- Merchant Center’s help page for the low image quality issue now says the product will continue to show in ads and free listings. [1]
- The earlier wording said the product may be prevented from showing until the image improved, according to Search Engine Roundtable. [2]
- A separate rule is unchanged: at least 500 x 500 pixels for all product images, enforced from January 31, 2027. [1]
- Google recommends 1500 x 1500 pixels or above, and caps images at 64 megapixels and 16MB. [3]
- Overlays, placeholders, borders, and single-color images still lead to disapproval. [3]
- Automatic image improvements can remove overlays, and the setting is off by default. [4]
- AI-generated images must keep their IPTC metadata, and get a visible label in the EU, India, and New York. [3][5]
Anyone who manages a large product feed knows the low image quality flag. It turns up on supplier photos, marketplace imports, and anything that was resized once too often. Until recently it carried a threat. Google’s help page said a flagged product might be kept out of ads and free listings until the image improved. [2]
That sentence is gone. The page now describes the problem and then adds a note in its place. [1]
“As a result, this product may be prevented from showing in ads and free listings until the image quality improves.” As quoted by Search Engine Roundtable. [2]
“Note: Your product will continue to show in ads and free listings.” [1]
Google did not announce it. The page has no date on the edit, and the change came to light when PPC specialist Hana Kobzova noticed it and Search Engine Roundtable reported it on October 12. [2]
What the change means, and what it does not
It means the flag is no longer a reason to expect lost impressions. For a catalog with thousands of affected products, that moves the issue from the top of the list to somewhere in the middle.
It does not mean image quality stopped mattering. The same page still says: “High image quality correlates strongly with user engagement and clicks.” [1] Google gives no figure for that, and it does not say whether a flagged image is treated differently in ranking or in the auction. So the honest reading is narrow. Your product stays eligible. Nobody has told you it performs the same.
The rule that still removes products
The help page that softened one rule restates another at the top, in a box marked Important. All product images must be at least 500 x 500 pixels, enforcement begins on January 31, 2027, and warnings have been going out since July 2026 on images above the old minimum but below the new one. [1]
These are different tests, and an image can pass one and fail the other.
| Low image quality | Image size | |
|---|---|---|
| What it checks | Blur, pixelation, low resolution [1] | Dimensions in pixels [3] |
| Threshold | Not published | 500 x 500 minimum, 1500 x 1500 recommended [3] |
| Consequence today | Flagged, product keeps showing [1] | Warning [1] |
| Consequence from January 31, 2027 | No change announced | Enforced [1] |
A large, soft photo is flagged and keeps serving. A sharp photo at 400 pixels wide is the one with a deadline. The image link specification adds two upper limits, 64 megapixels and 16MB per file, and one framing recommendation: the product should fill at least 75% and no more than 90% of the image. [3]
The specification’s list of disapproval reasons has not been relaxed either. Promotional overlays, calls to action, prices, watermarks, and logos added in post-production, placeholders such as “Coming soon,” single-color squares, and borders all keep an image off Google surfaces. [3]
What Google will fix for you
Two tools sit behind these rules, and both come with conditions.
Automatic image improvements: Merchant Center will try to remove text, watermarks, overlays, or logos it detects. The setting is turned off by default, under Automations in the Products section. Google says it may fail on collages, heavy text over the product, and dense watermarks. [4]
Product Studio: a free set of AI tools in Merchant Center that includes a feature to increase image resolution, available to all Merchant Center users except those based in Russia and France. [6]
Upscaling a small image with Product Studio is the obvious route to the 500 pixel floor, and it brings a second obligation with it. Google requires that images created with generative AI keep metadata marking them as such, and tells merchants not to strip the IPTC tag that tools like Product Studio embed. [3] For campaigns that target the European Union, India, or New York, assets you designate as AI created or edited also carry a visible label on the ad. [5] If your feed pipeline re-encodes images and drops metadata, check that step before you run a catalog through an AI tool.
What to do before January
- Split the work into two queues: images under 500 x 500 pixels, and images that are large enough and flagged for quality.
- Clear the first queue by the end of the year. That one has a date.
- In Merchant Center, open Products, then Needs attention, filter by the issue title, and download the list of affected products. [1]
- Rank the second queue by revenue, and replace images for the products that earn the most.
- Decide whether to turn on automatic image improvements, and review what it changed. [4]
- If you upscale with AI, keep the metadata and check the label rules for the markets you target. [3][5]
Read narrowly, the edit replaces a hard block with a soft one. A hard block at least told you something was wrong. A product that keeps showing with a weak photo tells you nothing unless you look at how it performs. That is one more reason to read a feed the way we described in our piece on product feeds, as the thing the campaign is built from.
Sources
- Google Merchant Center Help · How to fix: Low image quality [image_link]Primary. Read October 13, 2026. The page carries no edit date.
- Search Engine Roundtable · Google: Poor Image Quality Won’t Stop Products From Showing In Search Or AdsTrade press, October 12, 2026. Source for the earlier wording of Google’s page.
- Google Merchant Center Help · Image link [image_link]Primary. Product data specification.
- Google Merchant Center Help · Allow Merchant Center to improve your product imagesPrimary.
- Google Ads Help · Use AI content label settings and disclosuresPrimary.
- Google Merchant Center Help · About Product Studio for Merchant CenterPrimary.
Frequently asked questions
Will a low image quality warning stop my product from showing?
Not according to the current help page. It says one or more of the product’s images has poor quality, such as blurriness, pixelation, or low resolution, and adds a note: your product will continue to show in ads and free listings. Search Engine Roundtable reports that the earlier version said the product may be prevented from showing until the image quality improves.
When did Google make the change?
Google’s page carries no date for the edit. Search Engine Roundtable reported it on October 12, 2026, crediting PPC specialist Hana Kobzova with spotting it.
What is the minimum product image size?
At least 500 x 500 pixels for all product images, with enforcement beginning January 31, 2027. Google says merchants have been receiving warnings since July 2026 on images larger than the old minimum but smaller than 500 x 500. It recommends 1500 x 1500 pixels or above for best performance in all listing formats.
What still gets an image disapproved?
Google’s image link specification lists promotional elements and overlays such as calls to action, prices, watermarks, and added logos, placeholders or generic graphics that do not show the product, single-color images, and borders. An image that breaks those rules will not appear on Google surfaces.
Can Google fix my images automatically?
Partly. Merchant Center has an automatic image improvements setting that tries to remove text, watermarks, overlays, or logos from product images. It is turned off by default, and Google says it may not resolve all issues. Product Studio, a free set of tools in Merchant Center, includes a feature to increase image resolution.
Do AI-edited product images need a label?
Images created with generative AI must keep metadata that marks them as AI-generated, such as the IPTC DigitalSourceType tag, and Google tells merchants not to remove it. For campaigns targeting the European Union, India, or New York, ads with assets you designate as AI created or edited also carry a visible label.
Mikołaj Salecki
Writes about media, tech, and AI business for people who actually run digital. Former agency lead. Skeptic of frameworks that read better than they perform.
