Zenfolio is a beautiful website builder and gallery that helps you showcase photography in a way that your clients will love.
The all-in-one platform provides excellent tools to display your photos, sell photos, receive payments, and book photography sessions.
The platform has been around for over 15 years, serving more than 500,000 photographers in over 130 countries. Zenfolio allows you to create a photography website using its customizable templates in minutes and has provision for video hosting too.
While many good things can be said about Zenfolio, users want more from a website builder. Photographers often feel that Zenfolio’s performance is not up to the mark. Some users also find its selection of templates limited.
The good news is that there are similar platforms that can be beneficial to photographers. There are some good Zenfolio alternatives in the market offering better features, ease of use, and reliability.
Let’s find out more.
Best Zenfolio Alternatives
1. Pixpa
Pixpa is an excellent Zenfolio alternative, perfect for those looking to start a photography site or an online store. For over ten years, photographers have trusted Pixpa to power their online presence and grow their business.
It has no coding philosophy, making it accessible to users of all abilities. It makes it easy to make changes to templates using its visual editor and drag-and-drop functions. One feature that stands out with Pixpa is the client-proofing platform made of gallery apps and online galleries.
Pixpa stands out against Zenfolio with its perfect balance between advanced functions and ease of use. Like Zenfolio, the platform has all you need to showcase, sell, and share your photography online, and has over 150 responsive templates to choose from.
The platform is simple, functional, and visually appealing. Another factor that gives the platform an edge is its excellent customer support. Pixpa has a 24/7 live chat and email customer support to ensure you don’t get sucked at any given point.
You can also power your website with Pixpa’s over 100 apps and integrations. With Pixpa, your website can go live in a day and quickly sell hundreds of pictures.
Get started with Pixpa’s 15-day free trial, and once you are satisfied, you can purchase one of their all-inclusive and affordable plans for $3.60 per month and up.
2. Format
Another platform that made it to my top list of Zenfolio alternatives is Format. Format is an easy, robust, and professional website builder for photographers that help you run your business like a pro.
Format is a community of professionals spread across 190 countries and is much quicker than emails.
Format’s user interface is not as easy as Zenfolio’s, but the platform is rich in photographer-friendly features that every photographer needs. With Format, you can directly upload photos from Adobe LightRoom and Capture One.
You don’t have to worry about someone stealing your photos while using Format as you can disable right clicks from your site. You don’t need coding experience to build your portfolio, as Format offers professionally designed templates to make your work stand out.
It is constantly updating its features to set you up for success. It supports high-resolution images, and its templates are designed for a mobile-first experience. You can switch between website designs, and the free 24/7 customer support ensures a seamless journey.
Format offers a 14-day free trial and allows you to choose a plan that matches your needs. Format’s Basic plan costs $3.50 per month, while the Pro Plan, which is the most popular, goes for $7.50 per month.
3. Portfoliobox
Portfoliobox is a great tool for creative professionals. It lets you present photos in the best light, and you don’t need coding skills to pull a unique website. The platform features an intuitive and easy-to-use interface for all users regardless of technical experience.
Portfoliobox gives you complete control over your online photography portfolio. You can quickly create outstanding digital galleries using its template collection. It also features cutting-edge eCommerce functionality that lets you quickly sell your work.
Like Zenfolio, Portfoliobox has everything a contemporary photographer needs to earn income online. Portfoliobox is ahead of Zenfolio as it charges no commission for any services or prints you sell through the platform.
You’ll also love Portfoliobox’s unrestricted design flexibility. It allows you to apply different designs to each page of your website without being limited by rigid frameworks of standard themes.
The platform can streamline your workflow and help you create stronger client relationships. It features an intuitive gallery functionality that allows you to offer instant and secure gallery access to clients without the need to download or transfer content.
Portfoliobox plans range from $3.50 to $12.50 per month and come with unlimited bandwidth and mobile-optimized websites.
4. Squarespace
Squarespace is one of the best website builders for professionals in the creative space. The platform features award-winning design templates to help you beautifully present your ideas online.
The platform is an excellent choice as it loads fast, so your visitors will not get frustrated and leave prematurely.
You’ll love Squarespace for its ease of use. Quickly add new photos or pages to your site without HTML or coding knowledge.
Unlike Zenfolio, Squarespace is a drag-and-drop website builder. However, you cannot just drag and drop anything. Everything is based on sections, which may need time to get used to.
Like Zenfolio, Squarespace is an all-in-one platform that provides you with features to build the professional website you are looking for. It is also an excellent solution if you plan to sell images through your website.
Its integrations ensure that things work together well. For instance, you can easily embed products from your online store into blog posts or tie everything into email marketing. SEO optimization is part of the Squarespace package and does not require additional plugins.
Squarespace has over 90 templates. If you are experienced in coding, you can customize the templates further to get the desired look of your website. These templates are mobile-friendly, and you can change templates at any point without losing information on your site.
