Google Photos vs Immich

Google Photos9.4Visit Immich9.2Visit

Higher score Google Photos #1 in Image Hosting 9.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 4 features Visit Google Photos

vs

Immich #2 in Image Hosting 9.2/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 4 features Visit Immich

• Google Photos fits best

  Consumers wanting automated photo backup

• Immich fits best

  Self-hosters wanting a private photo library

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Side by side

Feature	Google Photos 9.4/10 Visit ↗	Immich 9.2/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	9.2
Ranking	#1 in Image Hosting	#2 in Image Hosting
Best for	Consumers wanting automated photo backup	Self-hosters wanting a private photo library
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Free
Starting price	$1.99/mo	Free plan
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Cloud, Mobile	Self-hosted, Mobile
Platforms	Web, iOS, Android	Web, iOS, Android
Support	Docs, Community	Community, Docs
Built for	Solo, Small business	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Google Photos 0/4 · Immich 0/4
API access	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Private sharing	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Custom domain	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Image transformations	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Specs
Storage limit	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Bandwidth limit	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Max file size	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Automatic photo and video backup across mobile devices and computers Search by people, places, and things with face grouping Web, iOS, Android, and desktop photo backup support	Automatic mobile backup with original-file retention Facial recognition, contextual search, and duplicate detection Sharing, API access, and broad self-hosted platform coverage
Cons	Free storage is shared across Photos, Drive, and Gmail The listed Basic plan provides 100 GB of shared storage Face Groups availability varies by region, domain, and account type	Requires users to deploy and operate their own server infrastructure Storage capacity depends on the operator's infrastructure Desktop access is centered on the web interface
Our verdict	Google Photos is a cloud photo and video service for consumers who want automatic backup, searchable organization, editing, and sharing across devices. It supports the web, iOS, Android, and an official desktop photo backup application.… Read the review →	Immich is an open-source, self-hosted application for managing personal photos and videos. It provides a web interface and official Android and iOS apps for uploading, browsing, organizing, searching, and sharing media. Automatic mobile… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Google Photos — where it wins

  • Automatic photo and video backup across mobile devices and computers
  • Search by people, places, and things with face grouping
  • Web, iOS, Android, and desktop photo backup support

  Where it doesn't

  • Free storage is shared across Photos, Drive, and Gmail
  • The listed Basic plan provides 100 GB of shared storage
  • Face Groups availability varies by region, domain, and account type

• Immich — where it wins

  • Automatic mobile backup with original-file retention
  • Facial recognition, contextual search, and duplicate detection
  • Sharing, API access, and broad self-hosted platform coverage

  Where it doesn't

  • Requires users to deploy and operate their own server infrastructure
  • Storage capacity depends on the operator's infrastructure
  • Desktop access is centered on the web interface

• Google Photos9.4/10 · Free plan

  A flexible photo backup service with strong search, editing, and sharing tools.

  Visit Google PhotosFull verdict →
• Immich9.2/10 · Free plan

  A capable open-source photo library for people who want to manage their own infrastructure.

  Visit ImmichFull verdict →