Uploading an item

Uploading is a four-step wizard: Files → Details → Pricing → Review. Your progress autosaves as a draft at every step, so an interruption on the shop floor doesn't cost you the work.

1. Files

Drag in a .zip or .moz, up to 500MB. We unpack it, check the file types, and scan it for viruses.

Your archive must contain a README

This is a hard requirement, not a suggestion. If your archive has no README, the upload is blocked at step 1 and you cannot continue until you fix it and re-upload.

The README must be a readme.pdf, readme.txt, or readme.md (any capitalization), and it must actually explain:

• How to install the item into Mozaik
• How to use it once installed

It applies to free items too, and to every new version you publish — not just the first upload.

We know a hard gate is annoying. It exists because the single most common complaint about shared Mozaik resources is a file that someone can't figure out how to import. An item nobody can install is worth nothing to the person who downloaded it and earns nothing for you. Ten minutes writing install steps is the difference between a five-star item and a refund.

2. Details

Title, category and subcategory, tags, and a description. Then the fields that make your item findable:

• Mozaik version compatibility — the oldest version this works with (the floor).
• Tested in Mozaik versions — the versions you've actually opened this in (12, 13, 14…). This is a stronger claim than compatibility, and buyers trust it more: "I ran this in 14" beats "should work on 13+". Only check the ones you really tested.
• Brand and model number — Blum, BI-36UFD. Buyers search by exactly these, especially for appliances and windows, so a spec-accurate model number is the difference between being found and not.
• Includes CAM — whether your item carries machining data or is visual-only. Be honest here; it's a filter buyers rely on, and getting it wrong earns refunds.

Then the media:

• Finished-product photo — a photo of the real thing this makes: the built cabinet, the installed hardware, the rendered result. It's separate from your screenshots and it's the single most persuasive thing on the page — it answers "what do I actually get?" before a buyer reads a word. It leads your gallery, labeled Finished result.
• Screenshots — at least one; the first is your thumbnail. These are usually the Mozaik-side view (the library entry, the parameters).
• Training video — a YouTube or Vimeo walkthrough of installing and using it. It becomes a first-class slide in the gallery, not an afterthought buried below the fold.
• Tools used to make this — tag the real-world tools you used from the Tool Library. They appear on your item page and point buyers to where to get them; the tool's own page links back to your item.

Listing strength — effort you can see

As you fill the Details step, a Listing strength meter fills in the preview rail. It scores how complete your listing is — finished-product photo, training video, tested versions, screenshots, a real description, CAM, brand/model, tags — and points at the biggest thing still missing.

It's worth caring about for three concrete reasons:

• It ranks you. Stronger listings sort higher on the marketplace and in search — especially early on, before you have downloads or ratings to rank on.
• It earns a badge. A listing that clears the bar shows a Complete listing badge on the item page and in the grid.
• It's effort, not quality. The meter measures what you provided, not whether the item is good — that's what ratings are for. But a complete listing is the honest proxy for a shop that cares, and it's what turns a browser into a buyer.

Support — set expectations before anyone downloads

You pick one of three stances, and buyers see it on the item page before they get the file:

• I'll support this — you'll help buyers who hit problems. Add how to reach you (email, or "ask in the comments").
• Community support — no formal support from you; buyers can ask in the item's comments and other shops may chip in.
• Use at your own risk — provided as-is, no support. This is the honest default if you can't commit to helping, and there's nothing wrong with it.

Either way, remember what the platform is: a community item is supported by its creator and the community — not by Mozaik. For a question about a community item, the item's comments or the creator are the place, not the Mozaik helpdesk. Being clear about this keeps the trade's goodwill and keeps community files from becoming someone else's support burden.

3. Pricing

Free, or $1–$499. If you're charging, you'll set up Stripe Connect the first time — see payouts.

You can offer a single-shop license, and optionally a multi-seat license at a higher price. If you offer both, buyers pick at checkout. See licensing.

4. Review

You get a preview of exactly what the live item page will look like, then submit.

What happens next

Your first items go to a moderation queue — we aim to review within 24 hours. Once you have 3 approved items and no strikes, you become a trusted seller and your uploads publish immediately, with spot checks afterward.

If something is rejected, you get a reason, and you can fix it and resubmit. See moderation.

Shipping a new version

When you improve an item that's already live — add CAM data, fix a dimension, support a newer Mozaik version — you don't re-upload it as a new listing. From your dashboard Items tab, hit New version on the row: give it a new version number (e.g. 1.1), write a short changelog, and upload the new .zip.

A few things to know:

• The README gate and virus scan run again, exactly like the first upload. A version without a README is blocked.
• Old buyers keep their file, and the new one is offered as an update. Each version is stored separately, so nothing you ship breaks what someone already downloaded. Anyone who owns the item sees Update available in their library and can pull the new version whenever they want.
• Version numbers are yours to choose but must be unique per item, and you can't reuse the current one.
• If you're a trusted seller, the new version goes live immediately. If you're not trusted yet, it passes the automated checks and then waits for a quick moderator review — buyers keep the current version until it's approved. You'll see in review on the item row while it's pending, or the rejection reason if it's declined so you can ship a fix.