Photo gallery software lets photographers and teams publish, proof and deliver pictures to clients, or keep a private library.
This guide ranks twelve products on how much archive the tier really holds, where the commission sits when prints sell, whether files leave at full resolution, and how much of the stack one vendor controls.
Vendors can pay for visibility on this page. It never changes what an entry
says about a product, including the criticism, and we earn nothing when you click through to a
vendor. How that works.
In short
What photo gallery software does
Photo gallery software hosts images in online albums with privacy controls, so photographers and teams can share, proof, deliver and sometimes sell pictures without sending large files by email.
In this order: setup effort, what it really costs, how your data comes back out, whether
you can leave, and who each photo gallery tool is built for. Why those five, and why there is no
score out of ten, is on the how we work page.
Free with 15 GB shared across Google services; paid storage through Google One
Yes
Families and friends who want to pool photos from a trip or event
Photographers who need proofing, watermarks, branding or print sales
Country is where the vendor is headquartered or contracts from, which is a
different question from where your data is hosted. Where the two tell different stories, the
entry says so.
Proofing and delivery galleries from a Berlin company, priced by storage
Ranked #1 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingEurope
Picdrop splits plans by storage and team members: Pro has 500 GB, Advanced 1 TB with up to four team members, Business 3 TB with up to nine.
Paid plans carry the photographer's own branding and watermark protection, and downloads come as single files or ZIP archives. Servers are in Germany and the page says client data is not used for AI training. The cost is a narrow product scope.
What stands out
Photo proofing
Free plan
Hosted in Germany
Where it costs you
The free plan stops at three galleries and 1 GB, which is a trial in practice.
The pricing page lists no print store or booking tool, so selling prints means a second service.
Right for
Photographers who send selections to clients and want comments and votes on images
Wrong for
Studios that want their website, store and invoices in one product
GermanyFree plan; per month per plan, published; 14-day trial
Client galleries with a print store that charges commission only on markup
Ranked #2 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingMiddle East
Four tiers run from Free (10 GB) through Beginner (20 GB) and Professional (100 GB) to Advanced with unlimited photo storage and 60 GB of video.
Pic-Time collects print payments and covers card fees, so the commission is where the real price sits. Servers are in the EU, the US and Australia, and the operating company is in Caesarea, Israel. Terms are governed by New York law.
What stands out
Print store
Free plan
Unlimited-storage tier
Where it costs you
The free plan's photo storage is reduced after a stated period, so it cannot hold an archive.
Unlimited storage on Advanced carries terms the pricing page defers to the help centre.
Each extra brand on Advanced adds a monthly charge.
Right for
Photographers who sell prints through galleries and want reduced commission as they grow
Wrong for
Anyone who needs a single flat price without per-brand charges
Open source photo gallery you host yourself or rent from a French operator
Ranked #3 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Open sourceSelf-hostablePublished pricingEurope
Piwigo is GPL v2 licensed and runs on PHP with MySQL or MariaDB, with over 200 plugins and themes listed in the repository. The hosted service is run by PigoLabs, a French company, on OVHcloud servers in Roubaix.
Plans are Pro (10 GB), Team (100 GB), Enterprise (250 GB) and VIP (1000 GB), plus paid support tiers for self-hosters. The Pro plan accepts images, video and audio only.
What stands out
Open source
Self-hosted option
Data returned on exit
Where it costs you
Hosted plans start at 10 GB with one administrator, which is expensive per gigabyte.
The pricing page lists no print store, so selling photos needs another service.
Self-hosting needs a PHP and MySQL or MariaDB server that you maintain.
Right for
Teams, clubs and archives that want to own the gallery software and its data
Wrong for
Wedding photographers who want galleries, store and invoicing in one place
FrancePer month per plan, published; open source self-hosted edition; 30-day trial
Client galleries, website and store on one account, with a free plan
Ranked #4 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingNorth America
Five tiers: Free (3 GB), Basic (10 GB), Plus (100 GB), Pro (1 TB) and Ultimate (unlimited). All paid tiers list unlimited galleries, full-resolution downloads, custom domain and video support.
Email campaign allowances grow from 100 a month on Basic to 10,000 on Ultimate. The page shows a free plan, not a trial. Pixieset Media Inc. operates the service and the footer places it in Vancouver.
What stands out
Free plan
Client galleries
Store commission on free
Where it costs you
The free plan takes a 15 percent fee on store sales.
RAW uploads are not offered below the Pro plan.
Studio Manager has its own pricing page, so the real bill depends on which modules you add.
