Open Graph (OG) Image Verifier & Preview Tool
Free Open Graph (OG) image verifier and link preview tool. Enter any URL to fetch its og:image, og:title, twitter:card, and other meta tags, then see live previews of how the link card renders on X/Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and WhatsApp. Catches missing images, wrong sizes, non-HTTPS URLs, and other issues before you share.
What is the OG Image Verifier?
When you share a link on social media or a messaging app, the platform fetches your page and reads its Open Graph (og:) and Twitter Card (twitter:) meta tags to build a preview card — the image, title, and description people see before they click. The OG Image Verifier fetches those exact tags from any public URL and renders faithful previews of how the card will look on X/Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and WhatsApp.
Because every platform reads the raw server-rendered HTML (not JavaScript), caches previews on its own schedule, and applies its own size and format rules, a card that looks perfect in one place can break in another. This tool surfaces the common problems — a missing or relative og:image, no twitter:card, an image served over plain HTTP, or an over-long description — so you can fix them before you post.
Enter a full URL (https://example.com/page) and click Check. The verifier shows the detected tags, flags any issues, and previews the unfurled card for each platform.
Frequently asked questions
What is an Open Graph (OG) image and what does it actually do?
The Open Graph image is the preview thumbnail that appears when your link is shared on social media or messaging apps. You set it with the og:image meta tag in your page's <head>, and platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and WhatsApp read it when their crawler visits your URL. It's the single biggest visual factor in whether people click your shared link.
What size should my OG image be?
Use 1200 × 630 pixels (a 1.91:1 aspect ratio) — this is the universally recommended size and works across Facebook, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Discord, and Slack. Keep it above the 600 × 315 minimum, since smaller images render as a tiny thumbnail instead of a large card. Avoid putting important text near the edges, because some platforms crop slightly.
What's the best image format for OG images — JPG, PNG, or WebP?
Use JPG or PNG; JPG is best for photos and keeps file size down, while PNG is better for graphics with text, sharp lines, or transparency. Avoid WebP — Facebook and several other crawlers don't reliably render it for link previews, so a WebP og:image often shows up blank even though it loads fine in a browser. SVG is not supported at all.
What's the maximum file size for an OG image?
Facebook and X/Twitter allow images up to 5–8MB, but you should keep your OG image well under 1MB so crawlers fetch it quickly. WhatsApp is the strictest: its image must be under ~600KB or the preview won't render. A 1200 × 630 JPG at reasonable quality is typically 100–300KB, which is safe everywhere.
Why isn't my OG image showing up at all?
The most common cause is a relative image URL — og:image must be an absolute URL starting with https:// (e.g. https://example.com/og.jpg), or crawlers will ignore it. Other frequent causes are the image being behind login/auth, a robots.txt or firewall rule blocking the platform's crawler, the file being too large, or the og: tags being injected by client-side JavaScript that crawlers don't execute. OG tags must be present in the server-rendered HTML.
Does my OG image URL need to be HTTPS and publicly accessible?
Yes. The image must be served over HTTPS and reachable by an anonymous request, because social crawlers fetch it without your cookies or session. If the URL sits behind authentication, a staging password, an IP allowlist, or a paywall, the crawler gets a 401/403 and shows no image. Test by opening the exact og:image URL in a private/incognito window.
Why does my preview update on one platform but show the old image on another?
Each platform caches link previews independently and on its own schedule, so an updated image can appear instantly on one and lag for days on another. Facebook caches roughly 7 days (or until you re-scrape), LinkedIn caches for about 7 days, X/Twitter caches for around a week, and WhatsApp caches very aggressively. Use each platform's debugger to force a refresh rather than waiting.
Do I need both og: tags and twitter: tags?
Not strictly — X/Twitter falls back to your og:image and og:title if the equivalent twitter: tags are missing, so valid Open Graph tags alone usually work everywhere. The one tag worth adding is twitter:card (set to summary_large_image) to guarantee a big image card on X. Beyond that, duplicating identical twitter:title/description tags is redundant.
Why do my meta tags look correct in the browser but crawlers say they're missing?
This almost always means your og: tags are rendered client-side by JavaScript. Social crawlers (Facebook, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, Discord) read only the raw initial HTML and do not run JavaScript, so tags added after page load are invisible to them. Server-render or statically generate your meta tags so they're present in the HTML response — verify with "View Source" (not DevTools' Elements panel).
How do I test my OG image before sharing a link?
Paste your URL into this verifier to see the detected tags and a preview for each platform. For a final check you can also use each platform's official validator — the Facebook Sharing Debugger, the LinkedIn Post Inspector, and a draft post on X — which show exactly what each crawler sees and let you force a cache refresh before you post publicly.
Try Sequel
Meet your AI data analyst.
Sequel connects to all your data and answers questions with reports and visualizations. Free for up to 3 seats — no credit card required.
Get started free