Overview

When uploading product images to Amazon Seller Central, sellers may encounter an error stating that their image file is corrupted or in an unexpected format. This is one of the more common listing issues that can delay product launches or updates. Understanding the accepted file formats, size limits, and color modes will help you resolve these errors quickly and keep your listings running smoothly.

Key Points / What Sellers Need to Know

• Accepted file formats — Amazon supports JPEG (.jpg or .jpeg), TIFF (.tif), PNG (.png), and non-animated GIF (.gif). JPEG is the recommended format for product images.
• Color mode matters — Images should use the RGB color model. CMYK images can cause color tonal variations when displayed on the website, which may trigger upload errors.
• Maximum pixel dimensions — Images with more than 10,000 pixels on either the height or width axis will fail to upload. Keep your images within this limit.
• File integrity is required — Incomplete downloads, corrupted files, or improperly saved files (such as unflattened TIFF or PSD files saved with a .jpg extension) will be rejected by the system.
• Wrong file extensions cause failures — If a file's actual format doesn't match its extension (for example, a PSD file renamed to .jpg without proper conversion), Amazon's system will flag it as corrupted.

Common Causes of This Error

There are several reasons why Amazon may reject your product image during upload. The most frequent culprit is a mismatch between the file's actual format and its extension. This happens when sellers rename a file's extension without properly converting it through an image editing program. For instance, simply changing a .psd file to .jpg does not actually convert it to JPEG format — the internal file structure remains unchanged, and Amazon's validation will catch this. Another common issue involves unflattened TIFF or PSD files. These files contain multiple layers, and when saved directly as JPEG without flattening, the resulting file can be malformed. Additionally, files that were only partially downloaded or transferred may appear corrupted even if the format is technically correct.