The platform offers 24/7 customer support through live chat and email.
Try it for free for 14 days, and once satisfied, purchase a Personal plan for $16 per month, a Business plan for $23 per month, or a Basic Commerce plan for $27 per month.
5. PhotoShelter
PhotoShelter is a premium website builder for photographers made for professional photographers who want to grow their client base, drive sales, and reach more people via the internet. Currently, the platform helps over 80,000 professionals run their businesses.
PhotoShelter’s backend engine gives you control to sell prints, digital downloads, and rights-managed stock photos. You can upload your photos to its cloud storage to access them anytime, and the tool protects your photos with a watermark.
The platform also gives you access to professionally designed templates to showcase your photographs. Additionally, you get access to CSS codes and HTML of these templates, so you can customize designs as you wish or hire someone to do it for you.
While PhotoShelter delivers functions like Zenfolio, it’s imperative to note that all its features target professional photographers. You’ll also love its exceptional live support that is just a click away and 24/7 access to your images from anywhere and any device.
PhotoShelter has different plans and features to help you create your website as an online portfolio or use its eCommerce functionality to create an online store.
Join other photography enthusiasts who make the best out of their over 400 million photos with PhotoShelter.
Its basic plan goes for $10 per month, the Standard plan with more cloud storage is $25 per month, and the Pro Plan with unlimited cloud storage costs $45 per month.
6. Carbonmade
Carbonmade is a contemporary website builder created to enable creatives to establish a trusted online presence through professional portfolios. Carbonmade allows you to connect with potential clients and share your work with a global audience.
Since its launch in 2005, the platform has grown to serve a robust community of photographers and other creatives. So far, all creatives have created over 2,000,000 live portfolios on the platform.
The website builder is easy to use. Like Zenfolio, you can instantly set and run your online portfolio without coding skills.
Carbonmade is rich in must-haves, niche tools, and features that focus on design and web presentation. Unlike Zenfolio, which provides templates, Carbonmade has unlimited layouts that let you customize your portfolio grid, colors, fonts, and navigation with a few clicks.
The platform allows you to make unlimited photo uploads with no file size limit. All you need to do is upload your high-resolution images, and the tool will export them for you.
Carbonmade also features video tutorials to guide you through, and your portfolio will work excellently on mobile or tablet.
It also features 59,564 photographers for hire, plus a guide on how customers can pick the right photographers from the platform. It also has a private portfolio for those wishing to share their work with users with special access codes.
You can start your Carbonmade journey for free and only pay when you choose to go live. Its plans start from $9 per month all the way to $22 per month.
But the best part is that you can cancel a plan anytime. All plans have a free carbon-made sub-domain, dynamic blocks, and customer support.
7. PhotoDeck
PhotoDeck is an excellent web service for photographers that allows you to present, distribute, and sell your work. The platform was launched in 2010 to help photographers build their own websites to showcase their works to a broader audience.
It uses cutting-edge technology to build and promote the photography business online. The tool provides templates to display your site professionally, clutter-free, and cleanly.
Like Zenfolio, PhotoDeck’s CSS and HTML technology adapt your website to various screen sizes, from smartphones to tablets and Retina MacBooks.
It also features built-in customization features and an advanced design editor to help modify your website based on your needs. PhotoDeck has a secure content delivery system for clients. Your customers can get all their purchased photos in a single click.
You can protect your galleries only to allow clients to access them with a password. Its eCommerce functionality features zero commission, meaning you make 100% profit from your sales, whether selling the digital or print versions of your photos.
PhotoDeck can be an excellent replacement for Zenfolio as it has a high-performance web-hosting service to ensure optimal performance of your image-heavy website. Additionally, you can analyze and track your website traffic using its built-in timeline feature.
PhotoDeck’s primary goal is to give you value for money through its pricing plans.
Try out PhotoDeck’s Photographer’s favorite plan for $25 per month, billed annually to create a superfast website with a fully customizable design, advanced responsive page editor, and private galleries and proofing features.
8. ALLYOU
ALLYOU is an easy website builder that is incredibly easy to set up. It allows you to create a simple photo gallery, a unique website, and a professional portfolio in minutes and reach a wider audience.
You can create your custom design or use its free templates to make the best out of your favorite images.
Like Zenfolio, ALLYOU is retina-supported, and you don’t need programming skills to maneuver through. It is rich in features that give you the creative freedom to make a unique portfolio, and as the name suggests, ALLYOU is all about you.
Its drag-and-drop function allows you to do stuff other professionals do, even if you are not one. Join the ALLYOU community on Facebook and Instagram to interact with like-minded professionals and broaden your photography scope.
The platform offers a free 14-day plan with all features, and you pay only when you feel convinced that it is the website builder you are looking for.
It features two popular plans: a Carbon plan from $8 per month, ideal for a professional website, and a Titanium plan from $15 per month.
