WhatsApp Link Preview Checker
Preview how your link unfurls in a WhatsApp chat and check why a preview might not show. Covers WhatsApp's strict ~600KB image limit, HTTPS requirement, and aggressive caching.
WhatsApp Link Preview Checker
WhatsApp generates link previews from Open Graph (og:) tags, but it's the strictest of the major platforms: the page must be HTTPS, og:image must be an absolute URL, and the image has to be under ~600KB or no preview renders. It also caches previews very aggressively with no debugger tool.
Paste your URL to see the WhatsApp-style preview and the tags it reads. Because WhatsApp's crawler shares infrastructure with Facebook, running your URL through the Facebook Sharing Debugger and clicking Scrape Again often refreshes WhatsApp's cache too — or change the URL with a query parameter to force a new scrape.
Frequently asked questions
Why won't WhatsApp show a preview for my link?
WhatsApp requires the page to be HTTPS, the og:image to be an absolute URL, and the image to be under ~600KB — anything larger is silently dropped. The image should also be at least 300px wide with an aspect ratio of 4:1 or less. If those check out and there's still no preview, it's usually WhatsApp's aggressive cache holding an earlier empty scrape.
How do I force WhatsApp to refresh a cached link preview?
WhatsApp caches previews very aggressively and offers no debugger tool, so the reliable fix is to change the URL — append a query parameter like ?v=2 or ?ref=wa so WhatsApp sees a new link and re-scrapes it. Since WhatsApp's crawler shares infrastructure with Facebook, running the URL through the Facebook Sharing Debugger and clicking Scrape Again often refreshes WhatsApp's cache too.
Why does my link show a small thumbnail instead of a large image on WhatsApp?
WhatsApp decides between a large banner preview and a small left-aligned thumbnail mainly based on image size — give it a large image (around 1200 × 630, under 600KB) to get the big preview. Images that are too small, too large in file size, or not landscape enough often fall back to the tiny thumbnail. Make sure og:image points to a proper landscape image, not a small icon or favicon.
What are WhatsApp's exact image requirements for link previews?
Per Meta's own guidance, the preview image should be under 600KB, at least 300px wide, and have a width-to-height aspect ratio of 4:1 or less. Use JPG or PNG over HTTPS; WebP is unreliable. A standard 1200 × 630 JPG compressed under 300KB satisfies all of these comfortably.
Why does WhatsApp show the old image even after I updated my page?
WhatsApp caches the preview tied to the exact URL string, and that cache can persist for a long time with no way to manually clear it. The dependable workaround is to share a slightly different URL — add or change a query parameter so it's treated as new. Refreshing WhatsApp Web, reconnecting your phone, or force-stopping the app can also help when the preview is stuck locally rather than cached server-side.
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