How to Upload Metadata to Alamy (Keywording & CSV Guide)

Alamy pays higher commissions than most stock agencies and has a large editorial buyer base. Their metadata system also works differently from Adobe Stock or Shutterstock: Alamy supports compound keywords ("coffee shop" as a single tag) and lets you mark "supertags" that get extra ranking weight.

If you're uploading to Alamy, these differences matter. Here's how to use them.

How Alamy metadata works

Every image on Alamy has four main metadata fields:

What makes Alamy different

Three things. First, Alamy treats "coffee shop" as a single keyword, not two separate words, so you can be more precise with each tag. Second, you can mark up to 10 keywords as "supertags" that get extra search weight. Third, Alamy's search leans heavily on the caption field, not just keywords. A good caption matters more here than on most other platforms.

Writing captions for Alamy

Alamy calls the title field a "caption." Unlike other platforms where the title is secondary to keywords, Alamy's search heavily indexes the caption text.

Good caption examples

• Good: "Fisherman mending nets on the dock at Essaouira, Morocco, early morning"
• Good: "Close-up of hands kneading sourdough bread dough on a floured wooden surface"
• Weak: "Nice photo of a man" — too vague, no searchable detail
• Weak: "DSC_4521" — the filename is not a caption

Include specific details: who, what, where, when, and how. Alamy buyers — especially editorial buyers — search with specific phrases, and your caption is the first thing they read in search results.

Choosing keywords for Alamy

Use compound keywords

Since Alamy supports compound keywords, take advantage of them. Instead of adding "coffee" and "shop" as separate keywords, add "coffee shop" as one tag. This matches the exact phrase buyers search for.

You can still add the individual words as separate keywords too if you have room within the 50-keyword limit.

Choose supertags wisely

Supertags get extra ranking weight, so pick your 10 most important and specific keywords. For a photo of a woman reading in a Paris café:

• Good supertags: Paris, café, reading, woman, France, book, indoor, lifestyle
• Poor supertags: person, sitting, table, day — too generic, wasted on common terms

Uploading metadata to Alamy

Alamy offers multiple ways to add metadata to your images.

Option 1: Alamy Image Manager (AIM)

1. Log in to Alamy Contributor and open Image Manager
2. Upload your images via the web uploader or FTP
3. Select images in your upload queue
4. Fill in captions, tags, and supertags in the metadata panel
5. You can select multiple images and apply shared tags in batch
6. Submit for review

Option 2: Embed IPTC metadata before upload

Alamy reads IPTC metadata embedded in your image files. If you add metadata in Lightroom, Bridge, or Photo Mechanic before uploading, Alamy will import it automatically:

• IPTC Caption/Description → maps to Alamy caption
• IPTC Keywords → maps to Alamy tags

Note: Supertags can only be set through Alamy's Image Manager — there's no IPTC field for them. You'll need to log in and mark your supertags after the initial metadata import.

Option 3: CSV upload

Alamy supports CSV imports for bulk metadata updates. The CSV format uses these columns:

CSV formatting rules

• Use Alamy's Image Ref (not your filename) to match images — the ref is assigned after upload
• Wrap captions and tag lists in double quotes if they contain commas
• Compound keywords go as-is: "coffee shop, remote work, New York City"
• Save as UTF-8 CSV
• Upload via Image Manager's bulk edit / CSV import function

Alamy vs. other platforms

Common Alamy keywording mistakes

Not using compound keywords

If you add "New" "York" "City" as three separate keywords, Alamy treats them as unrelated terms. Add "New York City" as one compound keyword instead.

Wasting supertags on generic terms

Supertags should be your most specific, high-value keywords — not "photo" or "image." Use them for the terms that best distinguish this particular image.

Writing a thin caption

Since Alamy's search indexes the caption heavily, a two-word caption wastes ranking potential. Write a descriptive sentence that a buyer could read and immediately understand what the image shows.

Ignoring editorial metadata

Alamy has a large editorial market. If your image is editorial, include specific details: event names, dates, locations, people. Editorial buyers search for specifics.

Speed up the metadata

Writing captions and 30+ keywords per image gets old fast, especially when you're uploading 50 or 100 photos from a shoot. KeywordPic generates captions, descriptions, and keyword tags from your photos. Review the output, mark your supertags in Alamy's Image Manager, and you're done.

Try the free keyword generator on a few images first.

Frequently asked questions

What are Alamy supertags?

Supertags are up to 10 keywords you mark as the most important for each image. Alamy gives these extra weight in search ranking. Choose your most specific, relevant keywords as supertags.

Does Alamy accept CSV files for metadata?

Yes. You can import metadata via CSV through Alamy's Image Manager. The CSV uses Alamy's Image Ref (not your filename) to match images.

Can I use the same keywords on Alamy and other platforms?

The keywords themselves can be the same, but take advantage of Alamy's compound keyword support. Instead of "coffee" and "shop" as separate tags, combine them into "coffee shop" on Alamy.

How long does Alamy's review process take?

Typically 1 to 2 business days for established contributors. New contributors may wait slightly longer for initial submissions.