Right for
Photographers who want gallery, website and store from one vendor and a no-cost start
Photographer galleries where every paid plan differs only in storage
Ranked #5 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingNorth America
Tiers run from Starter (20 GB) through Standard (100 GB) and Professional (1,000 GB plus 50 GB video) to Premium with unlimited storage.
E-sign contracts and invoicing start at Starter, along with multi-brand management. The company is ShootProof, LLC in Atlanta, Georgia, and the terms are under Georgia law. A 14-day trial needs no credit card.
What stands out
Storage-only tiers
Commission-free sales
14-day trial
Where it costs you
The free plan stops at 3 GB, about 100 photos, and lacks white-labelled galleries.
ShootProof Pay is offered to US residents, so other photographers rely on other payment routes.
The pricing page does not mention a bulk export of galleries.
Right for
Studios that want one feature set and a bill that scales with storage alone
Wrong for
Photographers outside the United States who want built-in payments
United StatesFree plan; per month per plan, published; 14-day trial
Photographer website and galleries with a seven percent fee on sales
Ranked #6 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Published pricingNorth America
Basic holds 15 GB, Professional 150 GB, and Advanced unlimited JPEG storage with 150 GB of video and 4K support. Every plan lists a custom website, client galleries and proofing.
Annual billing roughly halves the Professional monthly price on the European price page. Zenfolio, Inc. gives a Menlo Park, California address for notices in its user agreement.
What stands out
Photographer websites
Order fee on sales
Annual billing discount
Where it costs you
Selling photos carries a 7 percent order fee plus per-file download charges.
Terms auto-renew subscriptions and state that no refunds are provided on cancellation.
Disputes go to mandatory arbitration under the terms, with a 30-day opt-out.
Right for
Photographers who want a branded website and galleries and sell only occasionally
Wrong for
High-volume sellers who want commission-free sales
United StatesPer month per plan, published; trial without a card
Portfolio website builder with client galleries and zero sales commission
Ranked #7 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Published pricingAsia-Pacific
Four plans, Basic, Creator, Professional and Advanced, with monthly, yearly and two-yearly billing at stated discounts. Every plan lists unlimited private client albums with proofing, favourites and comments, and watermarks, one on Basic and unlimited above.
Payment processor fees still apply on Stripe or PayPal. Pixpa is operated by Idea Zinc Design LLP under the laws of Delhi, India.
What stands out
Website builder
Zero commission
15-day trial
Where it costs you
Client-gallery storage is 3 GB on Basic and 100 GB on the top plan.
Pixpa has no free plan listed, only a 15-day trial.
Gallery link sharing quantities vary by plan.
Right for
Photographers and artists who want a portfolio site first and client galleries second
Wrong for
Studios delivering large wedding or event archives to clients
Self-hosted photo library with AI search, funded by paid memberships
Ranked #8 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Open sourceSelf-hostablePublished pricingEurope
Editions are Community (self-hosted, AGPL), Essentials, Plus and a PikaPods managed option. All tiers list AI features such as people recognition. Deployment targets include Docker, Raspberry Pi and NAS systems.
The operator is PhotoPrism UG (haftungsbeschraenkt) in Berlin, which publishes a membership withdrawal policy. Plus adds hardened security and session monitoring according to the editions page.
What stands out
Open source
Self-hosted
AI classification
Where it costs you
User-management features sit in the paid memberships, not the community edition.
The pages describe a library, not client proofing or print sales.
Running it needs Docker or another server setup that you maintain.
Right for
People and small teams who want a private, searchable library on their own server
Wrong for
Photographers who deliver galleries to clients and sell prints
GermanyOpen source community edition; paid memberships, published
Asset library for brands and teams, sold in five seat-based tiers
Ranked #9 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Pricing on requestNorth America
Starter has 2 library seats and 1 TB, Standard 3 seats and 2 TB with a dedicated customer success manager, Pro 4 seats and 3 TB, and Premium 5 seats and 5 TB with unlimited integrations.
AI search is listed across tiers. Billing can be annual or monthly. PhotoShelter, Inc. gives a Dover, Delaware address in its terms and runs Socialie as a second product.
What stands out
Asset library
Seat-based tiers
Demo-led pricing
Where it costs you
Prices are not shown, so budgeting needs a demo first.
The pricing page lists no trial period.
Advanced integrations are limited to zero on Starter and three on the middle tiers.
Right for
Sports teams, brands and agencies that keep one shared library with many reviewers
Wrong for
Solo photographers who want a low monthly price for client galleries
United StatesQuoted per organisation; five tiers, no trial listed
Unlimited JPEG storage per account, with selling gated to higher tiers
Ranked #10 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Published pricingNorth America
Plans are Direct, Portfolio and Pro, plus a custom Enterprise tier for studios, teams and institutions. A 14-day trial covers every plan. RAW storage costs per terabyte, with the first terabyte priced higher than the rest. Integrations listed include Adobe Lightroom, Flickr and Dropbox. SmugMug, Inc. lists a Mountain View, California address in its terms.
