Not automatically. Use separate desktop and mobile hero images when the composition needs to change—not simply because the screen is smaller. If the same crop preserves the subject, headline and call to action on both screens, one image served at responsive resolutions is usually the simpler choice.
When should you make a separate mobile hero?
Make a mobile-specific version when scaling or cropping the desktop composition would undermine its purpose. A wide desktop banner, for example, may lose its subject in a narrow viewport, leave too little room for text, or push a call to action out of view. A tighter crop or portrait composition can solve those problems.
This is art direction: choosing a different composition for a different context. Shopify’s developer guidance distinguishes it from responsive sizing, where the composition stays the same but the browser receives an appropriately sized image. Shopify theme performance guidance and its image guidance explain the distinction.
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Use one composition when it still works
If the subject, message and focal point remain clear at the actual mobile viewport, a second crop may add maintenance without improving the page. Use responsive image candidates so devices can load a suitable resolution of the same composition.
Use a second composition when the crop changes the message
Check the narrow layout with the real headline and call to action in place. If the subject is cut off, the text becomes crowded, or the button is hard to find or use, create a mobile crop or layout designed around that screen.
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How to serve different crops without loading both
For a mobile and desktop composition, use a <picture> element with a media-specific <source>. The browser can select the appropriate source for the viewport. Shopify’s example uses a maximum width of 749 pixels for mobile and a minimum of 750 pixels for desktop; those are example values, not universal breakpoints. Match the breakpoints used by your theme.
<picture>
<source media="(max-width: 749px)" srcset="/mobile-hero.jpg">
<source media="(min-width: 750px)" srcset="/desktop-hero.jpg">
<img src="/desktop-hero.jpg" alt="Describe the hero image" width="1600" height="500" fetchpriority="high">
</picture>Replace the example paths, breakpoints and dimensions with assets and values that match your theme. The fallback <img> provides the desktop image when no mobile source is selected. If the hero is the page’s largest contentful paint (LCP) image, Shopify advises putting fetchpriority="high" on that inner <img>; the browser applies it to the selected source. Width and height information also helps reserve space while the image loads.
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Avoid implementing the two versions as separate <img> elements and hiding one with CSS. Shopify cautions that a browser may still download both image resources, wasting bandwidth even though only one is visible.
When is one image with responsive sizing enough?
When the composition does not change, use a single image element with responsive srcset and sizes behavior. The browser can choose a candidate with dimensions suited to the rendered image rather than downloading an unnecessarily large file. Set sizes to reflect how wide the image actually appears in your layout; it is not necessarily the same as the viewport width.
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Use <picture> for a change in composition, and responsive candidates for a change in resolution. A storefront can use both techniques when it needs art direction as well as appropriately sized files.
How should you choose dimensions and check the result?
There is no universal hero-image dimension: the right crop depends on the theme, layout and space available at each viewport. Shopify’s 2026 hero-image article suggests 1600 × 500 pixels for desktop and 800 × 1200 pixels for mobile as examples, not platform requirements. Its separate image-size guide gives different illustrative hero dimensions, which underscores that the design and responsive layout should determine the final assets. See Shopify’s image-size guide and its hero-image article.
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- Review the composition. At the storefront’s actual mobile and desktop widths, confirm the focal subject and any important image content remain visible.
- Review overlaid content. Check that the headline is legible and the call to action is visible and usable on the mobile crop.
- Match the theme’s breakpoints. Use the actual CSS breakpoints rather than copying Shopify’s 749/750-pixel example by default.
- Check delivery. In your browser’s Network panel, inspect the page at mobile and desktop viewport widths. Confirm that the intended hero source appears and that the browser is not fetching two hero-sized resources.
What if the storefront is on a platform with its own asset rules?
Check the platform’s current specification before exporting. For example, Amazon Ads says custom mobile layouts for its full-width, large and medium image tiles are not restricted to one aspect ratio and may differ in height and shape from desktop. That flexibility applies to those specified Amazon Stores tile types, not to every storefront image. See Amazon Ads’ Stores creative guidelines.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- 6" x 6" mylar stencil
A practical decision rule
- Keep one composition: the mobile crop preserves the subject and message, and the headline and call to action remain clear.
- Create a mobile composition: the desktop crop loses important content or makes the mobile layout crowded or hard to use.
- In either case: serve appropriate resolutions, follow the theme and platform’s layout rules, and verify which image the browser loads.
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