Photography Website Hosting Your Best Options In 2020

Photography Website Hosting Your Best Options In 2020 .elementor-19992 .elementor-element.elementor-element-19992{text-align:center}Last Updated on March 16, 2020If youre a photographer, getting your images on the web can be a major step forward personally or for your brand and business. Whether you want to sell your services as a photographer, your images as stock photos, or prints of your art, you can do so with these managed hosting plans.Some of the five plans reviewed here are better for certain purposes, and those will be noted in the review. Choosing a managed hosting service meant for photographers will not only eliminate any time you need to spend updating your site and hoping you wont break anything, but it also allows you to focus on the images. Disclosure As an independent review site, we get compensated if you purchase through the referral links or coupon codes on this page â€" at no additional cost to you. Dismiss alert All five of the following managed hosts know how to optimize photography. They all have tools that all ow you to easily set up a website, and most of them are reasonably priced.All of these photography website hosting providers are at the top of their game, but they also all have important differences. The following five reviews aim to help you make sense of all the options and make the best choice for you and what you intend to do with your photography.You might also like: Web hosting services Table of Contents Best web hosting for photographers comparedHere are the best photography website hosting sitesShopifyFormatSmugMugZenfolio500pxPhotography hosting websites: our conclusionBest web hosting for photographers compared Product Free Version? Managed? Pricing? Rating ShopifyTrialPartially$$$.elementor-19761 .elementor-element.elementor-element-19761{text-align:center}.elementor-19761 .elementor-element.elementor-element-19761{text-align:center} 5/5 FormatTrialYes$$.elementor-19761 .elementor-element.elementor-element-19761{text-align:center} 5/5 SmugMugTrialYes$.elementor-19763 .elementor-element.elementor-element-19763{text-align:center}.elementor-19763 .elementor-element.elementor-element-19763{text-align:center} 4.5/5 Zenfolio TrialYes$.elementor-19763 .elementor-element.elementor-element-19763{text-align:center} 4.5/5 500pxYesYes$.elementor-19765 .elementor-element.elementor-element-19765{text-align:center}.elementor-19765 .elementor-element.elementor-element-19765{text-align:center} 4/5Here are the best photography website hosting sitesAgain, all of these are managed hosting providers. That means they offer a specific hosting type and system for all users, though they may have different plans and levels. For most of these hosts, photography is all they do. They also provide more specialized support than more general hosts.For more information about what a managed hosting provider is like, take a look at the video below. Shopify Join the FREE TrainingDo You Want To Learn How To Build 6 Figures Authority Sites?Join This Free Training To...Finally have a proven method to finding profitable nichesGet access to a foolproof keyword research methodLearn how to outsource quality contentLearn how to build white hat links to your site without headaches This is an e-commerce platform that can cater to photographers. Its not “by and for photographers” so there will be a few things that you have but dont need, etc.What Shopify will do for you, however, is help you manage your customers and your business in a professional way. It will give you all of the information you need and help you set up automated promotions, email services, and even abandoned cart recovery.Beyond that, their customer support is stellar. They offer just about every support channel imaginable, and their representatives know how to help, no matter what level of website and online sales experience you have.Top FeaturesFast loading times even for photograph-dense pagesAll plans allow you to sell digital and physical products or subscriptionsGreater control and more featuresProsYou can use your own domain nameDeep shipping discounts for all plansCredit card processing built-in (though there is a fee)Included POS for “offline” sales processing24/7 support, including email and phone optionsConsNot photography specificBased on e-commerce more than portfolios and showcasing your workThe most expensive optionOnly partially managed, depending on your specific choices Click here for current Shopify pricing Format When it comes to the website you create, Format is one of the few services that allow you to set up any domain name you have purchased. The interface is intuitive and colorful. Templates are available and easy to customize however you want.The limits come into play when you upload images or try to sell them online. Your main website and portfolio can have up to 100 with a basic plan and unlimited with the highest tier.When you want to sell products, you can sell up to 3 with the basic plan and up to 1,000 with the highest tier. This encourages you to curate your work and only present