How To Optimize Shopify Images

If you’ve ever uploaded images to Shopify and later realized your site loads slower than a snail on vacation, you’re not alone!

Image size is one of the sneakiest performance killers on Shopify stores. But here’s the good news: you don’t need another app cluttering your dashboard or draining your budget to fix it.

In this post, I’ll show you how to optimize your Shopify images before you upload them, so you can skip the hassle of post-upload optimization apps.

Why optimize images before uploading to Shopify?

Sure, there are plenty of image optimizer Shopify apps out there. But why install another app (and give it access to your store) when you can get it right from the start?

Here’s what you get by optimizing before upload:

• Faster store loading speeds
• Better mobile performance
• Improved SEO
• No extra app fees or headaches

Plus, you stay in control of your file sizes and formats – no random app changes to your product photos.

And here’s a pro tip: Shopify automatically serves images in modern formats like WebP whenever possible, which helps with performance. So instead of worrying about file formats post-upload, just compress your JPGs and PNGs beforehand, and let Shopify handle the rest.

Step-by-Step: Optimize Shopify images with ShortPixel

Let’s dive in.

1. Prep Your Images

Before uploading, make sure your images follow the Shopify image sizes best practices:

• Product images: 2048 x 2048px (square works best in most cases)
• Collection image size: 1024 x 1024px
• Slideshow image size: 1200 x 600px
• Banner image size: At least 1800px wide
• Recommended product image size: 800 x 800px minimum
• Favicon image: 32 x 32px

These Shopify image dimensions are optimized for clarity and performance.

2. Go to ShortPixel’s Online Image Compressor

Open the ShortPixel compressor tool. First, you’ll have a few key settings to tweak:

• Compression Level: Pick what suits your needs:
  • Lossy – maximum compression, slight quality drop
  • Glossy – a sweet spot between quality and file size
  • Lossless – no quality loss, minimal compression
• Resize Options: Want to shrink the image dimensions too? Just set a max width and height, ShortPixel handles the rest.
• Keep EXIF: Shopify removes all image metadata when you upload, so you can strip it as well before upload. To strip the EXIF data, keep this option disabled.

3. Upload your images

Click the dotted area to select images for compression, or simply drag and drop them into the box.

4. Hang tight while images are being optimized

ShortPixel will do its thing and compress your images, usually in just a few moments, depending on the number and size.

5. Download the compressed images

Once all the images are optimized, click the red Download button to grab them all at once. Or, download them one by one using the arrow icon on each image card.

And that’s it! Your images are now compressed and ready for upload.

6. Upload to Shopify

Now upload your optimized images directly to Shopify. They’ll load faster, look sharp, and you won’t have to touch a Shopify image compressor app ever again.

Bonus tips

• Use descriptive file names like red-leather-wallet.jpg instead of IMG_4830.jpg for better SEO.
• Keep your homepage light. Limit large banners and slideshows unless they’re essential.
• JPG works best for product photos. Use PNG only when you need transparent backgrounds (like logos or icons).
• Don’t skip the alt text. It helps with accessibility and improves your chances of showing up in Google Images.
• Install a lazy loading app so images load as customers scroll, not all at once.