SMB SEO

Image optimization for small businesses

Image compression and alt-text tools. We list 18, and 17 have a free plan.

Order: tools we’ve tested come first, by score, then the rest alphabetically. Payment never changes the order.

Prices checked between Oct 6, 2026 and Oct 13, 2026. How prices compare across categories

How to choose an image optimization tool

Updated Oct 9, 2026.

Balance file size and sharpness

Google says “images are often the largest contributor to overall page size, which can make pages slow and expensive to load”, and also that sharp images in search result thumbnails “can increase the likelihood of getting traffic from users” (Google Search Central). A compression tool should make files smaller without making your product photos blurry, so compare a few compressed images with the originals before you run it on everything.

Check the formats it serves

Google Search supports images in BMP, GIF, JPEG, PNG, WebP, SVG and AVIF, and Google suggests the file’s extension should match its type (Google Search Central). If a tool converts images to WebP or AVIF, check that it renames the files to match.

Know what your platform already does

WordPress 5.5 started lazy-loading images by default, adding the browser’s loading="lazy" attribute to images that have a width and height in posts, excerpts, text widgets, avatars and theme templates, and it started filling in missing widths and heights for images from your media library so the page shifts less as they load (WordPress Core). A plugin that only adds lazy loading may repeat much of what WordPress already does, so check which images it covers that WordPress doesn’t.

Measure the whole page’s speed

Google’s target for Largest Contentful Paint, which measures loading, is within the first 2.5 seconds of the page starting to load (Google Search Central). Check your speed before and after you install an image tool. For each Shopify app we test, we measure how it changes Shopify’s own weighted speed score.

Check alt text a tool writes for you

Google calls alt text the most important attribute for telling it about an image, and says it helps people who can’t see images. It asks for “useful, information-rich content” in context, and warns that filling alt text with keywords “results in a negative user experience and may cause your site to be seen as spam” (Google Search Central). If a tool writes alt text automatically, read a sample: each should describe what that photo shows.

Sources for this guide

Words to know