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The 794px trap

794px 陷阱

  1. Right-click save often grabs a 794px preview — not the file you uploaded.
  2. Measure the file on your computer, or let TagPeek find the full-size source on the live page.
  3. After you re-upload, wait a bit, then check zoom on desktop.

Why this traps sellers

I learned this the hard way on my own listing. I opened the page, right-clicked the hero, saved it, and measured. The size looked fine. I still could not get hover-zoom to turn on after re-upload.

The saved file is not your upload. Etsy shows a smaller preview so the page loads fast. When the URL has il_794xN in it, that number is the display width — not your original. Treating that download as the real file is the 794px trap.

Your original file is still there — Etsy just does not hand out that link by default. The page shows you the fast-loading preview instead. TagPeek looks for the fuller source on the live listing first, then checks the pixel floors. We also wrote this up in Rule 06.

Why Etsy serves a smaller image

Etsy sends the smaller version because it loads faster for buyers. Search pages load thousands of thumbnails. Buyers still see a clear enough photo at card size. The catch is you see the small version first when you save from the page.

Even the page's own code points at the preview — so if you go looking there, you will just find the same wrong number. Downloading from there repeats the mistake unless you open the full-size link.

How I measure the right file

I keep my exports from Photoshop, Canva, or Lightroom and drop those into TagPeek's free checker. Everything runs in the browser; nothing uploads.

You'll see the real size of your image, whether zoom is on, and exactly what to re-upload.

If you only have the 794px save left, blowing it up will not bring detail back. A blurry photo blown up to 2000px technically passes — but when a buyer zooms in, it still looks blurry. Find the original project file or take a new shot.

Some shops copy listings from templates. The copy keeps the preview links in notes while the real photos sit in a shared folder. Pick one folder per listing before you measure anything. TagPeek scores what Etsy shows on the live page — that is what buyers see after you publish.

Sales-estimate tools never needed your master file. They pull marketplace stats. We don't guess sales; we check Etsy's published listing rules. Comparing Alura, eRank, or EtsyHunt will not tell you if your hero is a preview.

After you re-upload

After I re-upload a corrected file, I wait for the page to catch up, then check on desktop. TagPeek on the listing page shows whether zoom turns on with the new photo. I keep the checker notes so my next export uses the same settings.

If you work with a photographer, ask for exports where the short side clears 2000px after a square crop. Or put the exact size in the brief. It is much easier to get this right up front than to rescue a 794px save later.

If you have help: saving from the page is fine for ideas, but when you need to measure, use your own file. Measure your own file, or check the live listing with a tool that understands Etsy's preview layers.

Browser tools that show sales badges do not fix this mix-up. They read marketplace stats, not your photo files. Use research tools for research, and check the live page for photo rules.

Bulk editors that rewrite titles across hundreds of listings rarely touch the photos. After a big SEO pass, spot-check the heroes anyway. Perfect titles with a 794px-derived hero still fail zoom.

Photographers sometimes send 2048px long-edge exports where a tall product shot has a short side of only 1365px. Always check the shortest side, not the long-edge number in the email.

Keep your originals somewhere safe — and name them after the listing so you can find them later. When Etsy updates Help articles, you can re-export from source instead of upscaling years of right-click saves.

Marketplace coaches sometimes teach screenshot competitor listings for mood boards. Keep those references out of your measurement folder. A board full of 794px saves is fine for ideas and dangerous as an export target.

If you and someone else both edit the shop, agree on one way to name your final files. It saves a lot of "which version is this?" arguments. Zoom fights often start when someone uploaded v2-final-really-final instead of the checker-approved export.

Listing importers that scrape competitor pages will pull 794px assets by design. If you use imports for inspiration, replace every hero with your own master before you publish. TagPeek on the live URL confirms whether you succeeded.

Some tools help you with filenames, but none of that can turn zoom on. Only the real image size matters. Keep filename tips separate from the size checklist.

If your design tool shows canvas size in inches, convert to pixels on export. Use 300 DPI only when print needs it. Web listings need pixel floors, not inch labels on the artboard.

Sources in TagPeek

Image-size guidance: Etsy recommends at least 2000px on both sides. This tool measures image dimensions; it cannot establish live zoom availability from dimensions alone. Verify zoom on the listing itself.