Buyer's guide

Best client gallery platform for photographers (2026): Pixieset, ShootProof, Pic-Time, SmugMug and Zenfolio

Updated November 2026. Products change often — check each vendor for current cameras, platforms and pricing.

Short answer: Pixieset is the best all-rounder for most portrait and wedding photographers — clean galleries, a usable free plan and an all-in-one studio suite. Pic-Time is the pick if print and album sales are a big part of your income, ShootProof if you want commission-free sales with contracts and invoicing in one place (and live delivery from your camera), SmugMug if you want unlimited photo storage with a portfolio website, and Zenfolio if you want website, galleries and booking bundled. All five deliver beautiful, branded galleries; the differences are in storage, how sales are charged, studio tools — and whether you can fill a gallery while you're still shooting. Here's each one side by side.

At a glance

Tool	Free plan	Storage	Best for	Sales
Pixieset	Yes — 3 GB, unlimited galleries	10 GB to unlimited by Client Gallery plan; RAW upload on Pro and Ultimate	Portrait and wedding photographers who want an all-in-one suite	Print store: 15% commission on the free plan, commission-free on paid plans
ShootProof	Yes — a small photo allowance, no video	20 GB to unlimited photos by plan; video up to 4K on paid plans	Proofing, commission-free sales and studio admin in one place	Commission-free sales on every plan
Pic-Time	Yes — 10 GB, dropping to 3 GB after 3 months	20 GB (Beginner), 100 GB (Professional), unlimited (Advanced, terms apply)	Photographers who earn a lot from prints, albums and products	Commission on markup only, falling with each plan; none on self-collected payments on Professional and Advanced
SmugMug	No free plan listed	Unlimited photo storage, full-res JPEG included; RAW as an add-on	Unlimited storage plus a portfolio website	Sell prints and digital files on Portfolio and Pro plans
Zenfolio	No free plan listed	15 GB (Basic), 150 GB (Professional), unlimited photos (Advanced, terms apply)	A website, galleries and booking bundled	Sales on Professional and Advanced; a commerce fee on fulfilled orders

As of November 2026. Product names are trademarks of their owners; no affiliation or endorsement is implied.

The tools, one by one

1. Pixieset
Pixieset
Clean, fast client galleries plus a website builder, Studio Manager for bookings, invoices, contracts and payments, a store and client-facing Mobile Gallery Apps. Widely used and easy to learn.
Free plan
Yes — 3 GB, unlimited galleries
Storage
10 GB to unlimited by Client Gallery plan; RAW upload on Pro and Ultimate
Best for
Portrait and wedding photographers who want an all-in-one suite
Sales
Print store: 15% commission on the free plan, commission-free on paid plans
Strengths
- Polished galleries with favourites, download PINs and watermarks
- Studio Manager app (iPhone and Android) for bookings and payments
- Lightroom Classic plug-in for uploads and client favourites
- Usable free plan to start
Limits
- No upload connection for other apps, so no live upload from your camera
- RAW upload only on the top two Client Gallery plans
Pixieset live upload: what works today
2. ShootProof
ShootProof
Client proofing galleries with a store, email marketing, e-sign contracts, invoicing and online booking. Sales are commission-free on every plan, and mobile gallery apps let clients carry their gallery on their phone.
Free plan
Yes — a small photo allowance, no video
Storage
20 GB to unlimited photos by plan; video up to 4K on paid plans
Best for
Proofing, commission-free sales and studio admin in one place
Sales
Commission-free sales on every plan
Strengths
- Commission-free sales on every plan
- Contracts and invoicing on paid plans; email marketing on all
- Lightroom Classic publish service
- CloudTether fills ShootProof events live as you shoot
Limits
- Free plan is for trying it out — very limited
- Archive is a paid add-on on most plans
Live upload to ShootProof
3. Pic-Time
Pic-Time
Galleries built around selling: a print store with 30+ labs worldwide on every plan, sales automations, coupons and gift cards, slideshows and AI image search on higher plans, and a mobile app that creates galleries and uploads from the phone.
Free plan
Yes — 10 GB, dropping to 3 GB after 3 months
Storage
20 GB (Beginner), 100 GB (Professional), unlimited (Advanced, terms apply)
Best for
Photographers who earn a lot from prints, albums and products
Sales
Commission on markup only, falling with each plan; none on self-collected payments on Professional and Advanced
Strengths
- Strong print and product sales tools on every plan
- Mobile app (iPhone, iPad, Android) creates galleries and uploads media
- Lightroom integration; a free year of Studio Ninja CRM for new Professional and Advanced users
Limits
- Free plan storage drops after three months
- Not a CloudTether destination — no live upload from a tethered camera
4. SmugMug
SmugMug
Photo hosting with unlimited photo storage, portfolio websites and storefronts on the Portfolio and Pro plans, client galleries on every plan, Lightroom integration and automatic upload from SmugMug's apps. Pro adds custom price lists, packages, coupons and client favouriting with download limits.
Free plan
No free plan listed
Storage
Unlimited photo storage, full-res JPEG included; RAW as an add-on
Best for
Unlimited storage plus a portfolio website
Sales
Sell prints and digital files on Portfolio and Pro plans
Strengths
- Unlimited photo storage on every plan
- Portfolio website and galleries in one place
- CloudTether delivers live into the SmugMug gallery you pick
Limits
- RAW storage is an extra add-on
- Selling needs the Portfolio or Pro plan; lighter studio admin
SmugMug vs ShootProof
5. Zenfolio
Zenfolio
A website builder with client galleries and proofing, an e-commerce store on Professional and Advanced, and booking, automated client campaigns and 4K video on Advanced. Plans were renamed Basic, Professional and Advanced (formerly Portfolio, PortfolioPlus and ProSuite).
Free plan
No free plan listed
Storage
15 GB (Basic), 150 GB (Professional), unlimited photos (Advanced, terms apply)
Best for
A website, galleries and booking bundled
Sales
Sales on Professional and Advanced; a commerce fee on fulfilled orders
Strengths
- Website, galleries and store under one login
- Booking included on Advanced
- Unlimited photo storage on Advanced
Limits
- No selling on Basic
- Not a CloudTether destination

