How to Fix Power Apps Image Missing on First Load
Question details
The user needs to resolve an issue where an image in a Power Apps canvas app fails to display during the initial screen load but appears when the app is reopened.
- Product
- Microsoft Power Apps
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Loading a canvas app screen for the first time with media assets.
- Observed behavior
- Images do not appear upon the initial screen load but will load successfully upon subsequent opens.
Ensure your network connection is stable and that you have edit permissions for the canvas app in Power Apps Studio to modify the OnStart property or screen logic.
Optimize and Preload the Image using OnStart
Reduce the file size and preload the image into the app cache to ensure it is fully downloaded before the user navigates to the screen.
Large file sizes and server response times can cause images to render too slowly on the first load. Optimizing the image and forcing it to cache during the app startup prevents this delay.
Convert your image to a supported web-friendly format (PNG or JPEG) and compress its file size to minimize download time before uploading it to the Power Apps media panel.
Navigate to the App's 'OnStart' property in the tree view. Add a formula to load the image into a local collection, such as: ClearCollect(colPreloadedImages, {MyImage: UploadedImageName}).
Go to the target screen, select your Image control, and change its 'Image' property to reference the collection item (e.g., First(colPreloadedImages).MyImage) so it pulls from the preloaded cache.
Delay Screen Navigation with a Timer
Use a timer control to give the app extra time to fetch large image files before displaying the target screen.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What image formats are supported in Power Apps?
Power Apps primarily supports standard web formats, including JPEG, PNG, SVG, and GIF. Using highly optimized JPEGs or PNGs helps prevent first-load rendering issues.
Why do my images only load the second time I open the app?
This is typically caused by caching behavior. On the first launch, the app attempts to download the asset from the server, which may take longer than the screen's render time. By the second launch, the image is already cached locally on your device and loads instantly.
Can a slow internet connection cause missing images on load?
Yes, if the server response time is delayed due to poor network performance, the app might render the interface before the image has completely downloaded. Preloading assets during the OnStart phase mitigates this issue.




