Are your images accessible, stable and actually loading?

Missing alt text hides images from screen readers and image search. Missing width and height make the page jump as images load, which hurts Core Web Vitals. And a broken image URL is invisible until someone notices the blank box.

Reads images in a set of key pages and checks a few image URLs resolve. Saved to your account if you are signed in to a paid plan.

How this check works

Shipwork parses the images in a set of your key pages, counts those without alt text and without width/height attributes, then fetches a few image URLs to confirm they load. It reads raw HTML, so it sees what a crawler sees rather than a rendered screenshot.

What the image check inspects

Shipwork parses image tags in the HTML of a set of key pages. It counts images without alt text and images missing either a width or height attribute. It then resolves image source URLs and sends HEAD requests to a limited sample to see whether those URLs return a successful response. Broken image findings identify the page where the URL appeared.

The free check reads raw HTML rather than a rendered screenshot. It does not evaluate whether alt text is well written, whether an image is visually relevant, its file size or format, responsive srcset quality, image search rankings, or every asset on the site. Some image servers do not support HEAD correctly; a failed probe is a reason to inspect the URL, not always proof that a shopper sees a broken image.

How to read the image findings

A missing-alt warning counts image tags that have no alt attribute as read by the checker. Informative images should get concise text describing the information they add; decorative images generally need an empty alt value so assistive technology can skip them. Do not repeat a product keyword in every image description. The tool counts presence, not quality or whether an image is decorative.

A missing-dimensions finding means width or height is absent from the HTML. Supplying intrinsic dimensions lets the browser reserve space before an image loads and can reduce layout shifts. A broken URL result means the sampled request did not return a successful response. Open that image and its page in a browser, then check whether the path is wrong, access is restricted, or the host handles HEAD differently.

Common image problems and their impact

Product photos often inherit empty or filename-based alt text from a bulk import. Screen-reader users then miss useful visual information, and search engines have less text context about an image. A descriptive alt should identify the product or meaningful scene without turning the attribute into a list of search terms. A product image that is purely decorative around adjacent text may need empty alt instead.

Missing dimensions cause the browser to discover image size only after loading in some layouts, which can move nearby text and controls. Broken assets leave blank spaces on product, article or category pages. Both problems affect people first; image discoverability and page stability are useful secondary benefits. This check does not measure Core Web Vitals or estimate image compression savings.

Fix alt text, dimensions and broken URLs

For each informative image, add an accurate alt value such as alt="Blue wool jacket shown from the front". For a decorative divider, use alt="". In a CMS, edit the image's accessible text or the template that outputs the img element; avoid writing descriptive copy into the filename alone and assuming it becomes alt text.

Add the source image's intrinsic width and height to the rendered image element, for example <img src="/images/jacket.jpg" width="1200" height="1500" alt="Blue wool jacket shown from the front">. Preserve responsive CSS and srcset; dimensions reserve the aspect ratio and do not require displaying the image at its full pixel size. For a broken URL, replace or restore the file, correct the source path, or remove a genuinely obsolete image. Re-run the check on the affected pages.

Choose the right related tool

Use image weight when the question is bytes, formats, or responsive image delivery; this free image check does not measure those. Use accessibility check for other raw-HTML issues such as labels, link text and iframe titles. If product information is missing from search markup rather than the photo itself, use structured data check.

Fix repeated image problems in the template or asset library rather than editing only the first example. If a theme outputs the same logo on many pages, correct the shared template once. If imported products have individual photo descriptions, update the source catalog data so future syncs do not overwrite your changes. Then sample pages on mobile and desktop and verify the source image is still reachable.

Questions

Why does alt text matter?

It describes images to screen readers and to search engines, and it is how image search understands what an image shows.

Why set width and height on images?

It reserves space before the image loads, so the page does not shift: one of the Core Web Vitals.

Does this check image file size?

A full weight audit (every image, its bytes and format) is part of the paid deep crawl. The free check reads a few URLs for reachability.

How do I check image alt text for SEO?

The image check scans image tags in the HTML it reads and counts those without an alt attribute. It can identify missing attributes but cannot decide whether the text accurately describes an image. Review informative product and content images manually, write concise descriptions, and use empty alt text for decorative images.

Should decorative images have alt text?

Decorative images should generally use an empty alt attribute, such as alt="", so assistive technology can skip them. Informative images need text that conveys relevant visual information. Shipwork counts missing attributes; it does not determine whether each image is decorative or evaluate the wording you supplied.

Why add width and height to HTML images?

Width and height attributes give the browser an intrinsic aspect ratio so it can reserve layout space before the file finishes loading. That can reduce unexpected shifts around images. The attributes do not mean the image must display at those pixel dimensions; CSS can still size it responsively.

Does the free image checker measure file size or WebP?

No. This check counts missing alt and dimensions and probes a limited sample of image URLs for reachability. It does not audit every image's bytes, format or responsive variants. Use the image weight tool for questions about heavy files and formats.

Why does an image show as broken in the check but load in my browser?

The checker makes an external HEAD request to a limited sample, while your browser may use a cached GET request or different access rules. Some image servers respond differently to HEAD. Open the exact URL in a private browser window and inspect the server response before replacing a file that still loads for visitors.

Keep reading

What this reads

Reads every image tag on the page, not a sample.
Reports missing alt text, missing width and height, and images that are not lazy-loaded.
Reads the raw HTML, so it sees what a crawler sees before any script runs.

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0stored on free checks

Cool, just ran an audit and got some insights! Let’s see if I can fix them :)

Tenta Dev, @DevTenta

Whoah! this site is crazy, nothing to roast at all

Ainreek, @AinreekAI

cool as heck, tried it on my blog and the insights it gave are helpful and not bluff.

Refaat 🍉 (Mouse), @1Mouse__