# Image file names

Category: [On-Page & Content](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/category/on-page-content/) › [Headings, images & media](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/category/on-page-content/headings-images-media/) · Also known as: image filename, image file name SEO

An **image file name** is the name of the image file on the server, such as `red-running-shoe.jpg`. It becomes part of the image URL and gives search engines a small additional hint about what the image shows.

## What does Google recommend for image file names?

Google's image documentation says to use file names that are short but descriptive, and gives `my-new-black-kitten.jpg` as better than `IMG00023.JPG`. It also advises against generic names such as `image1.jpg` or `pic.gif`.

The file name is secondary to the alt text, which Google calls the most important attribute for providing metadata about an image. Google does not document how much weight a file name carries in ranking.

Because the file name is part of the URL, renaming an image changes the URL. If the same image appears on several pages, referencing one URL everywhere lets browsers and crawlers reuse it.

The search results for this term mostly cover operating-system file naming and photo software, so the SEO meaning is easy to miss.

## Example

| Before | After |
|---|---|
| `IMG_0042.JPG` | `red-running-shoe-womens.jpg` |
| `Photo 2 (final).png` | `running-shoe-size-8.png` |

The page then adds alt text such as "Red women's running shoe, side view".

## Common mistakes

- Keeping camera or export names like `DSC_1234.jpg`
- Uploading the same image under several names, so crawlers fetch several URLs
- Spaces and special characters in the name, which produce encoded URLs with `%20`

## FAQ

**How should image files be named for SEO?**
Short, descriptive, and readable by people. Separate words with hyphens, as in Google's own example. Google recommends hyphens over underscores as word separators in URLs.

## Related terms

- [Image SEO](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/image-seo/index.md)
- [Alt text](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/alt-text/index.md)
- [Image pack](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/image-pack/index.md)
- [Image sitemap](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/image-sitemap/index.md)
- [Google Images](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/google-images/index.md)

## Sources

- [Google Image SEO best practices – Google Search Central](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/google-images)
- [Image file type and format guide – MDN](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/Media/Guides/Formats/Image_types)
- [URL structure best practices for Google Search – Google Search Central](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/url-structure)

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Last updated: October 7, 2026
URL: https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/image-file-names/