TL;DR: More Images = More Sales
- Product pages with more high-quality images earn more trust and more sales.
- Shoppers expect multiple angles, close-ups, lifestyle/on-model shots, and increasingly UGC and video.
- It’s not just about quantity; clarity, accuracy, and consistency are what inspire confidence and reduce returns.
- Brands that layer in diverse visual formats turn product pages into experiences, not just catalogs. With tools like Pixelz, scaling this variety is easier than ever.
Bottom line: The richer and more trustworthy your product images, the more likely shoppers are to click that buy button.
Over the years, we have shared our knowledge about how to effectively use product images through case studies with international brands, DIY blog posts from industry experts, and shared how Pixelz can help you follow industry best practices.
As a data-driven company, we’re always curious about what the numbers really say. A few years back, we published a blog digging into the stats and research behind product photography and its impact on e-commerce sales. Now, a few years later, we’re revisiting to see what’s still true, what’s changed, and what new trends have emerged.
The core questions remain the same:
- Why does using more images help increase sales?
- Which aspects of product presentation inspire the most trust (and, ultimately, purchases)?
- And on the flip side, what makes a product image feel untrustworthy?
Some of the original research still holds up– like the importance of clarity, framing, and consistency. But as we’ll see, newer findings reveal fresh ways to think about PDP image’s role in building trust and driving conversions. Throughout this update, we’ll highlight the most interesting takeaways—both from past original studies we looked at and the most recent trends we see right now in 2025 and translate them into actionable steps you can use to make sure your product images are working as hard as they should.
More Images = More Consumer Trust = More Sales
There’s no doubt: more images increase conversion rates. Why? Because product photography builds customer trust.
An old one, but a good one: eBay.com Research Labs published a paper studying the impact of product images on conversion rates, finding that:
- Product images “help increase buyers' attention, trust, and conversion rates.”
- Listings with one image had twice the conversion rates of listings with zero images.
- Conversion rates doubled again for listings with two images versus only one.
- There is a clear trend that as photo count increases, the probability of making a profit also increases.
- Higher-quality images were correlated with more successful sellers
In addition to the sheer quantity of images you provide, the researchers also found using larger photos that allow buyers to more easily inspect the details of a product increases the chances that someone will purchase the product. Researchers found that listings using “super-sized” pictures doubled their conversion rates and that offering multiple views using the platform’s product slideshow feature increased conversion rates by 65%.
This study still aligns with current insights, as there are several sources that reinforce these findings today. A 2024 conversion guide calls out zoomable, high-quality images from multiple angles as a modern must-have. 67% of consumers consider the quality of product images vital in their decision-making process, rating it higher than product information (63%), detailed descriptions (54%), and customer reviews (53%).
The takeaway: quantity matters, but so does quality. Not all images build trust equally. Certain formats and characteristics inspire confidence, while others can undermine it.
Customers Notice Best Practices
So what makes an effective visual on the PDP? What are the types of visuals that do well, and what are the characteristics of each?
1. Color Matching
Your product images must reflect what customers will receive. Visual accuracy boosts trust — after all, 67% of consumers say image quality is “very important” when choosing a product.
2. Up-Close & Personal
Show details — texture, stitching, embroidery, tags, seams, hardware. Detailed Shots reduce uncertainty and let shoppers inspect what makes your product unique. Consumers increasingly expect to see fine details to feel confident about their purchase. (Source: Anchanto)
3. On-Model & Lifestyle Shots
Humans instinctively judge scale and fit. In user testing, 42% of shoppers try to judge size from images, but without “in scale” or model shots, that becomes difficult.
So ideally, what you should include:
- Classic model-on-white background for clarity
- Lifestyle/context shots for real-world use- These help people see how the product fits into their lives.
TIP: If models aren’t available, ghost mannequins remain a solid fallback. And now, in 2025, AI-generated models are changing the game, giving brands scalable options to create on-model images without the logistics of a photoshoot.
4. User-Generated Content (UGC)
Shoppers trust other customers. 77% of online buyers want to see real users’ photos rather than only polished brand images. UGC adds authenticity, social proof, and most importantly more variety and more information for your customers. And best of all, you can source them from your customers without having to deal with the logistics of a shoot.
5. Video (Motion Matters)
Video is powerful too. Product pages with videos can raise conversions by up to 80% or more. After watching a product video, 83% of consumers say they’ve been convinced to buy. Videos help show movement, drape, and use in real time, the things static images can’t fully convey.
6. Quantity & Variety — Don’t Underserve
We’ll say it again: three to five images is the bare minimum; fewer makes consumers uneasy. Ideally, 5 to 8 images across several angles, close-ups, styling, and context meet shopper expectations. (Source: Looklet)
From Basics to Beyond: How Product Images Build Trust in 2025
Back in the day, researchers were already digging into what makes a product photo feel trustworthy. A Cornell study, Understanding Image Quality and Trust in Peer-to-Peer Marketplaces, asked test subjects to rate product images as bad, neutral, or good, then analyzed what factors influenced their decisions. Some of their findings still ring true today:
- Framing matters. Images that were too zoomed in (a high foreground-to-background ratio) were less likely to be labeled as high quality.
- Brightness and contrast build confidence. Brighter photos with clear contrast between the product and background were far more likely to be rated as good.
- Small details count. Even minor misalignments or poor framing were enough to make shoppers see a listing as less professional and trustworthy.
Those insights, dating back years, still underline the basics: images must be clear, consistent, and high-quality. Professional product photography continues to deliver measurable impact, with conversion rates climbing by as much as 33% compared to lower-quality visuals.
But in 2025, product pages have moved far beyond the single white-background image. The standard catalog shot still anchors clarity and consistency, yet what sets brands apart now is the mix of extras layered on top. Editorial, lifestyle, UGC, video, 360° spins, they’re all showing up more frequently across leading retailers. You don’t need every format, but weaving in even just one can elevate a product detail page from functional to inspiring.
These additional formats don’t completely replace the essentials, though, but they can amplify them. Together, they answer customer questions: Where could I wear this? What are the details I can’t see? How does it look and feel in while wearing?
The lesson from past studies and present trends is that standard product photos remain the foundation of trust, but to truly elevate the customer experience, brands must go beyond. Mixing in different assets transforms product pages from static catalogs into immersive brand experiences and that’s where loyalty and conversion are won today.
Putting the Research Into Practice
All of that research is well and good, but how do you actually take all of this research and put it into practice to drive more sales?
As a company that works with many of the largest brands on the cutting edge of e-commerce, we suggest a few attainable strategies for offering customers more visual control and graphical characteristics that align perfectly with the research findings.
As we’ve said before, the more professional looking product photography, the better.
Here’s a look at our own PDP build featuring a mix of angles, on-model shots, lifestyle imagery, and even video. The goal: giving customers the richest possible view of the product to drive confidence and conversion. Explore it yourself in our PDP Playground here.
If you’re ready to give your customers more confidence in their purchase decisions, discover how Pixelz tools can help you get there.