What stands out
Unlimited JPEG storage
Selling from Portfolio
Owns Flickr
Where it costs you
The entry plan has no selling tools; those start on Portfolio.
RAW storage is a paid add-on billed per terabyte.
Enterprise pricing is not published.
Right for
Photographers who want one account for a portfolio, delivery and unlimited JPEG storage
Wrong for
Photographers with large RAW archives who want one flat price
United StatesPer month per plan, published; 14-day trial
Photo community with a Pro subscription for uploads and ad-free viewing
Ranked #11 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Pricing on requestNorth America
The Pro sign-up page lists full-resolution uploads with no monthly cap, ad-free viewing, views and referrer statistics and dedicated support for Pros, sold monthly, annually or on a two-year plan.
The page frames Flickr around groups and community. Flickr, Inc., based at a San Francisco postal address, is owned by SmugMug, Inc. and governed by the terms SmugMug links.
What stands out
Photo community
Pro subscription
Owned by SmugMug
Where it costs you
Pro subscriptions renew automatically and cannot be refunded.
The sign-up page describes community and public sharing, not client delivery or sales.
The sign-up page does not show prices.
Right for
Enthusiasts and photographers who want a public community and statistics
Wrong for
Studios that need private client proofing, a store or invoicing
United StatesPro subscription billed monthly, yearly or every two years
Shared albums from a Google account, counted against Google storage
Ranked #12 of 12 in Best Photo Gallery and Sharing Software in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingNorth America
Sharing works with Google account holders by contact or search, or by link with a QR code option. Only the album owner can remove collaborators, and when someone leaves, their added photos are removed from the album.
Extra storage comes through Google One. Google LLC, a Delaware company at 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, provides the service to users in the United States.
What stands out
Shared albums
Account storage quota
Family sharing
Where it costs you
Anyone with an album link can view and add to the album.
Saved items count against the 15 GB shared with Gmail and Drive.
Photos may be deleted after two years of inactivity, with email notice first.
Right for
Families and friends who want to pool photos from a trip or event
Wrong for
Photographers who need proofing, watermarks, branding or print sales
United StatesFree with 15 GB shared across Google services; paid storage through Google One
Photo gallery software hosts images in online albums with privacy controls, so photographers and teams can share, proof, deliver and sometimes sell pictures without sending large files by email. The differences that matter are rarely in the feature list, so this is
the order we would work through them.
01
Decide whether you need a published price
10 of the 12 tools here publish what they cost; the other 2 quote per organisation. The ones you can compare without a sales call: Picdrop, Pic-Time, Piwigo, Pixieset, ShootProof, Zenfolio, Pixpa, PhotoPrism, SmugMug, Google Photos.
02
Decide how much the jurisdiction matters
These 12 vendors are established in 6 countries across 4 regions (North America 7, Europe 3, Asia-Pacific 1, Middle East 1). That decides whose disclosure law applies to what the vendor holds, wherever the servers are.
03
Consider whether you want the source
2 of these are open source: Piwigo, PhotoPrism. Hosting one yourself trades a subscription for maintenance.
Photo gallery software: storage tiers hide the real client-gallery price
Photographers shopping for photo gallery software usually compare the headline monthly price, then discover that the number they care about is gigabytes. Pixieset gives a free 3 GB, Basic 10 GB and Plus 100 GB. ShootProof says its paid plans differ only in storage. Pixpa counts only client originals, so 3 GB on Basic can vanish in one wedding.
Estimate your archive before you compare: a season of originals multiplied by how long clients keep access. Then check what the tier does when you exceed it, because Pic-Time reduces storage on its free plan after a period, and unlimited tiers come with terms of their own.
Add up the originals you deliver in a year and how long galleries stay online
Check whether the tier counts originals, web versions or both
Read what happens at the limit: upgrade prompt, queued deletion or reduced storage
Where the commission sits when you sell prints through Picdrop, Pic-Time or Zenfolio
Selling prints is where gallery vendors earn their margin, and the fee sits in different places. Zenfolio lists a 7 percent fee on order subtotals plus per-file charges for digital downloads. Pic-Time applies commission only to your markup and drops it for self-collected payments on Professional and Advanced.
Pixieset takes 15 percent on the free plan and nothing on paid plans, and Pixpa states 0 percent on every plan. Picdrop lists no store at all. Write down your expected yearly print and download sales, apply each rule, and compare the totals, because a lower subscription can cost more than a higher one.
