by 2000 pixels.
7. Through Image, Canvas Size set the aspect ratio to the platform, leaving margins around the product.
8. Check the color profile: Edit, Convert to Profile, sRGB.
9. Save through File, Export As to high-quality JPG or PNG.

Keyboard shortcuts are the same on both operating systems, only on Mac Cmd is used instead of Ctrl. For batch processing of a whole batch of products, File, Automate, Batch with a recorded action comes in handy, so one action applies to dozens of files at once.

On an iPhone: preparation right on the phone

1. Open the photo in the Photos app and, if needed, crop the frame with the cropping tool, choosing the required proportion.
2. To remove the background, press and hold the product in the shot, the system will select the object, after which it can be copied onto a white background.
3. Even out brightness and white balance in the editor so the background looks neutral.
4. Note that an iPhone saves photos in HEIC format, which platforms do not accept. Before uploading, convert the file to JPG: in Settings, Camera, Formats choose the Most Compatible mode, or convert an already-shot frame.
5. Check the final size and weight before sending to the marketplace.

On Android: preparation on the phone

1. Open the shot in the gallery photos app or the built-in gallery editor.
2. Use the cropping tool to set the required proportion, 3:4 or 1:1.
3. To replace the background, use the object cutout feature if your editor has it, or prepare the white background separately.
4. Even out exposure and white balance so the background is even.
5. Save in JPG or PNG and check that the weight does not exceed the platform limit.

How to shoot a product at home so you edit less afterward

A good shoot saves hours of post-processing. A few working techniques:

• Light. Shoot in diffused daylight by a window or with two sources on the sides through a diffuser. Direct sun and one bare lamp give harsh shadows.
• Background. A sheet of white paper or matte PVC, curved in an arc from table to wall, removes the seam line and gives a seamless background.
• Tripod. Even a simple tripod or stand removes blur and lets you shoot a series of frames from one angle.
• White balance. Set it manually by a white sheet, then the background will not drift to yellow or blue and there will be less to fix.
• Frame reserve. Leave air around the product so there is room to crop to different proportions.

How to compress a file without losing quality

If a finished photo weighs more than the platform limit, the problem is usually not the resolution but the excessive JPG quality. There is no need to reduce pixels, it is enough to re-save correctly. A few techniques:

• JPG quality 80-85 percent. On a white catalog background the difference from 100 percent is invisible to the eye, while the weight drops by 2-3 times. In an editor this is the quality slider on export.
• Progressive JPG. On export turn on Progressive mode, such a file both loads more smoothly and often weighs a bit less.
• Clean metadata. EXIF, thumbnails and color profiles inside the file add extra kilobytes. On export for the web they can be left out.
• PNG only where it is needed. PNG is several times heavier than JPG. For a photo on a white background without transparency, a quality JPG is almost always enough.

The reverse situation is a file that is too light and blurry. Then there is nothing to compress, you need to reshoot at a higher resolution: upscaling will not bring back sharpness.

Online in the browser without installation

If you do not want to deal with a heavy editor and phone editors, background removal and placing the product on a white base can be done online. There are free tools that work right in the browser on a computer and a phone: you upload a photo, get the product on a clean white background, download the finished file in JPG or PNG. This is the fastest way to bring a batch of listings to a single look before uploading to any platform.

What photo size do vertical catalog marketplaces need?

Vertical catalog platforms use a 3:4 format. The minimum width is from 900 pixels, but it is recommended to upload images at 1500 by 2000 pixels. Such resolution looks good on mobile screens and does not fall apart on zoom. Format JPG or PNG, weight up to 10 MB.

What aspect ratio do photos have on mixed-format platforms?

On mixed-format platforms a 3:4 ratio is recommended, a 1:1 square is allowed. The minimum resolution is from 700 by 700 pixels, but for a quality zoom it is better to use 1500 by 2000. The higher the source resolution, the more detail the buyer can examine.

Is a white background mandatory on the main photo?

On most catalog marketplaces, and especially on strict square catalog platforms, a white or maximally neutral background on the main photo is mandatory for the majority of categories. On classifieds there is no strict requirement, but a light clean background raises response. The main rule: the background must be uniform, without extraneous objects and shadows.

Why does the marketplace reject my photos?

Most often the reasons are technical: the background is not pure white but light gray; wrong aspect ratio; low resolution; the file weight is exceeded; an unsupported format like HEIC was uploaded. Content reasons: text or a logo on the main photo, watermarks, collages, a cut-off product, contacts and QR codes. Check these points before re-uploading.

In which format should I upload photos, JPG or PNG?

All platforms accept both JPG and PNG. JPG is preferred when a small file size matters, for example for listings with high resolution. PNG is used when you need a perfectly clean white background without compression artifacts. HEIC, WEBP and TIFF are usually not accepted, they need converting.

Can I put a logo or watermark on a product photo?

Your store logo and watermarks are forbidden on almost all platforms, because they lure the buyer beyond the marketplace. The brand's own logo on the product is acceptable if it is part of the product, for example lettering on the packaging or a label. On the main photo any extraneous text and captions are forbidden.

How many photos should I add to a product listing?

Technical limits vary by platform: some allow up to 30, others up to 15 or up to 10. In practice 7-12 quality frames are enough: the main photo on a white background, several angles, details and texture, product scale, a usage scenario and an infographic with specs. More frames from different angles raise trust and conversion.

Do I need 300 DPI resolution for a marketplace photo?

No, for screens DPI does not matter. Platforms and browsers count only the real pixel dimensions of the file, for example 1500 by 2000. The 300 DPI requirement relates to print, not the web. A 1500 by 2000 pixel shot looks the same on a site at both 72 and 300 DPI. Watch the pixels, not the DPI.

What do I do if my iPhone shoots in HEIC?

Marketplaces do not accept HEIC, so before uploading the file needs converting to JPG. The simplest way is to switch the camera in advance in Settings, Camera, Formats to Most Compatible mode: then the iPhone shoots in JPG right away. Already-shot HEIC files can be converted to JPG on export or through any online converter.

How do I quickly place a product on a white background without a heavy editor?

The simplest path is online browser tools. There are free services that cut the product from any background and place it on an even white base right on a computer or phone, without installing software. This closes the most common cause of listing rejections and saves time on preparing a batch of products.