Google

Google’s New 500×500 Image Minimum: A Calm Guide to Getting Ready

The short version

Google is raising the minimum size for product images in Merchant Center to 500 x 500 pixels, and enforcement begins on January 31, 2027. That is about four months away, which leaves room to take this one step at a time.

For most stores, the work is a quick look at your images and a handful of replacements. This post covers what is changing, what to check first, and how to turn on Automatic image improvements while you are in there.

What is changing

The minimum size for your main image (image_link) and your additional images (additional_image_link) is becoming 500 x 500 pixels, for all products and all marketing methods. Before this change, the lowest allowed sizes were 100 x 100 for most products and 250 x 250 for apparel.

Google also recommends images around 1500 x 1500 pixels or larger, because that size supports the best performance across listing formats. Think of 500 x 500 as the floor and 1500 x 1500 as a comfortable target.

When it happens

Enforcement begins on January 31, 2027. Here is how the dates line up:

  • April 14, 2026: Google announced the new minimum in its yearly product data specification update, and warnings for undersized images began.
  • Now: warnings are showing in Merchant Center, and they generally do not stop products from appearing in Shopping ads or free listings.
  • January 31, 2027: images below 500 x 500 pixels stop being approved.

Because the warnings do not change how your products show today, they are easy to set aside. A gentle check now is simply easier than a rush in January.

What Google may handle for you

For some products, Google will optimize images smaller than 500 x 500 on its own, either by finding a higher-resolution near-duplicate or by using AI to upscale the original. Images optimized this way meet the new requirement, so those products avoid disapproval without any action from you.

It is a kind safety net, though it applies to some images and not all, so it is not something to plan around. If you would prefer your own image in place of an optimized one, you can submit a new image larger than 500 x 500 in your product data source.

How to prepare

A few small steps cover almost everything.

  1. See what Merchant Center has already found. Open the Needs attention section, select View history, and look for the warning “Image too small for upcoming enforcement.” You may also see “Image too small” or “Image too small due to upcoming policy changes.”
  2. Check your real image sizes. Export your image links and look at the actual pixel dimensions. Having a link in the field does not tell you how large the image is behind it.
  3. Look for larger originals. A bigger version often exists with a supplier, a photographer, or an older product shoot. Around 1500 x 1500 is a good size to aim for.
  4. Replace images at a new URL. Give the new file a new name (for example, product-blue-v2.jpg) and update the image_link in your product data. A new URL is typically recrawled within about 3 days, while keeping the same URL can take up to 6 weeks.
  5. Include your additional images. The new minimum covers additional_image_link too, so it is worth checking those alongside your main images.
  6. Use Product Studio if no larger original exists. It can increase resolution, remove backgrounds, and generate scenes, and it is available in Merchant Center and in the Google & YouTube app on Shopify.

It can take up to 30 days for a fixed image to fully clear from the Needs attention page, so finishing in December leaves a comfortable cushion.

How to turn on Automatic image improvements

This setting is off by default, and you can turn it on or off at any time. It takes about a minute:

  1. In Merchant Center, go to Products under “Products & store.”
  2. Select the Automations tab.
  3. Find the image improvements setting.
  4. Select View details, then use the toggle to switch it on.

Once it is on, Merchant Center tries to fix images that contain promotional text or overlays by removing them. When that works, the product can be approved and shown on Google. If you are not happy with an updated image, you can upload a new photo whenever you like.

One gentle note: this setting is built for text and overlays, not image size. It pairs nicely with the size work above, but it does not replace it. Google’s help page also has a section on checking which products were automatically improved, which is handy to look at after you switch it on.

Stay calm and carry on

This is a small, well-announced change with about four months of runway. Check your Needs attention page, replace the images that need it, and let Merchant Center help where it can. If the list turns out to be long, working through it a little at a time over the next few weeks is plenty.

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