Troubleshooting personalizer

Personalizer issues by symptom, in the order to check them.

Most Personalizer issues have one of four common causes: no background image, no content to display, a layer positioned for a different image, or a plan restriction. Work through the checklist first, then find the symptom that matches your issue.

Start here

#	Check	Where
1	Is a background configured for the option set?	Change background in the preview panel
2	Is Enable personalize on for the option?	The option's Personalizer tab
3	Is there anything to draw — a default value, or an uploaded file?	Basic
4	Is the Personalizer included in your plan?	Compare plans

Nothing appears on the product photo

The preview is blank or shows only the product

In order:

1. No background. Open Change background and select one. See Choosing the background.

2. Enable Personalize is off in the options.

3. Nothing to draw. A text layer with no Default value draws nothing until the customer types. An image layer draws nothing until a file is uploaded or a value with an image is chosen.

4. The layer is outside the image or outside its crop area. Move the axis values towards 50.

5. Opacity is at 0.

There is no Personalizer tab on my option

That option type does not support the Personalizer. Twelve supported types include: Text, Textarea, Number, File upload, and eight selection types. See the overview.

The tab is there but everything is grayed out

The Personalizer feature is not available in your plan.

It works in the builder but not on the storefront

Save the option set, then reload the product page. Also confirm that the option set is Active and published to the Online Store, and that the product you are testing on is one it applies to.

The layer is in the wrong place

The layer is positioned wrongly on some products but not others

The product photos are framed differently. Positions are percentages of the image, so they are only accurate when your photos are consistent.

There are three fixes, in order of preference: standardize your photos, use First product image only with a consistent front-facing photo, or split the products into separate option sets.

Personalization appears on close-up and lifestyle photos

Apply to is set to all product images. Choose a single image instead.

The layer moved after I changed the background

This is expected because positions are relative to the background. Reposition every layer after changing the background.

Two layers overlap

They share a position. Give them different Y position values, or use conditional logic so only one is visible at a time.

Text problems

Long text runs off the product

Turn on Auto-fit max width, and set a Max character limit matching what physically fits.

Long text shrinks until it is unreadable

The character limit is too high for the printable area. Lower Max character.

The text is invisible

The color has too little contrast with the background, or the opacity is too low. Check the color against your background image rather than the builder panel. Over customer photos, add a thin stroke.

The font is not the one I chose

Confirm that it is still selected, then save and reload. For custom fonts, check that the font is uploaded in Settings > Settings > General > Custom fonts and that custom fonts are included in your plan. See Fonts.

Some characters render in a different font

The font does not include glyphs for these characters. Choose a font with a broader character set and test it with names that include accented characters.

The curve looks wrong

Adjust the value and try a negative value if the arc bends the wrong way. If your product photo is at an angle, no curve value will produce a correct result. Use a flat, front-facing photo.

Bold or italic looks distorted

The font has no true bold or italic cut. Upload the proper weight as a custom font.

Image problems

The uploaded image is squashed

Background mode is set to Stretch. Switch to Cover.

Customers' photos are cropped and they complain

Cover crops the image to fill the shape. Either use Contain, which leaves empty space, or enable the upload option's image editor so the customer can crop the image. See File upload.

The image looks soft

The uploaded file is smaller than the size it is drawn at. Ask for a minimum resolution in the help text.

Selection values draw no image

Each value needs its own image in the value table. Check every value, not just the first.

Several images stack on top of each other

A multi-select option contributes one layer per selection. Limit it to one selection, or position it for the overlap.

Customer control problems

Customers cannot move the layer

Turn on Change position under Allow customers to.

Customers place designs where I cannot print

Add a crop area and leave its outline visible so they can see the boundary.

Designs arrive rotated or resized unusably

Turn off Rotate as well as Resize for text layers. Few products need either.

Adjusting the layer is difficult on a phone

Set the starting position and size to the values most customers need, so no adjustment is required.

Cart and order problems

There is no design preview in the cart

Check Personalize preview mode in Settings > Settings > General > Cart page, and that it is available on your plan.

The design downloads instead of opening in the cart

Personalize preview mode is set to Download file.

My order line is unreadable

The option's Name is still at its default. See Label and Name.

Customers cannot correct a typo after adding to cart

Turn on Show "Edit Options" button in cart. See Cart page.

Performance

The product page feels slow

Reduce the number of layers, use a smaller background image, and avoid thick strokes or large shadows on long text. Many layers on a large image render slowly on older devices.

The builder preview stopped rendering

The in-app preview is disabled on very large option sets. Test with View in Store instead. See Live preview and inspector.

Still stuck?

When contacting support, include the option set name, the option, its Personalizer settings, the product you are testing on, and a screenshot showing the result compared with what you expected.