Piwigo Review, Pricing & Features

Piwigo review: open-source, self-hosted photo gallery software with albums, plugins and cloud hosting. See features, pricing and top alternatives.

Category
Cloud Storage
Pricing
Open Source, from Free (self-hosted); hosted plans from EUR29/month
Verified
Not yet
Last updated
July 19, 2026
Founded
2002
Headquarters
Saint-Sebastien-sur-Loire, France
Web AppFree TrialOpen SourceFreemiumSelf-Hosted

Overview

Piwigo is open-source photo management software that lets individuals and organizations organize, tag and publish photo collections on the web. First released in 2002 by French developer Pierrick Le Gall, it grew out of an earlier project called PhpWebGallery and was renamed Piwigo in 2009.

The software can be downloaded and self-hosted for free on any PHP-compatible server, or run through Piwigo.com, a separate paid cloud-hosting service operated by the same team for people who prefer not to manage their own infrastructure.

Key Features

Piwigo organizes photos into nested albums and categories with granular, group-based permissions, making it suited to teams that need to control exactly who can view, upload to or administer specific collections.

Its functionality can be extended through more than 200 community-built plugins and themes, and photos can be uploaded from desktop tools such as digiKam, Shotwell and Lightroom, or from Piwigo's own mobile apps.

Pricing

The core Piwigo software is free and open source under the GNU GPL, with no cost for self-hosting on your own server.

Piwigo.com's managed cloud hosting is billed annually across four tiers, from Pro at EUR29/month up to VIP at EUR399/month, with additional storage available as an add-on on every plan.

Key Features

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • Free and open source with full source code access and no vendor lock-in
  • Highly extensible through plugins and themes
  • Granular album and group permission controls suited to teams and organizations
  • Mature project with over two decades of continuous development
  • Optional managed hosting removes server maintenance burden

Cons

  • Self-hosted setup requires PHP/MySQL server knowledge and ongoing maintenance
  • Interface feels dated compared to newer, design-forward gallery tools
  • Piwigo.com hosting is billed annually only, with no monthly option currently
  • Smaller ecosystem and community than mainstream competitors like SmugMug or Flickr

Pricing

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Piwigo free?

Yes, the core Piwigo software is free and open source under the GNU GPL; you can self-host it on your own server at no cost. Piwigo.com offers optional paid managed hosting starting at EUR29/month.

What is the difference between Piwigo.org and Piwigo.com?

Piwigo.org distributes the free, self-hosted open-source software; Piwigo.com is a separate paid cloud-hosting service run by the same team for people who do not want to manage their own server.

What server requirements does self-hosted Piwigo have?

Piwigo requires a PHP-compatible web host with a MySQL or MariaDB database.

Does Piwigo support video and audio files?

Yes, video and audio are supported on Piwigo.com plans, and all file formats are supported from the Team tier upward.

Can I migrate away from Piwigo if I stop using it?

Yes, because Piwigo is open source and self-hostable, you retain full access to your database and files.

Does Piwigo have mobile apps?

Yes, official apps and third-party uploaders including pLoader, digiKam, Shotwell and Lightroom plugins can upload photos to a Piwigo gallery.

Who maintains Piwigo?

Piwigo was created by French developer Pierrick Le Gall and is maintained by a small core team plus community contributors, funded partly by the Piwigo.com hosting business.

What are Piwigo's main alternatives?

Common alternatives include Coppermine, Zenphoto, SmugMug, Flickr and Pixieset, depending on whether self-hosting or a hosted service is preferred.

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