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How to Set an Avatar

How to easily set an avatar on your ENS name

Updated over a week ago

Good to Know

  • Updating Avatar is a gas only transaction requiring ETH on Ethereum Mainnet

  • The Manager-role can add the avatar to the a name.

    • For wrapped names, the Manager role is merged into the Owner-role, which can update records.


What does it do?

The avatar record allows you to select a custom background image for your ENS name metadata to display in services that support it.

Without the Avatar set

With the Avatar set


Ways to set your Avatar

There are three methods to set your Avatar

  1. Select NFT from your wallet

  2. Upload Image from your device

  3. Paste url into the avatar field using records-tab

Each method will have the image pulled into dApps as your web3 avatar, while also updating your ENS NFT background.

A) Method: Select NFT

A window will open allowing you to select an Ethereum NFT in your wallet.

B) Method: Upload Image

To upload an image file from your computer, click Upload Image and select an image file from your computer to upload.

Gasless Avatar changes with 'Upload Image'

The Upload Image option allows for gasless avatar changes after the first transaction. This means that you initiate a gas only transaction the first time, then can use upload image to gaslessly change your avatar as many times as you want in future (for the same name in the same wallet).

The source code for the upload image service is found here:

C) Method: Paste url into avatar field

Paste url into the avatar field of records-tab.

GIFs

GIFs can work for ENS avatars, but large file sizes might cause issues with some clients or websites, leading to failed or prolonged loading times.

Additionally, it's important to note that using the "upload image" option will automatically convert images to JPG format. If you're looking to use GIFs or SVGs for your avatar, you should upload them to a separate image hosting service that provides a direct public URL. You can then manually paste the url in the avatar field through Records-tab.


How to Set the Avatar (Upload Image)

1. Select Edit Profile

Go to the ENS App, connect your wallet, Open the profile tab of your name, then click Edit Profile.

2. Click the Camera button

Click the "Camera" button and select from the sub-menu Select NFT or Upload Image. Upload Image allows you to select an image file from your computer to upload.

3. Select, Resize & Sign to Upload

Use the slider to crop the image to your liking and click Continue. Then click Sign and Upload to start the upload process. Your wallet will prompt you to sign.

Note that this only saves them locally, and the next steps are required to publish it to the blockchain.

4. Confirm the transaction

When ready, Click Save, then Open Wallet and confirm the transaction. Once complete, the avatar will display.


Add Avatar as 'url' via Edit Records

To set Avatar using an image hosting service, you will manually create the avatar record and paste your url.

1. Select Edit Records

Go to the ENS App, connect your wallet, Open the Records tab of your name, then click Edit Records.

2. Click 'add record'

3. Add the specific record

Input the heading 'avatar' and press Enter, Then your avatar link.

4. Confirm the transaction

When ready, Click Save, then Open Wallet and confirm the transaction. Once complete, the avatar will display.


Find your name across Web3

Here's how it looks in a few services.

View on ENS App

The ENS App will show your Avatar in the top-right corner, along with your wallet address.

View on Uniswap

Uniswap's App will show your Avatar in the top-right corner as well!

View on OpenSea

OpenSea does not show your avatar the same way other sites do, because they have their own profile picture-settings, but they do show avatars set on ENS names if you go to the ENS name itself.

This is useful if you want to make your ENS name stand out. If you dont see your avatar you may first need to refresh metadata on OpenSea


FAQ

How do i fix the avatar to cover the entire background?

In order for the image set as the avatar to cover the entire background it needs to be square. If the image appears on your avatar with a border on sides or on the top, that's because you've set an image that isn't square (of equal width and height).

If this issue occurs from selecting NFT, or pasting URL, try Upload Image instead, which allows you to resize the image.

My Avatar isn't showing on third party sites?

Avatar changes will update instantly on the ENS App, however some third party sites may take time to upload on their end. In some cases you can Refresh Metadata on these site. Reach out to that project/wallet/apps support directly if you run into issues.

What are Gasless Avatar changes?

The Upload Image option allows for gasless avatar changes after the first transaction. This means that you initiate a gas only transaction the first time, then can use upload image to gaslessly change your avatar as many times as you want in future (for the same name in the same wallet). The source code for the upload image service is found here:

Can i use a GIF?

GIFs can work for ENS avatars, but large file sizes might cause issues with some clients or websites, leading to failed or prolonged loading times.

Additionally, it's important to note that using the "upload image" option will automatically convert images to JPG format. If you're looking to use GIFs or SVGs for your avatar, you should upload them to a separate image hosting service that provides a direct public URL. You can then manually paste the url in the avatar field through Records-tab.

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