Are AI product images allowed on Amazon, Flipkart, Shopify and Google Shopping?

Does Amazon allow AI-generated product images?

Yes, with two things to watch. First, the people rule. Amazon announced in 2026 that images and videos containing photorealistic AI-generated people must be tagged before they go into listings and A+ content. The tag is the keyword contains-synthetic-performer in the dc:subject (XMP) field, added with an IPTC-compatible metadata editor. Amazon gives recent legislation requiring disclosure of photorealistic AI-generated people in advertising as the reason. It applies in any worldwide store, so it covers Amazon.in. Amazon lists what is exempt: images showing only real people, even if AI-edited, characters from films, television or games, images with no people, and people who are not photorealistic. It says it will add an indicator for customers where applicable¹.

Second, the main image. Amazon's published checklist is about content. It asks for a pure white background, a product filling 85 to 100 percent of the frame, at least 1,000 pixels on the longest side, the whole product in view, and no text, logos, watermarks or promotional messaging³. An Amazon.in moderator guide repeats the white background and 85 percent fill, and gives 500 to 10,000 pixels on the longest side⁸. Neither post mentions AI.

On renders and AI specifically, one Amazon staff reply is the most direct statement we found. It says the main-image policy does not explicitly address 3D renders or AI-generated images, that the requirement is to represent the product accurately as a realistic, professional-quality image, and that a render indistinguishable from a photo may not cause problems but carries no official guarantee. It advises a real product photo for the main image and renders in secondary slots⁴. That is a forum reply, not policy text.

What does Google Shopping require?

Google Merchant Center states the rule in its image documentation: all images created using generative AI must contain metadata indicating that the image was AI-generated, and tags such as the IPTC DigitalSourceType trainedAlgorithmicMedia must not be removed. That includes images made with Google's own Product Studio². A dedicated help page covers the three attributes it applies to: image_link, additional_image_link and lifestyle_image_link⁹.

The IPTC, which maintains the standard, published the same guidance in February 2024 and urged that product inventory tools such as Magento and WooCommerce not strip image metadata either⁵. In practice, check the file you actually upload, after any resizing, compression or background-removal step, with an IPTC metadata viewer.

The same page keeps its usual image rules for AI images. It disallows promotional overlays, watermarks and added logos, and a placeholder or generic image that does not show your product². A generated image that no longer shows your real item may run into that last rule.

What does Shopify say?

On the Shopify page we read, the rules are about its own generator. An invisible watermark is applied to all generated images, which does not restrict commercial use and cannot be removed. Shopify says it does not claim ownership of images merchants create with it, and that they can be used for business purposes inside and outside Shopify⁶. The page states no disclosure or labelling requirement.

We found no Shopify rule that bans or requires labelling of AI product images on a merchant's own store. If your Shopify products feed into Google Shopping or Amazon, those platforms' rules above apply to the feed and the listing.

What about Flipkart?

No official rule found. We read Flipkart's public Seller Terms of Use, dated 26 June 2025. It makes the seller responsible for content posted on the platform and gives Flipkart a licence to use and modify that content, including through generative AI tools. It does not say whether a seller's AI-generated product image is allowed, barred or must be disclosed⁷. For food, it requires sellers not to make misleading images of food products available⁷.

Flipkart's public listing guide asks for high-resolution images from multiple angles that show the product comprehensively, and does not mention AI¹⁰. Third-party guides give conflicting image specifications, so we did not use them.

Where to confirm: open the image guidelines for your category inside Seller Hub, and ask Seller Support in writing whether AI-generated or AI-edited images are accepted. Keep the reply. The detailed catalogue rules sit behind the seller login, and they can differ by category.

How do I use AI product images without getting suppressed?

The rules above point the same way. Five habits cover them:

• Start from a real, accurate photo of the product, and keep a real photo as the main image on Amazon⁴.
• Keep the AI metadata in every file you upload to Google Merchant Center, and tag photorealistic AI people on Amazon²¹.
• Keep text, logos and promotional badges off main images³.
• Check that the image still shows your actual product, not a lookalike².
• Where a platform's page is silent, ask its support in writing and save the answer.