How to Choose an Amazon A+ Content Designer
A+ is the image and text section under "Product description" on an Amazon listing. Almost any designer can make it look good on a laptop. Fewer know Amazon's module limits, the content rules that get it rejected, or what it looks like on a phone, where many shoppers see it. Here is what to check, 12 questions to ask, the red flags and a scorecard.
Short answer
Choose an A+ designer who can show you live Amazon pages (not mockups) and knows the limits: Basic A+ up to 5 modules from 14 types, Premium up to 7 from 19, images under 2 MB, Brand Story cards 362 by 453 pixels. They should also design for the phone first and tell you who fixes a rejection and at what cost. Then compare the total price for the same job. Evolve Media Agency charges $495 for five Premium A+ designs, $595 with five main images added, $295 for five main images alone, and $595 for a Brand Story.
What You Are Hiring For: Photos, Words and Layout
A+ design has three parts: the photos the modules are built from, the words on the modules, and the layout that fits Amazon's templates and gets approved. Many providers sell one or two of the three, so the same headline price can buy very different work. Before you compare anyone, decide which parts you already have.
Amazon says A+ is free to publish for eligible sellers (a Professional selling account and a Brand Representative or Reseller role on a brand in Brand Registry, or generic products in your catalog). Amazon also claims Basic A+ can lift sales by up to 8% and Premium by up to 20%, from its own internal data (sell.amazon.com, A+ Content). You pay a designer for the work, not Amazon for the space.
You have photos and copy
You need layout and upload only. A design-only provider or freelancer fits; check module knowledge and mobile hard.
You have photos, no copy
You need layout plus a writer. Ask who writes the text and who checks it against Amazon's rules.
You have neither
You need a provider that shoots or sources images and writes, or two providers. Get the photo cost in the same quote, because it is often the biggest part.
How to Read an A+ Portfolio in Ten Minutes
A portfolio is the best evidence you will get, if you read it the right way. Ask for live ASINs and open them yourself on Amazon, first on your phone and then on a laptop. Then check these five things.
It is live, not a mockup
Search the ASIN on Amazon. If the A+ on the page does not match the portfolio image, the design was changed, rejected or never published. Ask which.
It reads on a phone
Scroll the A+ on your phone without zooming. Can you read every headline and the key benefit lines? If the words are inside images and too small, the designer designs for desktop.
The modules tell one story
Look for a clear order: the main promise, then how it works or what is inside, then proof, then a comparison of the brand's own products. A pile of pretty banners with no order is decoration.
The photos are the brand's, and they are sharp
Stock lifestyle images and blurry, stretched product shots are a sign the designer worked with what it was given and did not say no. Ask what they would have changed.
Work in your kind of product
Supplements, beauty, tools and apparel have different rules and different buyers. Ask for at least one example close to your category. Our A+ examples by category show what to look for in each.
Basic vs Premium A+, From Amazon's Own Pages
These are Amazon's published figures on Oct 22, 2026. A designer who has to look these up has not built much A+.
Basic A+
Up to 5 modules per project, chosen from 14 module types. Images, text placements and shoppable comparison charts. Shows under "Product description." Source: Amazon, types of A+ content (PDF).
Premium A+
Up to 7 modules per project, from 19 module types, with larger high-resolution images, video, interactive hotspots, image and video carousels, Q&A modules and shoppable content. Includes everything in Basic. Same sources, plus sell.amazon.com, A+ Content.
Brand Story
A separate carousel under "From the brand," up to 19 modules from 4 types, with images at 362 by 453 pixels. It can link to your Brand Store and other products. One Brand Story can run across your whole catalog.
Image rules
No image larger than 2 MB. No low-resolution or animated images. Design at the module's required size, because Amazon resizing an image is what makes text blurry. Per-module pixel sizes are listed inside Seller Central; agencies commonly cite 970 pixels wide for Basic and 1,464 for Premium (Weby Corp's page, for example, lists 970 by 300 and 1,464 by 600). Source: Amazon A+ design guide.
One at a time
Only one enhanced description type can be live on a listing at once. Premium replaces Basic on that ASIN; it does not stack.
Premium eligibility
Amazon's public guide says Premium is "available to registered brands that meet certain criteria" and to log in to check. Some provider pages still describe the older invite rules; Weby Corp's Premium page lists five approved A+ projects in 12 months and a Brand Story on every ASIN. Open A+ Content Manager and see whether Premium is offered on your account before you pay anyone to "qualify" you.
The Two Places A+ Usually Goes Wrong
Most A+ problems are not about taste. They are a rejection from Amazon's review, or a page that looks fine on a monitor and unreadable on a phone. Ask every designer how they handle both.
What Amazon rejects
From Amazon's design guide: "best-selling" or "top-rated" claims, warranty or guarantee wording, pricing, promotions, shipping details, QR codes, links, contact information, any reference to or comparison with competitors, and awards without a certifying body and year. Our list of A+ rejection reasons and fixes covers the rest.
How a good designer handles a rejection
Reads the notice, names the line or image that triggered it, fixes it and resubmits, with no new invoice for the designer's own mistake. Ask for this in the quote.
What mobile does to A+
On a phone, wide modules shrink and text inside images can become too small to read. Amazon's guide says to avoid text in images so mobile shoppers can read it, and to check both desktop and mobile previews in the A+ tool before submitting.
