Best client gallery for photographers: Pixieset vs Pic-Time vs ShootProof
Software · Updated 13 October 2026 · 5 min read · By the Caloreel editorial team
Photograph by Micah & Sammie Chaffin, via Unsplash.
The short answer
As of October 2026, Pic-Time is the best client gallery for photographers who earn a lot from prints and albums, Pixieset suits those who want clean galleries alongside a website and studio tools, and ShootProof is the value pick, with 0% store commission and white-label galleries on every plan, including the free one.
How we compared them
All prices come from each vendor's pricing page, checked on 13 October 2026. They are in US dollars, shown as the per-month price on annual billing with the monthly-billing price in brackets. We make Caloreel, an all-in-one alternative covered at the end, so we have kept it out of the main table.
Prices, storage and commission (as of October 2026)
| Pixieset Client Gallery | Pic-Time | ShootProof | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan | 3 GB, Pixieset branding, 15% commission | 10 GB, later cut to 3 GB; 15% commission on profit | 3 GB, photos only, 0% commission, no ShootProof branding |
| Entry plan | Basic $8 ($10): 10 GB | Beginner $7 ($8): 20 GB + 5 GB video | Starter $8.33 ($9.99): 20 GB photo and video |
| Around 100 GB | Plus $16 ($20) | Professional $21 ($25): 100 GB + 30 GB video | Standard $16.67 ($19.99) |
| Around 1 TB | Pro $24 ($30) | No 1 TB plan | Professional $26.67 ($31.99): 1,000 GB + 50 GB video |
| Unlimited | Ultimate $40 ($50) | Advanced $42 ($50): + 60 GB video | Premium $50 ($60): + 150 GB video |
| Commission on paid plans | FAQ says none on upgraded accounts | 15% Beginner, 8% Professional, 6% Advanced, on profit; 0% on Professional and Advanced if you collect payment yourself | 0% on every plan |
| Platform branding removed | From Basic | From Professional | On every plan |
Sources: Pixieset pricing (opens in a new tab), Pic-Time pricing (opens in a new tab), Pic-Time commission rates (opens in a new tab), ShootProof pricing (opens in a new tab). Pic-Time's page gives both three and six months for when free storage drops. If you are in the UK, check whether VAT is added at checkout.
Store commission, precisely
Commission is where most comparisons get sloppy, so here is exactly how each works.
- ShootProof takes no commission on any plan. Its FAQ says it "will never take a commission".
- Pic-Time takes its commission from your order profit, not the sale price. Free and Beginner always pay 15%. Professional pays 8% and Advanced 6% when Pic-Time collects the payment, and 0% when you collect payments yourself.
- Pixieset charges 15% on its Free plan. Its FAQ says there are no commission fees on upgraded accounts, although the plan tables still list a commission row without a rate, so confirm before relying on it.
A worked example on Pic-Time: a couple orders $200 of prints that cost you $80 from the lab, leaving $120 profit. Commission is $18 on Beginner, $9.60 on Professional, $7.20 on Advanced, and nothing on either of those two if you collect payment yourself. Card processing fees are separate on every platform, so add them to your sums.
What to judge a gallery on
Price and storage are easy to compare. These are the things that decide whether couples enjoy the gallery and come back to order:
- Proofing: can each partner keep their own favourites, and can they leave comments on an image?
- Download control: web and high-resolution sizes, a download PIN, and limits per person.
- Expiry and archiving: automatic reminders before a gallery expires, and paid extensions.
- The phone view: many clients open their gallery on a phone first, often from a message, so test it there.
- Branding: your own domain and logo, with no platform name in the client's way.
- The store: lab choice, control over your markup, and a chance to check crops before anything prints.
Gallery design and client experience
Pixieset
Pixieset's galleries are clean and quick to set up, and the free plan includes unlimited galleries. Paid plans add your own domain and logo, unlimited mobile gallery apps and video: Basic includes 30 minutes of HD video, with extra hours at $5 a month each. Pro adds RAW uploads. Its biggest draw is the wider ecosystem: Studio Manager and a website builder sit alongside, or come bundled in the Suite.
Pic-Time
Pic-Time is built around selling. Every plan includes sales automations; Professional adds a custom domain, slideshows, art galleries, smart image search and a vendor network for sharing with suppliers; Advanced adds an automatic album designer, smart search for clients and multiple brands at $6 a month per extra brand. Video is supported up to 4K, from 1 GB on Free to 60 GB on Advanced. There is no built-in CRM, but it integrates with HoneyBook, Studio Ninja and others.
ShootProof
ShootProof is white-label on every plan, which is rare at the free tier. Paid plans add video up to 4K, multiple brands, selling slideshows, and contracts and invoices, so it covers some studio admin without a separate tool. Online booking is an add-on at $6.99 a month. Email marketing, sales reports and multiple user access are listed on every plan.
Storage for the money
If you need about 1 TB, Pixieset Pro at $24 a month is the cheapest of the three, with ShootProof Professional close behind at $26.67 and including 50 GB of video. ShootProof's capacity estimates assume an average of 10 MB per photo, so a 600-image wedding gallery takes about 6 GB, and 100 GB holds around 16 of them. Pic-Time has no middle step: once you outgrow Professional's 100 GB, the next plan is Advanced at $42 with unlimited photo storage. For a busy wedding photographer keeping several years of galleries online, that unlimited tier can be the better value.
Who should pick which
- Choose Pic-Time if print and album sales are a meaningful part of your income and you will use its sales automations. Go Professional or Advanced and collect payments yourself to bring commission to 0%. Our Pixieset vs Pic-Time comparison goes deeper.
- Choose Pixieset if you want simple, elegant galleries, the cheapest 1 TB here, and the option to add a website and studio manager later.
- Choose ShootProof if you want no platform branding from day one, zero commission on every plan, and contracts and invoices without paying for a separate tool. See our ShootProof comparison.
If you also need a CRM
None of the three is a full CRM on its own, so many photographers end up paying for a gallery tool plus HoneyBook, Dubsado or Studio Ninja. That is a sensible setup if you love your current gallery.
The alternative is one platform that does both. Caloreel's client galleries sit alongside a CRM built for couples, booking, contracts and invoices, from £20 a month with 1 TB and an hour of video, VAT included. Its print store charges 3% on every plan, with lab fulfilment through Prodigi (UK and worldwide) and WHCC (US). To be plain about it: 3% is more than ShootProof's 0%, and more than Pic-Time's 0% when you collect payments yourself. Pic-Time's other rates apply to profit and Caloreel's to the sale, so compare them on your own order values.
Before you switch
- Rebuild one real gallery on each shortlisted platform and view it on a phone.
- Ask a past client to favourite a few images and place a small test order.
- Check download options, expiry dates and what happens to galleries you archive.
- Confirm which print labs ship to your clients' country.
- Add up the full cost, including any CRM you would still need.
