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KDP publishing

Book mockups

Mockups are photo-style pictures of your finished book — held in someone’s hands, standing on a desk, open to a spread — for Amazon A+ content, Etsy, Pinterest and Instagram. They’re made from your saved cover and, for some templates, your interior pages. Each mockup uses 2 pages from your balance.

The mockup studio: settings on the left, and on the right two finished mockups of a woodland coloring book, each with a Download button.
The mockup studio: settings on the left, your mockups on the right.

Before you start

Most templates show your front cover, so make and save a cover first. 2 templates use only interior pages and work without one.

Make a mockup

  1. 1

    Open the mockup studio

    Click Mockups in the top bar of the editor, the cover editor or the listing page, or on a book’s card on Home. You can also click Mockups in the left-hand menu, then Open mockup studio (or Make mockups) next to the book.

  2. 2

    Choose the cover

    Under Use this cover, click the cover to use — your current cover is marked Live, and earlier versions from Past renders are listed too.

  3. 3

    Pick a template

    Under Template, click one of the 11 scenes. Hover a template for a short description. The table below shows what each one needs.

    Mockup settings: Use this cover with the live cover and a past render, the grid of templates with Hands on a sunlit desk selected, and the Generate mockup button.
    Pick the cover, then a template.
  4. 4

    Choose interior pages (some templates)

    If the template shows page slots under Interior pages, click Auto-pick to fill them from your book, or click a slot (such as Left page) and then the page you want in it. Clear empties the slots. Cover-only templates say “This template uses the cover only — no interior pages needed.”

  5. 5

    Adjust the settings

    • Shape — Square (1024×1024), Portrait (1024×1536) or Landscape (1536×1024). Pick the shape of the place you’ll post it.
    • Book type — Paperback Book or Hardcover Book.
    • Accent props (some templates) — what sits next to the book, such as “colored pencils”.
    Mockup settings for Classic open-spread flatlay: two interior page slots filled, Auto-pick and Clear, the page grid, then Shape, Book type and Accent props.
    An interior template: page slots, then Settings.
  6. 6

    Click Generate mockup

    Click Generate mockup · uses 2 pages. The right side shows “Generating mockup… Usually 1–2 minutes.” The finished mockup appears under Your mockups; click Download to save it. Each click makes one mockup. Your first mockup also earns 5 bonus pages.

    The mockup studio while a mockup renders, showing Generating mockup.
    A mockup takes about 1–2 minutes.

The templates

TemplateWhat it showsNeeds a coverInterior pages
Hands on a sunlit deskReal hands hold the book over a sunlit wooden deskYes—
Standing on a wooden deskBook stands upright on a desk, bookstore-hero feelYes—
Top-down flatlayEditorial overhead flatlay with surrounding propsYes—
Series stack on a shelfThree copies stacked — best as a secondary imageYes—
Half-open with interior peekCover lifted at one corner showing a page insideYes—
Cozy coffee tableBook on a coffee table next to a steaming mugYes—
Tablet / digital previewCover shown on a tablet — for ebook listingsYes—
Clean studio shotCatalog-style: just the book, soft shadow, no propsYes—
Classic open-spread flatlayCenterfold spread with both pages, top-downNo2
Open book with sample pages fannedSpread plus three loose sample pages — show varietyNo5
Open and closed pairClosed cover beside an open spread — listing-gradeYes2

Make a few, keep the best

Every click is a new picture, so the same template can come out quite differently. Two or three tries of your favorite template usually gives you one that’s clearly the best.

Finding your mockups later

  • They stay in the book’s mockup studio. Older ones load with Load more.
  • Mockups in the left-hand menu lists every book with its mockups. Books without any are listed under Books without mockups; a book with no cover yet says Needs a cover first and offers Design cover.
  • The Library’s Mockups tab shows them all in one grid.
The Mockups page listing a book with two mockups and an Open mockup studio button, and a Books without mockups section noting another book needs a cover first.
Mockups in the left-hand menu: every book's mockups in one place.

If something goes wrong

When Generate mockup is greyed out, the list just above it says why:

The note Pick all 5 interior pages above a greyed-out Generate mockup button.
The reason appears right above the button.
  • “Pick a template above.” — click a template.
  • “Pick all N interior pages.” — fill every slot, or click Auto-pick.
  • “This template needs a saved cover.” — make a cover first, or choose a template that doesn’t need one.
  • “You need 2 pages to generate.” — click the button after it to get more (Upgrade now on a trial, Upgrade plan on a plan).
  • “Mockups require a paid plan.” — mockups need an active plan or free trial; click Upgrade.
  • “Mockup generation failed” — click Generate again in a moment.

Open the mockup studio

Turn your finished cover into product photos for your listing and social posts.

Start free trialListing metadata