the best.However, you also have the ability to upload “proofing” images on gated pages for specific clients, so they can see your work easily during the proofing process. This is a lot easier to set up with Format than it is with any of the other photography-specific hosts and much easier than with Shopify or other e-commerce tools, managed or otherwise.Top FeaturesYou not only get to use a custom domain but it comes free with pro plans and upIntegrated blogs and other static pagesEasy to set up image proofing with generous limitsProsEasy to set up proofingIntegration with the Adobe creative suiteUnlimited bandwidth that can handle traffic spikes without breaking downVideo call for onboarding and basic training for new usersConsLimits on all kinds of things from number of shop products to number of pagesExtra charge for premium theme useNo phone support option in most cases Click here for current Format pricing SmugMugSmugM ug also has some of the fastest loading times with the highest image quality seen during this review process. The only downside to all of these benefits is that, if you sell through SmugMug and dont have a pro plan, youre losing 15% of your markup and may have to pay payment processing fees after that.You do get a lot, but if youre just starting out, that may be a bit more of a loss than you can afford right now. Unless you think the tools and exposure you could get from SmugMug and their community could be worth it.Top FeaturesRobust e-commerce and marketing toolset for all plansThe easiest and fastest photo uploading tool of the bunchUnlimited photo uploads at all levelsIntegrates seamlessly with Flickr and DropboxProsE-commerce options for all levelsEasily order custom prints or personalized products for yourself or clientsGate pages for specific clients or gate your entire portfolio and all of your workPlenty of clean, smart, mobile-responsive templates for your websiteSell prin ts, stock photos, or gift-wrapped sets in your own personal online photography shopConsBit of a learning curve when it comes to using their toolsNo custom domain name at any levelLess responsive website builder than comparable options Click here for current SmugMug pricing ZenfolioThey offer 24/7 email support and have invested heavily in the creation of an overflowing video-based knowledge center to help you learn what you need in order to make the perfect portfolio website to showcase your photography.Zenfolio has a 30-day money-back guarantee and a 14-day free trial offer with no credit card needed, both of which are standard when it comes to companies offering web hosting for photographers.They also offer unlimited photo and video uploads with all plans, as well as easy-to-use templates in an assortment of styles and a drag-and-drop interface that allows you to control all aspects of your website.Top FeaturesUnlimited photo and video uploads with all plansZenfolio has the mos t in-depth marketing features for photographersProsWith the “pro” plan you can create and automatically add custom watermarks to your imagesWith the “pro” plan you can also sell prints and digital downloads without processing any part of the transaction yourself, Zenfolio will handle the entire process and even use your custom packagingCompetitively pricedMobile-responsive templates and designs with all plansFree blog integration with all plans for SEO and content marketingConsNot a lot of customer support options for any planMonth-to-month plans can get pricey (annual is considerably cheaper) Click here for current Zenfolio pricing 500pxTop FeaturesFree and basic plans are best for stock photographersHigher-tier plans cater to personalized portfolios, resumes, and class schedulingProsBuilt-in stock photo marketplace and showcase with an active communityFree forever version allows you to upload up to 20 pictures per weekYou keep full rights to your photosMobile and touch responsive versions of your portfoliosConsSome people think the “free” version has diluted the communityMore content due to the free version Click here for current 500px pricing Photography hosting websites: our conclusionThe best website hosting for photographers is debatable. No one photographer has the exact same needs and wants as another.Your business is unique. Each of these photography hosting websites knows that and will give you the experience that suits the type of photographer they aim to serve. For Zenfolio, thats a photography professional looking to sell their work as art by making use of prints and customization.For 500px, youre looking at a company that serves photographers that want to sell their photography to marketers and other artists as stock or that are looking to pass on their skills with classes. Format, on the other hand, is focused on working with photographers that work one-on-one with their own clients and put a lot of emphasis on how easy it is t o upload and edit proofing images.These are fundamental differences, though these are all hosting companies “for photographers”. The choice is yours. Web hosting comparison Free images for blogs Best email hosting services