Pixieset alternatives: how to choose a client gallery that fits your work

Pixieset is one of the best-known client gallery platforms, and for many photographers it is the first one they try. People start looking for an alternative for a handful of reasons: the plan they need costs more than the work justifies, they never use the store, they want clients to choose photos within a package limit, or they simply want to know whether they are paying for the right thing.

This guide is not a list of ten tools with the same three sentences each. It starts with the questions that decide the choice, then says which kind of photographer each well-known alternative suits, including where Pixieset itself is still the better pick. For the numbers side by side, see Capturely compared with Pixieset.

First, write down why you are looking

One reason usually made you start searching. Name it, because it decides more than any feature table:

• ·'The plan I need costs too much': compare plans at the storage you really use, not at the size of the biggest plan.
• ·'I never sell anything from the gallery': then a store is weight you carry, and a delivery-only tool may be all you need.
• ·'Clients take forever to choose': look for favorites with a pick limit, notes on photos and an export to your editing software.
• ·'Clients struggle on their phones': open a demo gallery on your own phone and try to save one photo, then the whole set.
• ·'Old galleries pile up': look at expiry dates, reminders and what happens to the files when a gallery ends.

What actually matters in a client gallery

Most gallery tools look alike on their home pages. The differences show up in a handful of places, and they are easy to test before you pay:

1. Storage for the money at your real volume. A photographer who delivers a wedding most weekends needs a different plan from one who shoots a few family sessions a month.
2. What the client sees first: a cover and large previews, or a list of file names. Clients judge the whole delivery in the first few seconds.
3. Downloads on a phone: whether one photo saves to the photo library, and whether the whole gallery can be saved without a laptop.
4. Selections: favorites, a limit tied to the package, notes on photos, and a way to get the list into Lightroom or Capture One without typing file names.
5. Protection: passwords and watermarks on proofs, and whether they are on the plan you would actually buy, not only on the top one.
6. How a gallery ends: an expiry date, a reminder to the client, and whether the files are deleted or keep counting toward your storage.
7. Languages: if some clients do not speak English, check whether the gallery itself can switch language.

The well-known alternatives, by who they suit

Every tool below is a serious product, and each is the better fit for some photographers. The fair way to compare them is by the work you do. Each fact here comes from the comparison pages we keep, which cite each company's own pages.

• ·Pic-Time: a good fit when prints and albums ordered from your galleries are a real part of your income. It works with labs worldwide and has an album builder.
• ·ShootProof: a fit when you want contracts and invoices next to your galleries on its paid plans, and commission-free product sales on every plan.
• ·SmugMug: a fit when you want one home for every photo you have ever taken. It lists unlimited photo storage on every plan, and a portfolio site on its Portfolio and Pro plans.
• ·Zenfolio: a fit for school, sports and other volume work, and when you want a portfolio site in the same subscription as your galleries.
• ·CloudSpot: a fit when you want to give each client a mobile app with their photos, and studio tools such as contracts, questionnaires and invoices on its larger plans.
• ·Picdrop: a fit when you work with art directors and agencies who mark up photos, or when several people on a team share one account.
• ·Pixpa: a fit when you want a portfolio site, a blog and client galleries in one subscription.

And Pixieset is still the better choice in some cases: if clients order prints and products from your galleries, if you want to give clients a mobile gallery app, if you need a terabyte or more, or if you keep many small galleries live on a free plan. Leaving to save a little money is rarely worth losing a store that pays for itself.

Where Capturely fits, and where it does not

Capturely does one job: it delivers photos in a gallery your clients can look through, choose from and download, and then closes and deletes the gallery on the date you set. There is no store, no contracts and no portfolio site. If you need any of those inside your gallery tool, one of the options above will serve you better.

It fits photographers who mainly deliver and let clients choose. Favorites within a pick limit, notes and Export picks are on every plan, Free included. Galleries come in 13 languages your client can switch between. On a phone, Download saves a photo straight to the photo library. And a gallery can close on a date with a reminder to your client first, so finished jobs stop using storage.

Pro and Studio can add storage in 100 GB blocks for €5 a month each, and every new account starts with 14 days of Pro with no card.

How to switch without upsetting clients

1. Do not move old galleries in a hurry. Let live galleries finish where they are and deliver new shoots with the new tool.
2. Deliver one real shoot first, ideally a small one, and watch how the client gets on, especially on a phone.
3. Set your defaults once: your watermark, whether galleries get a password, how long they stay open and in which language.
4. Update your delivery message so it names the new link and says how long it stays open.
5. If you do need old galleries in the new tool, upload them from your own files. Capturely has no importer, so plan the time for it.

A five-minute checklist before you decide

For a wider look at the whole category, read our guide to client gallery software, and see every comparison side by side on the comparison page. Then run these checks on the two tools left on your list:

• ·Open a demo gallery on your phone and save one photo, then the whole set.
• ·Price the plan at the storage you use today, plus one busy season.
• ·Check that the features you rely on are on that plan, not only on a higher one.
• ·Run a selection round yourself: heart a few photos, leave a note, submit, export.
• ·Decide what should happen to a gallery after delivery, and check the tool does it by itself.

Questions photographers ask

What is the best Pixieset alternative?

There is no single one. If prints and albums are a real part of your income, look at Pic-Time or ShootProof; if you want a portfolio site in the same place, SmugMug, Zenfolio or Pixpa; if you mainly deliver and want clients to choose quickly, a delivery-focused gallery such as Capturely.

Is there a free Pixieset alternative?

Several tools have a free plan, Pixieset included. Capturely Free has one active gallery at a time with 15 GB, and favorites, full-size downloads, passwords and watermarks are all part of it. Check what each free plan leaves out before you rely on it.

Can I move my Pixieset galleries to Capturely?

Not automatically: Capturely has no importer. Most photographers let live galleries finish on Pixieset and deliver new shoots in Capturely; anything you need to keep can be uploaded from your own files.

Does Capturely have a store like Pixieset?

No. Capturely delivers galleries and does not take orders for prints or products. If that income matters to you, Pixieset's store is a good reason to stay.