How to test it yourself
Before approving, ask for the mobile preview from A+ Content Manager, or a phone-sized export of each module. If you cannot read a line at arm's length, neither can the shopper.
12 Questions to Ask Any A+ Content Designer
1. Can I see A+ you designed that is live on Amazon right now?
Ask for three ASINs, not a PDF of mockups. Open each on your phone. Mockups can show layouts Amazon would never approve; a live page has passed review.
2. Which of those were Premium A+?
Premium A+ uses wider images, video, hotspots, carousels and Q&A modules. If every sample is Basic, ask whether they have built Premium at all.
3. How many modules will you use, and why those?
Basic allows up to 5 modules from 14 types; Premium up to 7 from 19. A designer should explain the order: what the shopper needs to believe first, second and third.
4. What image sizes do you design at?
Amazon caps A+ images at 2 MB and gives the Brand Story card size as 362 by 453 pixels. Per-module pixel sizes are in Seller Central. A designer should know them without looking, and design at the module's exact size so nothing is resized and blurred.
5. How do you handle mobile?
Many Amazon shoppers see A+ on a phone. Amazon's own guide says to keep text out of images where you can, so it stays readable on small screens. Ask how they test, and ask to see the mobile preview before you submit.
6. What happens if Amazon rejects it?
Rejections are common and usually fixable. Ask who reads the rejection notice, who makes the change, how fast, and whether fixing a rejection costs extra.
7. Which claims will you keep out?
Amazon bans "best-selling" and "top-rated," warranty or guarantee wording, prices, promotions, shipping details, QR codes, links, contact details and comparisons with competitors. A designer should be able to list most of these from memory.
8. Who writes the words on the modules?
A+ is images plus text. Ask whether a copywriter is included, whether you must supply the text, and who checks it against your listing and the rules above.
9. Where do the photos come from?
Modules are only as good as the images they are built from. Ask whether they use your photos, shoot new ones, use stock or generate images with AI, and what each costs.
10. Is Brand Story included or separate?
Brand Story is its own carousel under "From the brand," up to 19 modules (cards) from 4 types. It runs across your catalog, so one good Brand Story works for every ASIN. Ask if it is in the price.
11. Who uploads it, and to how many ASINs?
Ask whether they submit it in A+ Content Manager for you, how many ASINs they apply it to, and whether they need access to your Seller Central account (and at what permission level).
12. What is the total price, in writing?
Per design or per module, plus Premium, Brand Story, copy, photography, extra ASINs and rejection fixes. Compare totals for the same job, not the headline price.
Red Flags That Mean Walk Away or Get It in Writing
Portfolio is mockups only
If they cannot name a single live ASIN, you do not know whether their work gets approved.
"We will get you approved for Premium"
Premium eligibility is set by Amazon on your account. Check A+ Content Manager yourself; nobody can sell you access.
Comparison charts against competitor brands
Amazon bans references to competitors. A comparison chart should compare your own products.
Paragraphs of text baked into images
It fails on mobile and cannot be read by search. Text belongs in the text fields where the module allows it.
Lift numbers Amazon does not publish
Amazon claims up to 8% for Basic and up to 20% for Premium. Much bigger numbers are the provider's own claims, not Amazon's.
Rejection fixes billed as new work
A rejection for something the designer put in is the designer's fix. Get that in the quote.
No access plan
If they need Seller Central access, they should ask for a user permission for A+ only, not your login.
Score Each Designer Out of 20
Give each line 0 (no or unclear), 1 (partly) or 2 (yes, shown or in writing). Score every designer on the same lines after the call. Under 12, do not hire.
When You Should Not Hire an A+ Designer
You are not eligible yet
A+ needs a Professional selling account and a Brand Representative or Reseller role on a brand in Brand Registry (or generic products in your catalog). Get that done first; a designer cannot publish without it.
Your main image and bullets are weak
Shoppers see the main image, title, price and reviews before they scroll to A+. Fix those first.
Your photos are not good enough
Great layout cannot fix dark, blurry or off-brand product photos. Budget the shoot before the design.
The product sells a few units a month
Amazon's own claim is up to 8% more sales for Basic A+. On a small number, that will not cover a designer. Build a simple Basic page yourself with Amazon's templates.
You have a Brand Story and Basic A+ that work
If conversion is at or above your category and the page passes mobile, test one change at a time before paying for a full redesign.
About the Author
Ian Smith
Founder, Evolve Media Agency
Ian has run Evolve Media Agency since 2017 and has spent more than a decade in ecommerce, building and selling his own brands and producing listing content, video and ads for Amazon, Shopify and TikTok Shop brands. He writes every page on this site himself and the prices quoted for Evolve are the prices you pay.
A+ Designer Questions
How do I choose an Amazon A+ content designer?
What is the difference between Basic and Premium A+?
What size should A+ images be?
Why does Amazon reject A+ content?
How do I know if I can use Premium A+?
Does A+ content work on mobile?
How much sales lift does A+ content give?
What does Evolve Media Agency charge for A+ design?
Bring the Scorecard to the Call
Book a free 30-minute call. Send us an ASIN and ask us the 12 questions. We will tell you whether you need Premium, a Brand Story, new photos or none of it, and if a cheaper option fits your product, we will say so.