Keep Original Image Filenames

Source filenames often carry real meaning—a SKU, a model number, a date stamp, a slug your team already searches for. Bulk saves that ignore naming dump everything into image(1).jpg and force a manual rename pass. To keep original image filenames, tell the downloader to use the server name from each URL and handle collisions before Chrome appends its own suffix.

Bulk Image Downloader From URL List controls naming on the options page through the Filename Constructor and optional CSV name lists.

Step 1: understand why bulk downloads mangle names

Two problems collide in big batches:

• Chrome adds (1), (2) when two sources share the same filename
• CDN query strings turn photo.jpg into photo.jpg?w=800 on disk unless the tool strips them

Explicit naming rules prevent both.

Step 2: preserve the URL filename with the Filename token

Enable Filename Constructor on the task and add the Filename token—it pulls the original stem from each image URL. Extensions append automatically from the real file type, so you do not get double .jpg.jpg endings.

When two URLs would collide, add a Sequence token or [timestamp] suffix after the Filename token so the recognizable name stays readable: sku-8842-01.jpg instead of a random rename.

Step 3: map exact names from a spreadsheet

When filenames come from a catalog, not from URLs, upload a .txt or .csv with one name per line through Custom Filenames from File in the Filename Constructor. Line order must match URL order exactly.

Licensed PRO bulk CSV import can restore full tasks with custom filename mappings on re-import. For a dedicated walkthrough, see import custom filenames from CSV.

Step 4: clean URLs so names stay tidy

Query strings sabotage clean filenames. Run the redirect checker to resolve chains to canonical endpoints, then use Download IF URL rules to skip parameter-heavy variant URLs when a clean path exists. Fewer junk parameters mean the Filename token extracts a searchable name.

Step 5: save the naming recipe

Save the Filename Constructor pattern as part of a reusable task or Saved Rule so the next batch from the same supplier lands with the same naming scheme—no spreadsheet re-mapping unless the URL list changes.

Tier note

Filename Constructor and custom filename file upload need Try PRO or Licensed PRO. Basic (Free) supports URL-list downloads without advanced naming patterns.

Install the extension when server names should survive bulk download intact.

The files that carry your naming rules

When a naming pattern has to travel, the extension ships two starter files for it: custom-filenames-template.csv and custom-filenames-template.txt. They sit in the extension folder and give you a shape to fill in rather than a blank box. The Custom names tile on Home jumps straight to that part of a download, so you do not hunt through steps to reach it.

Filling the template keeps a naming recipe reviewable outside the extension. It also pairs with the spreadsheet route: the same list of names can be checked in a spreadsheet before it is uploaded, which is safer than repairing filenames after a large batch has already saved.

Continue reading: Download Images With Sequential Filenames.