Placeholder Images

Labelled dummy images at any size — generated locally, no service.

About this generator

Set width, height, colours and an optional label (dimensions by default), download the PNG. Presets cover the usual suspects — hero, OG card, square, banner — and the subtle diagonal cross marks the image's true extent so crop bugs show themselves.

Why local placeholders beat URL services

Placeholder URL services are charming until the demo: they add an external request to every page load, go down independently of your site, and leak your staging URLs to a third party in Referer headers. Files you generate and commit do none of that and work offline. The craft details baked in: the label defaults to dimensions because a broken layout should announce WHICH slot broke; the diagonal cross exposes silent CSS cropping; and muted default colours keep grey-box mockups from turning carnival. The 1200×630 preset is the OG card size, dummy text is lorem ipsum, and dummy people are the name generator — the complete fake- content toolkit.

Frequently asked questions

Why not just use a placeholder URL service?

External requests slow dev pages, the service can go down mid-demo, and staging URLs leak via Referer headers. Generated files are yours, instant, and work offline.

What size should social/OG placeholders be?

1200 × 630 — the preset — renders correctly as a large card on every major platform. Use it to occupy the slot until the real card art exists.

What's the diagonal cross for?

Revealing crops: if CSS silently trims your image slot, the cross's clipped corners betray it instantly — a trick inherited from broadcast test cards.

Can I use these in production?

They're PNGs you own, so yes — though a shipped placeholder usually means a forgotten TODO. The label at least makes it obvious.