How to Rank Higher on Google Images

12 Tips for Ranking Higher in Google Images

Use Original Images

Whenever possible, use original images rather than stock photos or images from other websites. Google prefers to index original content, so unique photos or illustrations that haven't been used elsewhere are more likely to rank well.

If you're selling products where it doesn't make sense to take original photos (e.g., branded air conditioners), using professional photos from manufacturers is fine. But for anything where originality matters, make your own visuals.

Use Descriptive Image File Names

Before uploading an image, rename the file with a keyword-rich and descriptive name. Don't use the default phone or camera file names like PXL_20240916_171743831.jpg.

• Bad: IMG12345.jpg
  
• Better: tiny-goats-playing-at-bnb-asheville.jpg

Optimize for High Quality and Fast Loading

Ensure your images are optimized for both quality and loading speed. Resize the images to their maximum rendered dimensions and compress them for faster download times.

For example, if your image is meant for mobile, tablet, and desktop, create different versions for each:

• Mobile: 480px wide
• Tablet: 768px wide
• Desktop: 1024px wide

Save your images in modern formats like WEBP or AVIF for faster loading times. You can use tools like Squoosh to compress your images and convert them to these formats.

Check out our detailed, before and after test pages that compare and measure different approaches to optimizing images for speed.

Include Keywords in Your Image Alt Tags

Alt tags serve multiple purposes:

• Fallback Text: If an image fails to load, the alt text is displayed in its place.
• Accessibility: Screen readers use the alt text to describe the image to visually impaired visitors.
• SEO: Google uses the alt text to understand the image and how it relates to the page's content.

Use concise, keyword-rich descriptions in your alt tags. But don't stuff irrelevant keywords—Google can identify when alt text doesn't match the image. Keep the text to around 125 characters or fewer.

• Bad: chickens
• Better: the pampered chickens at our BnB near Asheville provide guests with farm-fresh eggs daily

Add Keyword-Rich Captions

Captions are another opportunity to describe your image. Google looks at surrounding text, including captions, to further understand the image content.

You can repeat or paraphrase the alt tag but captions are another opportunity to include additional related keywords.

• Bad: Our BnB chickens
• Better: Our flock of free-range hens, roaming near the guest house, provide guests with farm-fresh eggs each day.

Include Schema Markup (Structured Data)

Schema markup provides search engines with additional context about your images. While Google already scans your images, including structured data can give your visuals an SEO boost.

Here's an example of image schema markup:

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "ImageObject",
  "contentUrl": "https://www.ashevillefarm.com/beautiful-fall-tree-colors-around-the-bnb-home.jpg",
  "description": "October is peak leaf season at our farm stay near Asheville, NC.",
  "name": "Spectacular fall colors around our Asheville bed and breakfast",
  "thumbnailUrl": "https://yourwebsite.com/beautiful-fall-tree-colors-around-the-bnb-home-small.jpg"
}

Use Facebook Open Graph and Twitter Card for Social Sharing

While this isn't directly related to Google Images, optimizing images for social media (using Open Graph for Facebook and Twitter Card tags) ensures your images look great when shared on those platforms.

Example Open Graph markup:

<meta property="og:image" content="https://yourwebsite.com/image.jpg" />
<meta property="og:image:alt" content="A guide on how to optimize images for websites">

Example Twitter Card markup:

<meta name="twitter:image" content="https://yourwebsite.com/image.jpg">

Be Careful with Watermarks

Watermarks are fine, but they should be subtle. When they obscure too much of the image, Google might not rank the image as high. If used, aim for small, off-to-the-side watermarks.

Consider Image Placement

Place your images prominently on the page, ideally above the fold. Google takes note of where images appear, and visuals located higher on the page may perform better in image search.

Add an Image Sitemap

Create an image sitemap and keep it updated. Google relies on these sitemaps to find and understand your images more easily, especially if some images are loaded via JavaScript. Sitemaps are also a way that all critical images get indexed for larger websites or ecommerce sites with hundreds of items

Use tools like Image Sitemap Generator to quickly generate a sitemap.

Use Multiple Images

Where appropriate, include multiple images on a page. Visual variety enhances your page structure, providing more opportunities for ranking across different image search results.

Monitor Performance

Use these tools to track how well your images are performing:

1. Google PageSpeed Insights: Check for slow-loading images or missing alt tags.
2. Google Search Console: See how much traffic your images generate.
   • Go to the Performance report.
   • Filter by Search Type > Image to view image-specific data.

Tools for Monitoring Image Optimization

These are essential tools to keep your images optimized:

• Google PageSpeed Insights

  For performance issues.

• Google Search Console

  For tracking traffic from image searches.

• Squoosh

  For image compression and format conversion.

Conclusion: Benefits of Image Optimization

By optimizing your images for quality, speed, and relevance, Google Images can help your business in a variety of ways:

• Generate Referral Traffic

  With over a billion visitors a day, top rankings in Google Images can generate tremendous interest for the right types of products or services.

• Enhance User Experience

  Fast-loading, optimized images improve user satisfaction and engagement.

• Boost Website Authority

  Consistently ranking in Google Images builds trust and credibility.

• Support Overall Search Engine Rankings

  Images are a known ranking factor for Google. Properly optimizing them helps your entire website rank better.