Model one year of sales against each vendor's fee rule
Separate the vendor commission from Stripe or PayPal processing fees
Confirm whether the free plan carries a higher fee than paid plans
Client proofing versus a family photo album: where Google Photos and Flickr stop
Shared albums and professional galleries solve different problems. Google Photos lets anyone holding an album link view and add photos, and saved items count against the owner's 15 GB. Flickr is built around public groups and community, with Pro adding uncapped uploads and ad-free viewing.
Neither page describes watermarks, client proofing or a print store. Picdrop and Pixpa list proofing with comments or favourites, and Pic-Time and ShootProof add stores and contracts. Decide whether your clients need to choose, comment and pay in the gallery, or only look. If they choose, a family album tool will not do the job.
List whether clients must select, comment, download or buy
Check who can add to or re-share a gallery by link
Look for watermark and download controls before sending the first gallery
Leaving a gallery vendor: what Piwigo, PhotoPrism and SmugMug make easy or hard
A gallery holds years of client work, so test the exit before you commit. Piwigo is GPL v2 software that runs on your own server or on the operator's hosted plans, and the operator says it returns all files and data free of charge. PhotoPrism's community edition is AGPL and self-hosted.
SmugMug and Zenfolio are hosted services: Zenfolio's terms say that after termination it deletes your content, and SmugMug charges per terabyte for RAW storage on top of plans. ShootProof's pricing page does not mention bulk export. Ask each vendor for a full-resolution archive of one test gallery before you move a client library.
Export one real gallery at full resolution and open the files elsewhere
Read what the terms say happens to content after cancellation
Note whether RAW files cost extra to keep stored
What goes wrong most often when buying photo gallery software
Picking a plan by monthly price without converting your yearly archive into gigabytes first.
Treating a family album tool as a client gallery, then finding no watermark or proofing controls.
Ignoring the commission on the free plan, such as Pixieset's 15 percent, when planning print sales.
Moving a client library to a new vendor without first exporting one test gallery to check the files.
07
Frequently asked questions
8 answers
What is the best photo gallery software in 2026?
Picdrop leads our ranking of 12. Picdrop does two jobs, client proofing and delivery, and prices them by storage and team seats instead of by feature. A free plan holds three galleries and 1 GB, and paid plans start with unlimited galleries.
It is a single-product company, which keeps the plan table short. The pricing page lists no website builder, booking or print store, so a studio needing those will add other tools.
Which photo gallery tools publish their pricing?
10 of the 12, with the pricing model each one publishes:
Picdrop: Free plan; per month per plan, published; 14-day trial.
Pic-Time: Free plan; per month per plan, published.
Piwigo: Per month per plan, published; open source self-hosted edition; 30-day trial.
Pixieset: Free plan; per month per plan, published.
ShootProof: Free plan; per month per plan, published; 14-day trial.
Zenfolio: Per month per plan, published; trial without a card.
Pixpa: Per month per plan, published; 15-day trial.
PhotoPrism: Open source community edition; paid memberships, published.
SmugMug: Per month per plan, published; 14-day trial.
Google Photos: Free with 15 GB shared across Google services; paid storage through Google One.
The other 2 quote per organisation.
Is there a free photo gallery tool?
Picdrop, Pic-Time, Pixieset, ShootProof, Google Photos offer a free tier or a free self-hosted edition.
Where are these photo gallery software vendors established?
In 6 countries across 4 regions: North America 7, Europe 3, Asia-Pacific 1, Middle East 1.
Picdrop: Germany.
Pic-Time: Israel.
Piwigo: France.
Pixieset: Canada.
ShootProof: United States.
Zenfolio: United States.
Pixpa: India.
PhotoPrism: Germany.
PhotoShelter: United States.
SmugMug: United States.
Flickr: United States.
Google Photos: United States.
Which photo gallery tools are open source?
Piwigo, PhotoPrism.
Which photo gallery tools can you host yourself?
Piwigo, PhotoPrism. The other 10 are hosted by the vendor only.
What should you use instead of Picdrop?
Pic-Time and Piwigo are the next two on this page. Pic-Time is for Photographers who sell prints through galleries and want reduced commission as they grow; Piwigo is for Teams, clubs and archives that want to own the gallery software and its data.
Who should not buy Picdrop?
Studios that want their website, store and invoices in one product. The free plan stops at three galleries and 1 GB, which is a trial in practice..
If your photo gallery software product belongs among these 12, tell us what it does and who it is for. Inclusion is an editorial call; what a listing is and is not is set out under software advice.