9. Site123
Site123 is the most uncomplicated website builder for photographers and other creative professionals. Unlike Zenfolio, Site123 is free and simple; you can set it up in minutes. All you need to do is select your website type and leave the rest to the system.
Site123’s ease of use is also reflected in its website customization process. The tool has a bunch of templates that are similar to each other, often referred to as content blocks.
So, if you wish to save time on tweaking everything, choose one of the templates to get your photography site up quickly.
Alternatively, you can combine different templates based on your preferences to create a unique website. Its drag-and-drop function allows beginners also to have a feel of the basics of web design.
Site123 is straightforward, intuitive, and an excellent solution for photographers looking for a no-fuss product.
Its templates are fully tablet and mobile-responsive. Site123 also features robust app integration, and like Zenfolio, the platform allows you to sell products through your website. It offers one of the best speeds around.
Google algorithms recognize Site123 as SEO-friendly so that you can get more people onto your website. It offers customer support through 24/7 live chat, email, social media, and its knowledge base.
Site123 is free.
10. Zyro
Another website builder that couldn’t miss on my top list of best alternatives for Zenfolio is Zyro. Zyro has made a name by simplifying and accelerating the creation process of websites.
Zyro has unique picture-centered templates and an excellent AI business functionality that places it ahead of Zenfolio. It allows you to create visually appealing photography websites in minutes using templates or an AI website generator.
Whichever website builder you choose, you’ll still enjoy customization with Zyro’s drag-and-drop capabilities. Its configurations are neatly arranged on your left, giving you enough room to tweak and edit your website to your preferences.
Like Zenfolio, Zyro allows you to edit layouts, design, text, and other elements without coding experience. You’ll also notice that the tool uses a grid system, which acts as a guideline to help components snap into place whenever you move them around.
Zyro has all the handy features you intend to use on a photography website, more than just a display for your work, an inventory management system, a shipping automation tool, and CRM.
The platform has helped over 250,000 small photography business owners and allows you to sell online without hidden fees.
Zyro gives you a free domain for one year, 24/7 customer support, and a 30-day money-back guarantee in case you are unsatisfied. Get 81% off the Zyro Website plan or 78% off the Business plan with eCommerce essentials.
Also Read: Best Imgbb Alternatives
11. Wix.com
Wix is one of the most recognized names in the web-building industry. It’s no doubt that it is one of the best picks for photographers too. Wix sets bars higher than Zenfolio, thanks to its apps curated for photography, such as art store integrations and galleries.
These apps include over 30 media galleries for photos and videos, eCommerce tools if you plan to make sales out of photography, SEO tools to rank your website higher on a search engine, and marketing tools to attract more customers.
Wix.com has features and tools that can boost and simplify your website for your target audience.
It gives you two options to create your custom website. You can use the artificial design intelligence editor, which makes websites based on answers to selected questions, or use its regular editor.
Both options are easy to use and give you equally visually appealing results. Wix gives you a website with no fuss; you can generally get started with minor editing. Wix Editor ensures that you play an active role throughout creating your website.
The tool has more than 800 templates, which are good-looking and perfect for photography websites. The templates are clean, minimalistic, and contemporary to illuminate your favorite shots. Wix also makes editing easier by allowing you to filter elements by type of photography.
Once you choose a theme, you can customize your site using Wix’s drag-and-drop editor, where you can add all your photography features, contact forms, and more. Wix.com is intuitive but needs some time to get accustomed to the many customization options.
Wix.com is free to use.
12. SmugMug
SmugMug is an image hosting, image sharing, and online video tool that you can use to upload videos and photos. It is also a portfolio-making platform featuring easy-to-use tools and customization capabilities to display high-quality images and videos easily.
What you’ll find exciting with SmugMug is the various ways of sorting media files. You can add keywords, titles, captions, color effects, or rotate your photos.
The platform has been around since 2002, and while it might take time for you to understand how it works fully, it’s still worth your time and money.
Unlike Zenfolio, which offers 15GB of photo storage for its lower plan, SmugMug uses Amazon S3 file storage that is virtually unlimited. Therefore, SmugMug has no storage limit, regardless of the plan you choose.
If you plan to make a good income from photography, then you’ll agree that it is not enough to have an online portfolio.
It would be best if you also were found on Google and other search engines. SmugMug integrates with exciting SEO tools, where you can use meta tags or add XML sitemaps.
Another good thing about SmugMug is that it offers photo protection features that restrict file sizes that show on your website, prevent right-clicking, and watermark your photos.
SmugMug is available for a 14-day free trial and features plans from $13 per month.
Also Read: Best Photobucket Alternatives
Final Words
Getting the right website builder for photography takes work. With many options in the market, you need to carefully think through each one to see whether they can help you make a unique website and meet your requirements.
Suppose you are looking for the right balance between advanced features and ease of use. Or a platform that integrates with Google and other platforms to promise you a better income. In this case, I recommend that you go with Pixpa.
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