ShortPixel Image Optimizer can give an image file a new name, for example turning IMG_4031.jpg into red-summer-dress.jpg, and it updates every place on your own website that shows that image. The one thing to know before you do it: the image’s web address changes and the old address stops working. Your own site keeps working, but links to the image from other websites, and the image in Google Images, will break until they are updated.
What does renaming an image mean? #
Every image on your website is a file with a name, like IMG_4031.jpg. That name is also part of the image’s web address (its URL), for example https://yoursite.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/IMG_4031.jpg.
Renaming changes that name, and so it changes the web address too. The picture itself stays exactly the same.
Why would you want to? Search engines read file names to understand what an image shows. A descriptive name like red-summer-dress.jpg tells Google much more than IMG_4031.jpg, which can help your images appear in image searches. Clear names also make your Media Library easier to search.
You can rename images yourself, one by one (this article), or let ShortPixel’s AI suggest a descriptive name automatically. The AI option is Update image filename with an SEO-friendly one under Settings > ShortPixel > AI Image SEO or under Settings > ShortPixel AI Alt Text Generator > AI Image SEO if you’re using the ShortPixel AI Alt Text Generator plugin. Everything below applies to both.
How to rename an image, step by step #
- In your WordPress dashboard, go to Media > Library.
- Click the image you want to rename, then click Edit more details (or, in list view, click the image’s name). This opens the image’s own edit page.
- On the right, in the box with the Update button, find the Filename field. It shows the current name, for example
IMG_4031.jpg. - Type the new name, for example
red-summer-dress. Use a few words that describe the picture, separated by dashes. You don’t need to type.jpg; the file type never changes. - Read the warning under the field: hover over the area for a short explanation, or click the ? to open this article. In short, links from other websites will stop working (more on this below).
- Click Rename file.
- The page reloads and shows the new name. That’s it.
Don’t see the Filename field? It is part of the AI Image SEO tools, so it only appears when Enable AI Image SEO is switched on (Settings > ShortPixel > AI Image SEO). It is on by default. It is also hidden for images stored only on a cloud service ShortPixel cannot rename files on. (WP Offload Media is supported.) If you’re using the ShortPixel AI Alt Text Generator plugin, please make sure that the “Update image filename with an SEO-friendly one option” is enabled.
Good names, in short: lowercase, words separated by dashes, describe what is in the picture, keep it short. ShortPixel automatically removes spaces and special characters, and a name needs at least 3 characters.
What ShortPixel updates for you #
When you rename an image, ShortPixel takes care of everything on your own website, so nothing breaks there:
- The image and all its sizes. WordPress keeps several sizes of each image (thumbnail, medium, large and so on). All of them get the new name.
- The WebP and AVIF versions that ShortPixel created, so faster formats keep being delivered.
- Your backups. The original copies ShortPixel keeps are renamed too, so Restore still works afterwards.
- Every link on your site. Posts, pages, and content saved by page builders and other plugins are updated to the new address automatically.
- The image’s details in WordPress, so the Media Library shows the new name. The image’s title, alt text, caption and description are not changed.
- Translations. If you use WPML or Polylang, every language version of the image follows the new name.
- Cloud storage. If your images are offloaded with WP Offload Media, the copies in your cloud storage are renamed as well.
What renaming cannot fix: links outside your website #
ShortPixel can only update what is stored on your own website. It does not create a redirect from the old address to the new one. A redirect is a forwarding rule, like a forwarding address when you move house. Without one, anyone who visits the old address gets a “page not found” (404) error instead of the image.
That affects places ShortPixel cannot reach:
- Other websites that link to your image or show it on their pages.
- Google Images and other search engines. If Google has already listed your image, its search result points to the old address until Google visits your site again and finds the new one. That can take days or weeks, and the image may lose its position in the results for a while.
- Social media posts, newsletters and emails where you shared the image’s address.
- Bookmarks and saved links your visitors may have.
- Caches. A caching plugin or a CDN may keep showing the old version of a page for a while. Clear your cache after renaming.
If an image is important and already well known, you can keep the old address working by adding a redirect yourself, for example with a free redirection plugin. Point the old image address to the new one.
When to rename, and when to leave a name alone #
| Situation | Our advice |
|---|---|
| You just uploaded the image and haven’t published it yet | Rename freely. Nobody outside your site knows the old address. |
| The image is new and only used on your own pages | Rename. Your pages are updated automatically. |
| The image has been online for a long time and gets visitors from Google Images | Think twice. Add a redirect if you rename it, or keep the current name. |
| Other websites link to the image, or you shared it on social media or in a newsletter | Keep the name, or add a redirect from the old address. |
| The current name already describes the image well | Leave it. There is little to gain. |
Before you rename: save and close any post or page you are editing that uses this image, so an open editor doesn’t save the old address back.