The 7 best website builders for photographers

A photography website is no longer just a portfolio. It is where a client finds you, asks for a quote, books a session and, a few weeks later, receives their photos. So the useful question is not only «which platform makes beautiful websites?» but «which platform handles the work that comes after?»

We compared seven options on what actually matters to a working photographer: private client galleries, commission on your sales, booking and contracts, support, and what you will really pay in a year.

Full disclosure: we make Arcadina, and it is on this list. So this is not a neutral review. What we can do is be transparent about the criteria, say where each platform wins, and date every figure so you can check it. Prices and terms were taken from each provider’s own website on October 15, 2026.

The short version: which one fits you

• Website, galleries, store, booking and contracts in one account: Arcadina.
• The most polished design templates, with a strong store: Squarespace.
• Beautiful client galleries and a free plan to start: Pixieset.
• A clean portfolio built for creatives, at a low price: Format.
• Unlimited photo storage and print sales handled for you: SmugMug.
• Total design freedom with a WordPress blog: Showit.
• The lowest price for galleries and a commission-free store: Pixpa.

1. Arcadina: website, galleries, store and studio management in one account

Arcadina is built for photographers from the ground up. One account gives you your photography website, private client galleries, an online store, online booking and contracts with e-signature.

• Best for: photographers who want the whole client journey in one place: the client finds your site, books and pays a deposit, signs the contract, receives the gallery and orders prints. No commission on sales on any plan, plus AI face and race-bib recognition so event guests find their own photos. Its Lightroom plugin lets you upload photos and create website or client galleries without leaving Lightroom.
• Worth knowing: there is no permanent free plan (there is a 30-day trial, no card). Our AI-assisted chat answers around the clock in English, but the human team works European hours, which matters if you are in the Americas.
• Price: galleries and store from $10 a month (€10 in the EU). The Suite with everything included starts at $24 a month billed annually, and annual Website or Suite plans include your domain free for the first year. See all plans.

2. Squarespace: polished design and a capable store

Squarespace is a general website builder that many creatives choose for the quality of its templates.

• Best for: photographers who care most about how the site looks and want built-in invoicing, scheduling and an online store.
• Worth knowing: it has no gallery delivery workflow designed for photographers. The Basic plan takes 2% of every store sale.
• Price: from $19 a month billed annually; the plan with no store transaction fee starts at $29 a month. 14-day trial.

3. Pixieset: beautiful galleries and a free plan

Pixieset is a Canadian platform and one of the most widely used client gallery services. Website, galleries, store and studio manager each come with a free plan.

• Best for: getting started at no cost, and a gallery experience clients love.
• Worth knowing: the free gallery plan takes a 15% commission on store sales, and the website and studio manager are separate products with separate plans. We wrote a checklist of Pixieset alternatives if you are already on it.
• Price: free plan; paid gallery plans from $8 a month billed annually.

4. Format: a portfolio platform for creatives

Format is a Canadian portfolio builder aimed at photographers, artists and designers, with client galleries, contracts and a light CRM built in.

• Best for: a clean, image-led portfolio at a low annual price, with a commission-free store.
• Worth knowing: the number of client galleries is capped by plan (up to 250 on Pro Plus), the store is limited by product count, and booking is not part of the package.
• Price: from $10 a month billed annually; the Pro plan with store and free first-year domain is $12 a month annually. 14-day trial.

5. SmugMug: unlimited storage and print sales handled for you

SmugMug is one of the oldest photo platforms, combining unlimited storage, galleries, a website and a print store.

• Best for: photographers with very large archives who want unlimited storage and fully managed print fulfilment.
• Worth knowing: selling starts on the Portfolio plan, and when SmugMug handles a sale it keeps a share of your markup, so check the current terms. There is no booking or contracts module.
• Price: from $23.83 a month billed annually (storage only); selling starts at $28 a month on the Portfolio plan.

6. Showit: drag-and-drop design freedom with a WordPress blog

Showit is a website builder popular with wedding and portrait photographers, combining a free-form design canvas with a WordPress blog.

• Best for: photographers who want a highly distinctive design and plan to blog seriously for SEO.
• Worth knowing: it is a website builder only: you will need a separate gallery platform for delivery and a separate tool for booking, contracts and invoicing. Domains cannot be connected during the trial.
• Price: from $22 a month billed annually; plans with a WordPress blog start at $27 a month. 14-day trial.

7. Pixpa: an all-in-one at a very low price

Pixpa is an India-based platform that bundles a website, client galleries, a store and a blog.

• Best for: keeping costs down, with no commission on sales on any plan and unlimited client gallery albums on every plan.
• Worth knowing: storage for original files is small on the entry plans (3 GB or 5 GB), and there is no booking or contracts module. The lowest prices need two-year billing and an introductory discount.
• Price: from about $5 a month on two-year billing with the introductory offer. 15-day trial.

What about Wix and WordPress?

Wix is the best-known general website builder, with hundreds of templates and a huge app market, but private gallery delivery and per-shoot photo sales rely on add-ons rather than a workflow designed for photographers.

WordPress gives you complete control, but you are in charge of hosting, updates, backups and security, and galleries, store and booking all come from third-party plugins. It suits you if you enjoy the technical side or have someone to maintain it.

How to choose: five questions before you decide

• Will you deliver photos from your website? If so, rule out platforms without private galleries, or with galleries only on the top plans.
• Will you sell photos or prints? Check the commission on each plan, not just the subscription.
• Where will booking, contracts and invoices live? Every extra tool is another subscription and another dashboard.
• Who answers when something breaks? Send a real support question during the trial, at an awkward hour.
• What will you really pay in a year? Add up the plan, domain, email and the tools still missing.

If you want to try Arcadina with your own work, you get 30 days free, no card. Build your site, upload a real shoot and compare.