HighTrustMeasured

Broken images

Shoppers see an empty box or a broken-image icon where a photo should be.

Checked on: homepage, product pages, collection pages and the cart (with an item in it) · Zolvio’s check: “Broken images”

Why it costs you sales

A broken image is hard to miss: an empty frame or a broken-picture icon where a product photo, banner or logo should be. It makes the store look unattended, and on a product page it hides what the shopper came to see.

It happens when a section, a description or an app points to an image file that has since been deleted, renamed or replaced.

How Zolvio detects it

While each page loads on its own in a real browser, Zolvio notes every image file your store or Shopify’s image server answers “not found” (404) or “gone” (410) for. The page is flagged when it shows one of those images broken: loaded, with no picture, in a space at least 10 by 10 pixels. The finding lists each image with its address (up to ten).

Images from other companies’ sites aren’t checked. Other errors, such as a server error or a refused request, don’t count either: they can be a passing hiccup, or an answer given only to the audit’s browser.

Members-only pages aren’t judged: a page without an add-to-cart form that shows a password or verification form in its content, such as a lock app’s (Easy Lockdown, Locksmith) or a VIP sign-in in the theme. A sign-in box in the header, the footer, a pop-up or a drawer doesn’t count, since it’s on every page. Neither is a product page used for a consultation or a quote: one without an add-to-cart form whose main content asks the shopper to request a quote, talk to a specialist or book a consultation. An ask your buyable product pages show too, such as a banner on every page, doesn’t count.

This is a direct measurement, so it’s reported on every plan, including Free and audits with AI turned off. With AI review on, the AI agent also checks it against the audit’s evidence before it reaches your issue list.

How to fix it

  1. Open the page the finding names and find the section or block that shows each broken image.
  2. In the theme editor, choose the image again, or upload it again, from Content → Files.
  3. For a product photo, re-upload it in the product’s Media in Shopify admin; for an image inside a product or page description, edit that description in admin.
  4. Reload the page and check the image appears.

This is usually a change in Shopify admin or the theme editor, not to theme code.

In Zolvio: on paid plans with AI turned on, the guided fix writes these steps for your own store and theme: where to click in Shopify admin or the theme editor, or which file to open, the line to find and the code to add. Each file opens in Shopify’s code editor. Zolvio never edits your theme: you make the change, then Verify fix checks your published theme for code changes (or you mark it fixed), and later audits confirm the problem is gone.

Common questions

Why does “Broken images” cost a Shopify store sales?

A broken image is hard to miss: an empty frame or a broken-picture icon where a product photo, banner or logo should be. It makes the store look unattended, and on a product page it hides what the shopper came to see. It happens when a section, a description or an app points to an image file that has since been deleted, renamed or replaced.

How does Zolvio detect “Broken images”?

While each page loads on its own in a real browser, Zolvio notes every image file your store or Shopify’s image server answers “not found” (404) or “gone” (410) for. The page is flagged when it shows one of those images broken: loaded, with no picture, in a space at least 10 by 10 pixels. The finding lists each image with its address (up to ten). Images from other companies’ sites aren’t checked. Other errors, such as a server error or a refused request, don’t count either: they can be a passing hiccup, or an answer given only to the audit’s browser. Members-only pages aren’t judged: a page without an add-to-cart form that shows a password or verification form in its content, such as a lock app’s (Easy Lockdown, Locksmith) or a VIP sign-in in the theme. A sign-in box in the header, the footer, a pop-up or a drawer doesn’t count, since it’s on every page. Neither is a product page used for a consultation or a quote: one without an add-to-cart form whose main content asks the shopper to request a quote, talk to a specialist or book a consultation. An ask your buyable product pages show too, such as a banner on every page, doesn’t count.

How do I fix “Broken images” on Shopify?

Open the page the finding names and find the section or block that shows each broken image. In the theme editor, choose the image again, or upload it again, from Content → Files. For a product photo, re-upload it in the product’s Media in Shopify admin; for an image inside a product or page description, edit that description in admin. Reload the page and check the image appears.

Related

Documentation

  • How audits work — What an audit scans and how findings become issues.
  • Guided fixes — Step-by-step fixes written for your theme, with links into the code editor.
  • Surveys — Ask shoppers what’s holding them back.