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Email rendering complianceReviewed September 7, 2026

What is Image blocking?

Image blocking is the receiving client's decision not to load remote images automatically, leaving the message to communicate through its remaining text and structure.

Who this applies to#

  • Plan for image blocking whenever essential meaning, a price, or a call to action appears inside a remote image

What Image blocking requires#

  • Keep essential meaning in live text and provide useful alternatives for informative images
Gmail

Gmail normally displays images automatically but can ask before displaying external images it considers suspicious

What this does not require#

  • A recipient does not have to load images before the message can communicate its main offer and action

Common mistakes#

  1. Putting the whole message in one image
  2. Using file names as alternative text
  3. Leaving an image-only button without a text link

Image blocking checklist#

  • Disable images
  • Read the message
  • Check alternative text
  • Check the primary link

Official sources#