Amazon continues Google competition with launch of new visual search features
Amazon has been unveiling a variety of visually-based features that build on efforts to become a search platform.
The online giant, which is beta testing a Google-type search-based mobile shopping feature that connects app users to other brands’ e-commerce sites from product search results, has launched the following six visual search features in recent months:
Visual suggestions
In a feature debuted in October 2024, when customers search for an item with a visual description such as “flannel shirt,” Amazon now shows descriptive image suggestions while they’re typing. Customers can select the image that best describes what they’re looking for and browse a selection of relevant products.
Add text to image search
Customers can add text to any image they upload to the Amazon Lens visual search tool to make their search more specific. For example, if they upload an image of a beige three-seat sofa, they can add text to specify a brand, color, material, or desired dimensions. Search results will surface items similar to the original image, with parameters set via text.
Search directly from lock screen using the Amazon Lens widget
Amazon app users can instantly launch Amazon Lens camera search directly from their lock screen on iOS, allowing them to search for any item they see in the real world, in real time.
App users can also add the Amazon Lens widget alongside the e-tailer’s existing search and orders widgets. This combination enables consumers to search for products, gain access to text-based searches, and track orders without unlocking their phone.
More like this
If a customer likes a product that appears in their search results but wants it with different attributes (such as different length or with sleeves), they can tap “More Like This” on any product image in Amazon’s search results to find similar products.
Videos in search
When searching in the Amazon shopping app for home items, appliances, toys, or electronics, customers can now watch product videos within the search results without clicking on a product.
Circle to search
When mobile customers are looking at an image and spot an item they’re interested in, they can now isolate the item and search for it specifically using the Amazon Lens circle feature. Upon uploading the image to Amazon Lens, they can draw a circle around the item they would like to search, change the size of the bounding boxes, or move the boxes to focus on a different item in the image.
Google began offering shoppable visual search in its mobile app in October 2024, and Wayfair introduced Muse, a generative AI-based tool designed to give customers an image-based way to find inspiration and ideas for their homes, in February 2025.
Meanwhile, Amazon has also expanded the shopping functionality of its Lens feature to include search for shoppable items based on images in a user’s photo library, as well as barcode scan-based restocking and search for prices and delivery options of physical products.
Google has also added some Amazon-type e-commerce features to its search capabilities, such as displaying deals right on its Shopping tab, letting retailers sell on its platform for free since 2020, and connecting its own Lens image recognition tool to shopping activities.
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"We continue to innovate in visual search to help customers quickly and easily find and discover the products they want and need from Amazon’s wide selection, and we’ve seen a 70% increase year over year in visual searches worldwide as customers use these new features," said Mita Mahadevan, director, visual search and search relevance at Amazon, in a corporate blog post.
