Head to head
Pixieset vs Pic-Time
These two are the default shortlist for wedding and portrait photographers choosing a client gallery. Both deliver beautifully. Pixieset charges 0% commission on paid plans, while Pic-Time takes 6% to 15% of your markup, or nothing on Professional and Advanced if you collect payments yourself. The decision usually comes down to whether you sell prints and how you feel about being upsold.
The short answer
Pic-Time is the stronger print-sales machine: its automated campaigns and album designer exist to turn a delivery into a sale, and photographers who work that way report it pays for itself. Pixieset is the broader platform and the safer default, with a website builder and studio manager available alongside galleries. If you deliver digitals and never intend to sell a print, Pixieset's cheaper tiers make more sense. If print revenue is part of your business model, Pic-Time is built for it.
Side by side
| Pixieset | Pic-Time | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry paid plan | $8/mo | $7/mo |
| Free plan | 3 GB | 10 GB |
| Metered by | storage | storage |
| Platform fee on sales | 0% on paid plans; 15% on the free plan | 6% to 15% of your markup; 0% on Professional and Advanced if you collect payments yourself |
| Billing currency | USD | USD |
| Top tier | Unlimited | Unlimited |
Pixieset checked 2026-09-17 against its pricing page; Pic-Time checked 2026-09-28 against its pricing page. Both platforms can change pricing at any time.
Choose Pixieset when
Pixieset is the better fit
- You want one company for galleries, a portfolio site and studio management.
- You deliver digital files and do not plan to run a print store.
- You want the largest ecosystem and the most third-party integrations.
- You want a free tier you can keep using, and can live with its 15% sales fee.
Choose Pic-Time when
Pic-Time is the better fit
- Print and album sales are a real revenue line, not an afterthought.
- You want automated sales campaigns running against delivered galleries.
- You want the album designer built into the gallery workflow.
- You want the cheapest genuine entry tier: Beginner is $7/mo billed annually.
What neither of them does
Neither includes booking, contracts or deposits in the base price. Pixieset sells that as Studio Manager and Pic-Time does not offer it at all, so photographers who want the whole client journey in one subscription end up paying twice or running a separate CRM.
For the record, we build Xposure, which bundles a portfolio, client galleries and a booking manager into one plan from €8 ($9)/mo. That is the only mention it gets on this page. If you want it argued properly, read Xposure vs Pixieset or Xposure vs Pic-Time.
More head-to-heads with these two: CloudSpot vs Pixieset, ShootProof vs Pixieset, Zenfolio vs Pixieset, CloudSpot vs Pic-Time, Picflow vs Pixieset, and SmugMug vs Pixieset.