Why WordPress Featured Image Not Showing: 3 Easiest Possible Solutions

WordPress started as a blog site. You can create unique blogs with it that would attract users’ attention quite quickly. Along with the content, the blogging sites’ design is impressive. One of the main attractions of the blogs was the feature images.

Feature images function as a visual welcome card, a cue to visitors to know what’s behind the blog. Before reading the entire content, visitors would get an idea of the content by looking at the useful information in the form of a photo or an image. 

However, there were some issues regarding WordPress featured image not showing on various sites. We will go over them and also try to provide some solutions regarding this. 

WordPress Featured Image Not Showing? Possible Reasons

Before we go into the issues, we need to first understand what is a WordPress-featured image. 

Well, a featured image is for posts and pages offered by WordPress. You can upload an image that acts as the post or page’s cover media, similar to a book or magazine cover.

Also, the feature image is automatically added when you create a feed or gallery of your blog posts. Sometimes it doesn’t; check out the reasons-

1. Not Uploading the Feature Image Properly in the First Place

If anyone uses WordPress even for a week, does know how to upload a feature image properly. So, it is a pretty silly mistake to make. However, we have seen people do it. 

To upload a featured image properly, create a page or a post on your WordPress site’s backend. Now, you will notice a Settings panel on the right-hand side. 

Then scroll down through the settings. The Featured Image Settings are towards the bottom.

You will see a button to Set Featured Image. Clicking on that brings you directly to the WordPress Media Library.

Now, you can upload a feature image as you like. After uploading the image/selecting the image if it is already uploaded, click the Set Featured Image button to finish. 

You can also read: How to Create Grid Lines in Photoshop

2. Uploading Cover Image Instead of Featured Image

Another simple yet common mistake made by WordPress users is to implement a cover image for a post or page and assume it works like a featured image.

The difference between a cover image and vs. featured image is you can use a cover image anywhere on your site. You can use cover images to show the start of any article section. Whereas a featured image serves as the introductory post or page image representing the entirety of that article.

The posts you see on any social platform, those images are the featured image. We already told you how to add a featured image. However, to add a cover image, you need to, 

Select the Cover block from your Gutenberg editor and insert it on your post or page. 

You can upload an image as your cover by clicking the Select Media or Upload buttons.

You can adjust the cover to fill the page’s entire width, so it will be more effective to introduce an article or a separator between sections.

3. Duplicate Feature Image on Your WordPress Media Library

Although you may have followed the proper steps to upload a featured image, the issue of WordPress featured images not showing still exists because there may be duplicate featured images.

You’ll see this happening on post lists or at the top of a page, resulting in two of the same photos stacked on top of each other.

You can check this by going to your media library. If you see the same photo uploaded twice, then you should delete one of the photos. Because having a duplicate image will not only create issues for your site but also make your site heavy. 

That’s how it should be if you want the functionality of a featured image with no duplication.

So, these reasons may cause the featured images to not appear on your site. But don’t worry. We will show you some tricks to help you eliminate this issue. 

How to Solve WordPress Images not Showing Issues?

Featured images often carry the weight of your website’s visual representation. Without the feature image, your content will only be blocked with texts. That is not good for your site. So, if you have faced any kind of issue, you should first, 

• Note Down the exact issue with details. Try to document what exactly is going wrong.
• Consider any kind of issues that may be causing the problems. Like, as code errors and plugin/theme conflict.
• Look for solutions in the WordPress repository. You may find a plugin that will solve your problem. 

Now that we have gone through the basics of problem-solving let’s solve the issues regarding the featured images not showing.

1. Fix the HTTP Error When Trying to Upload an Image

Errors are common when uploading an image in the media folder. When you see an HTTP error, the image may be wrong. There are two ways to fix this issue, 

1. Increase your WordPress Memory Limit. You may find that your hosting provider sets WordPress memory limitations. So, first, ask them to expand the PHP limit. If allowed, you can also change the PHP memory limit on your own by editing your site’s wp-config.php file.
2. Optimize your images. Uploading massive files to your WordPress site causes performance issues and could overload your hosting servers. That is why you need to optimize your images before you upload them. 

2. Change User Permissions to Allow for Featured Image Viewing

As WordPress has user roles, it can decide who can read, write, or edit website files. So, it is possible that your user role won’t allow you to upload or view any of the feature images. The key to fixing this issue is ensuring your user roles and permissions are all set correctly.

3. Fix a Conflict with a Theme or Plugin

Conflict with a theme or plugin is common for WordPress Featured images not to show. Not all themes have the same featured image settings. Sometimes, featured images for pages are completely blocked. 

There are no exact solutions to these problems. You need to look into your theme settings or contact their support. 

In case of any plugin conflict, check for any suspicious codes in the file. Update all the plugins on your website. If the issue is still not solved, then deactivate all the plugins. If the featured images are still not showing, reactivate the plugins and move on. 

If the featured image shows up after deactivating, then one of your plugins is the problem. So, activate them one by one and check manually. 

These are the tricks you can follow to solve the issue of featured image not showing on your WordPress site. 

FAQs

1. How do I show featured images in WordPress?

Answer: To show a featured image in WordPress, create a page or a post, and click on the ‘Set Featured Image’ area on the featured image tab in the right column, which will bring up the WordPress media uploader popup. Add your feature image there. 

2. Why is my image not showing up in WordPress?

Answer: If your WordPress Media Library is loading but not showing images, there are maybe two leading causes: an incompatible plugin and improper file permissions. 

3. How do I fix featured images in WordPress?

Answer: Open the editor for the post or page. Click the gear icon in the top right corner to open the settings panel. In the settings panel under the Post tab, select Featured image > Set featured image. Upload your featured image or select one from your media library.

4. How do I make my featured image not appear?

Answer: On the post edit screen, you will find the ‘Show/Hide Featured Image’ meta box. You must check the box next to the ‘Hide Featured Image’ option. Now go and check to see f your featured image is hidden.

Conclusion

So, here we are at the end of our blog. We have tried to show you why WordPress featured images do not show what occurs and how to solve them. 

You understand the solution if you go over all the details. For further queries, do comment, and we will get back to you soon.