Also worth knowing: for race and sports events, Photohawk lets participants find their photos by bib number or face, and CloudTether delivers to it live; Flickr suits public photostreams; and a shared Dropbox or Google Drive folder is the simplest same-day preview when you don't need a branded gallery.

How to choose a client gallery platform

What do clients do in the gallery?

If clients mainly view and download, any of these works. If they favourite and proof, check the proofing tools; if they order prints, albums and products, compare the stores, lab networks and how sales are charged.

How are sales charged?

Some platforms take a commission on sales on free or lower plans and none on paid plans; others charge a fee on fulfilled orders or a share of the markup. Read the current terms alongside the subscription — for a busy print seller, fees can matter more than the plan.

How much storage, and does it include RAW and video?

Plans range from a few gigabytes to unlimited photos. Check what counts: some limits include video, some exclude RAW (SmugMug stores RAW as an add-on; Pixieset lists RAW upload on its top two plans), and some free plans shrink after a few months.

Do you want the studio admin in the same place?

Contracts, invoices, booking and email automation are built into ShootProof, Pixieset (Studio Manager) and Zenfolio's top plan; Pic-Time integrates with CRMs and offers Studio Ninja; SmugMug is lighter here. One login is convenient; a dedicated CRM can be more powerful.

Do you need a website too?

SmugMug, Zenfolio and Pixieset all offer portfolio websites; ShootProof includes a portfolio site option; Pic-Time focuses on galleries and sales. If you already have a site, gallery features matter more.

Can you fill the gallery during the shoot?

Same-day sneak peeks and live event galleries need photos to go from camera to gallery as you shoot. CloudTether delivers live into SmugMug and ShootProof (JPEGs); Pixieset and Pic-Time don't offer an upload connection for other apps, so they're for delivery after the shoot.

Where CloudTether fits

CloudTether isn't a gallery platform — it's the step that gets photos into one. It tethers your camera to your iPhone, iPad or Android phone and sends every frame, as you shoot, straight into a SmugMug gallery or a ShootProof event, so clients can watch selects arrive during a wedding or event. You can send 2048 px JPEGs to the gallery for speed and RAW originals to Dropbox from the same shoot.

If your galleries live on Pixieset, Pic-Time or Zenfolio, CloudTether still has a role: send every frame to a Dropbox or Google Drive folder as a live backup and same-day preview link, then upload your edit to the gallery afterwards.

A note on fairness

We make CloudTether, which delivers live to SmugMug and ShootProof but not to Pixieset, Pic-Time or Zenfolio — so read our notes with that in mind. Plan names, storage and fees below come from each platform's own pricing pages in November 2026; they change often, and we've left prices out deliberately. Check current pricing and terms before you move a business.

FAQ

What is the best client gallery platform for photographers?

For most portrait and wedding photographers, Pixieset is the best all-rounder. Pic-Time is stronger for print and album sales, ShootProof for commission-free sales with contracts and invoices, SmugMug for unlimited photo storage with a website, and Zenfolio for a bundled website, galleries and booking.

Which client gallery platforms have a free plan?

Pixieset (3 GB, unlimited galleries), Pic-Time (10 GB, dropping to 3 GB after three months) and ShootProof (a small photo allowance) all list free plans. SmugMug and Zenfolio don't list one.

Which gallery platform takes no commission on sales?

ShootProof lists commission-free sales on every plan, and Pixieset's store is commission-free on paid plans (15% on the free plan). Pic-Time charges commission on your markup, falling as you move up plans, with none on self-collected payments on Professional and Advanced. Check current terms.

Can I upload to a client gallery live while I shoot?

Yes, to SmugMug and ShootProof: CloudTether tethers your camera to your phone and sends each frame into the gallery as you shoot. Pixieset and Pic-Time don't offer an upload connection for other apps, so they're for delivery after the shoot.

Which platform is best for unlimited storage?

SmugMug includes unlimited photo storage on every plan (RAW as an add-on). Pixieset's Ultimate, ShootProof's Premium, Pic-Time's Advanced and Zenfolio's Advanced plans also list unlimited photo storage, with terms.

Which gallery platform has the best mobile app?

Pic-Time's app lets photographers create galleries and upload from the phone. Pixieset's Studio Manager app runs the business side, and Pixieset and ShootProof both let you make client-facing gallery apps. For getting photos from the camera to the gallery, CloudTether works with SmugMug and ShootProof.

Sources

Third-party facts on this page were checked against these pages in November 2026. Plans and features change — check each vendor for current details and pricing.

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