Capturely vs Pixieset: which client gallery is right for you?

Pixieset is one of the most recognized names in client galleries, and for good reason: it's widely known for pairing photo delivery with a built-in store, so for many photographers it's the default all-in-one. Capturely comes at the same problem from a different direction. It's a focused delivery platform built around a clean shareable link, privacy by default, and galleries that can delete themselves when the job is done.

This isn't a teardown. Both tools are good at what they set out to do, and the right answer depends entirely on how you run your business. Below I'll compare them on the four things that actually matter day to day (delivery experience, privacy and auto-expiry, branding and domain, and pricing philosophy), then tell you plainly who should pick which.

The honest summary up front

If you want a single platform that delivers galleries and also sells prints, products, and digital downloads through an integrated storefront, Pixieset is a well-established choice. It's widely known as an all-in-one client gallery and print store, and that ecosystem is its strength.

If your priority is a beautiful, fast delivery experience with privacy baked in, galleries that automatically expire to protect clients and keep your storage lean, Capturely is built for exactly that. It does delivery and does it well, without asking you to run a store you may not want.

Delivery experience

Delivery is the moment your client actually feels your work, so it deserves attention. Capturely opens each gallery on a cinematic full-screen cover personalized with the client's names, then drops into a justified-grid viewer and an elegant lightbox. Photos keep their shot orientation, so verticals stay vertical and nothing gets awkwardly cropped to fit a template.

Clients never make an account. They open the link, view, favorite, and download, full-resolution single photos or the whole gallery as a zip. You can see per-photo download counts, and if you'd rather deliver view-only, you can turn downloads off entirely and add an optional watermark. Favorites build a real selection set for retouching or printing, with an optional pick limit and optional per-photo comments; the first time a guest acts, Capturely asks their name (email and phone optional).

Pixieset is also widely known for polished, mobile-friendly galleries and a smooth client-facing experience, with favoriting and download controls of its own; confirm the current specifics on their site. Both deliver beautifully. The difference is emphasis: Capturely's whole product is the delivery moment, while Pixieset is positioned as a larger store-first ecosystem that wraps delivery inside it.

Privacy and auto-expiry

This is where Capturely's philosophy is most distinct. Every gallery can be set to self-delete after a window you choose, anywhere from 7 days to a full year, a custom date, or Keep forever. When the window closes, the gallery and the original files are permanently removed. Clients get an email reminder a few days before the gallery closes, so nobody is caught off guard.

That single feature does double duty. It's a privacy promise, sensitive shoots don't linger online indefinitely, and it's a cost lever, because storage you delete is storage you don't pay for. Capturely also keeps galleries out of search engines by default; password-protected and expired galleries are never indexable, and adding a password makes a gallery Private.

Most established platforms, Pixieset included, are generally known to offer password protection and some form of expiry or archiving controls. Verify the current specifics on their site, but the framing is the key difference: with Capturely, ephemeral-by-design is the default posture rather than a setting you have to remember to manage.

Branding and domain

Your gallery should feel like your studio, not someone else's product. On paid plans, Capturely lets you remove Capturely branding entirely, and every account gets a clean yourstudio.capturely.me subdomain. There's also a public studio page that lists your active galleries, a simple hub clients can bookmark.

Pixieset is also generally known for custom branding and domain options on its paid tiers. Both can present a professional, white-labeled face to clients; confirm the current details and tier requirements on each provider's site before you commit.

Pricing philosophy

Numbers change, so treat anything specific as a snapshot to verify, but the philosophies are worth understanding because they reveal what each tool optimizes for.

Capturely is a straightforward subscription for delivery. Free covers 1 active gallery with 15 GB and 14-day expiry, no card required. Pro (€10/mo or €70/yr) unlocks unlimited galleries, 120 GB (plus a 30 GB bonus), your branding and video delivery. Studio (€25/mo or €180/yr) adds 500 GB of storage, and signed webhooks and RAW support come with every plan. Extra storage comes in 100 GB blocks (€5/mo or €48/yr), and paid plans include a 14-day free trial. Crucially, the self-deleting model is designed to keep your storage, and therefore your bill, lean over time.

Pixieset's model is generally known to combine subscription tiers with store and print-sale capabilities, where commerce is part of the value (and sometimes the cost) structure. If selling products is central to your workflow, that integration can pay for itself. If it isn't, you may be paying for a storefront you'll never open. Check Pixieset's current plans directly for exact figures.

Competitor specifics above are high-level positioning, not exact feature or price claims; always confirm the latest on Pixieset's own website.

So which should you choose?

Pick Pixieset if selling is part of the job, if you want one platform to deliver galleries and run a print and product store, and you value that integrated commerce ecosystem, it's a proven, well-supported choice.

Pick Capturely if delivery and privacy are the priority. Specifically, choose Capturely when you want:

• ·A delivery experience that feels cinematic and gets out of the way, no client logins.
• ·Galleries that delete themselves on a schedule you set, for privacy and lean storage.
• ·Your own branding without running a storefront you don't need.
• ·Transparent, delivery-focused pricing with a genuinely usable free tier.

The best client gallery is the one that matches how you actually work. If your business is built on print sales, lean into a store-first tool. If it's built on the handoff, a fast, private, self-cleaning delivery is hard to beat.

You don't have to guess. Every new Capturely account starts with 14 days of Pro, no card needed, so you can deliver a real gallery and feel the difference before deciding.