Why Your WhatsApp Link Preview Isn't Showing
When you share a URL on WhatsApp and see nothing but a plain text link—no image, no title, no description—it's almost always a problem with your Open Graph (OG) meta tags or your image specs. WhatsApp is the strictest platform when it comes to link previews, and even small mistakes can break them entirely.
Here's what's actually happening behind the scenes: when someone pastes a URL in WhatsApp, WhatsApp's crawler fetches your page, reads the OG tags, and decides whether to render a rich preview or just show the raw URL. If anything is off, you get nothing.
The 7 Most Common Causes (and How to Fix Each One)
1. Your OG Image Is Too Large (File Size)
WhatsApp's limit: 600 KB maximum.
This is the #1 reason link previews break on WhatsApp. Unlike Facebook (8 MB) or Twitter (5 MB), WhatsApp enforces a strict 600 KB file size cap. If your image exceeds this, WhatsApp silently drops it—no error message, no fallback. Your link just appears as plain text.
Fix:
<!-- Ensure your image is under 600 KB -->
<meta property="og:image" content="https://yoursite.com/og-image.jpg" />
<!-- Use JPG at 80% quality for best size-to-quality ratio -->Use tools like TinyPNG or Squoosh to compress your image. Target 200–400 KB for a safe margin.
2. Your Image Dimensions Are Below the Minimum
WhatsApp requires a minimum of 100×100 pixels. Below that, no preview image is shown at all—not even a thumbnail.
But there's more nuance here:
- 100–299 px width → Small thumbnail beside the URL
- ≥ 300 px width → Full-width card with image, title, and description
Recommended dimensions: 1200×630 px (1.91:1 aspect ratio). This is the "golden ratio" that works perfectly on every platform.
3. You're Using an Unsupported Image Format
WhatsApp does NOT support:
- ❌ GIF images
- ❌ SVG images
Supported formats: JPG, JPEG, PNG, WebP only.
If you're using an SVG logo or an animated GIF as your OG image, WhatsApp will ignore it completely.
4. Your Image URL Uses HTTP Instead of HTTPS
WhatsApp requires HTTPS for OG images. An HTTP URL will be rejected:
<!-- ❌ Won't work -->
<meta property="og:image" content="http://yoursite.com/og.jpg" />
<!-- ✅ Works -->
<meta property="og:image" content="https://yoursite.com/og.jpg" />5. Your Image URL Is Relative, Not Absolute
OG image URLs must be absolute (full) URLs, not relative paths:
<!-- ❌ Won't work -->
<meta property="og:image" content="/images/og.jpg" />
<!-- ✅ Works -->
<meta property="og:image" content="https://yoursite.com/images/og.jpg" />6. Your robots.txt Is Blocking WhatsApp's Crawler
WhatsApp uses a crawler (user-agent: WhatsApp) to fetch your page. If your robots.txt blocks it, no preview will be generated.
Check your /robots.txt file and make sure it doesn't disallow the WhatsApp crawler:
# ✅ Allow WhatsApp crawler
User-agent: WhatsApp
Allow: /7. WhatsApp's Cache Is Stale
WhatsApp aggressively caches link previews. Even after fixing your OG tags, the old (broken) preview might persist for hours or days.
Cache-busting methods:
- Append a query parameter:
yoursite.com/page?v=2 - On iOS: Delete the conversation and start a new one
- On Android: Settings → Storage → Clear Cache
The Perfect WhatsApp OG Tag Setup
Here's the complete, battle-tested tag setup that guarantees a working WhatsApp preview:
<meta property="og:title" content="Your Page Title (60-65 chars max)" />
<meta property="og:description" content="Compelling description under 80 characters for WhatsApp" />
<meta property="og:image" content="https://yoursite.com/og-image.jpg" />
<meta property="og:image:width" content="1200" />
<meta property="og:image:height" content="630" />
<meta property="og:url" content="https://yoursite.com/page" />
<meta property="og:type" content="website" />Quick Specs Reference
| Spec | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Image size | Under 600 KB |
| Min dimensions | 100×100 px (300+ for full card) |
| Recommended | 1200×630 px |
| Formats | JPG, PNG, WebP only |
| URL | Absolute, HTTPS |
| Title limit | ~65 characters |
| Description limit | ~80 characters |
How to Test Your WhatsApp Link Preview
Before sharing your link publicly, use LinkPeek to preview exactly how your link will appear on WhatsApp (and 5 other platforms). LinkPeek shows you the live WhatsApp mockup, audits your OG tags, and generates fix code if anything is wrong.
Unlike other tools, LinkPeek:
- Shows real platform mockups (not just raw tag data)
- Checks WhatsApp-specific requirements (600 KB limit, format support, dimension checks)
- Generates copy-paste fix code for every issue found
- Works with localhost URLs (for developers testing before deployment)
FAQ: WhatsApp Link Preview Issues
Q: Why does my preview work on Twitter but not WhatsApp?
A: WhatsApp has much stricter requirements. Twitter accepts images up to 5 MB in various formats, while WhatsApp limits you to 600 KB and rejects GIF/SVG.
Q: I fixed my tags but the old preview still shows. Why?
A: WhatsApp caches aggressively. Append ?v=2 to your URL or clear WhatsApp's cache to see the updated preview.
Q: Does WhatsApp use Twitter Card tags?
A: No. WhatsApp only reads Open Graph tags (og: prefix). Twitter Card tags (twitter: prefix) are completely ignored.
Q: Can I use multiple og:image tags?
A: No. Using multiple og:image tags causes unpredictable behavior on WhatsApp. Use only one.