If your product image looks correct in Flexify but Meta displays a different image in a catalog ad, this does not necessarily mean that your Flexify image settings are incorrect.
A catalog item can contain a featured image together with additional images. Flexify controls which images it provides to Meta through its feed, but Meta ultimately decides which eligible image to display.
Featured images and additional images #
Flexify treats the featured image and additional product images separately.
Features such as Automatic Image Optimization and Image Templates use the featured product image as the source image. Existing additional product images are not automatically transformed by these features.
If multiple Image Template formats are enabled, Flexify can also generate format-specific versions, such as 1:1, 4:5, or 9:16, and include them as additional images.
Example #
A product has one featured image and five existing additional images.
Flexify applies the Image Template to the featured image. The five existing additional images are not automatically modified by that template.
Meta may therefore receive the templated featured image together with additional product images and may choose another eligible image when displaying the ad.
Why can Meta display a different image? #
Meta's image selection can depend on:
- placement and ad format
- available image aspect ratios
- campaign and creative settings
- additional images available for the catalog item
- automatic media or creative optimizations
Meta may therefore select another catalog image even when the expected featured image was correctly provided by Flexify.
What should I check in Flexify? #
Review which featured and additional images Flexify is sending.
Depending on your setup, you can exclude unnecessary additional images or explicitly define the images to use.
You can also define featured and additional images using Shopify metafields. See Enhancing Your Feeds for Meta with Custom Featured & Additional Images.
How can I verify where the different image is coming from? #
First, check the affected product in Flexify and confirm which featured and additional images Flexify is providing.
Then check the same item in Meta Commerce Manager:
- Under Data Sources → Data Feeds → All Data Sources, review the connected feeds by their feed URLs to make sure another source is not providing a different image.
- If you use the Shopify Product Catalog with Flexify Extension mode, check Configure Sources and make sure Flexify has the correct priority for Image and Additional Image Link.
- Finally, open a sample affected variant and review its Attribute Update History to see which data source provided the image.
For Extension mode setup instructions, see Add Flexify as a Supplementary Feed.
If the correct image is already present in the Meta catalog but the ad still looks different, the issue is likely happening at the ad level.
Check Meta's automatic media and AI settings #
Meta can apply automatic creative enhancements when displaying catalog ads.
In Meta Ads Manager, review the affected ad and disable relevant automatic settings that can modify the media where available, including:
- automatic image or media enhancements
- automatic cropping or creative adjustments
- AI or generative image transformations
The names and availability of these settings can vary depending on the campaign and Meta Ads Manager interface.
These settings are controlled by Meta rather than Flexify.
After making changes #
If you change any image settings in Flexify, update the feed from the app's Overview page and allow Meta time to fetch the latest catalog data before checking the ad again.
Image Template formats and usage #
Additional Image Template formats can generate additional images for matching products and contribute to your image generation usage.
For more information, see Create 1:1, 4:5, and 9:16 Images for Meta Advantage+ Catalog Ads.
Need help? #
If Meta continues to display an unexpected image, contact us at [email protected].
Please include:
- the affected product or variant (public Shopify URL or ID)
- a screenshot of the Attribute Update History
- a screenshot of the Image and Additional Image Link settings under Configure Sources
- the catalog you are using and a screenshot of the Data Sources page
This will help us determine whether the image is coming from Flexify, another catalog data source, Meta's image selection, or an ad-level transformation.