Overview
ShootProof has been running since 2009 out of Atlanta, which makes it one of the oldest platforms in this category. It sells itself as the operating system for a photography business: galleries, a commission-free print store, contracts, invoices, booking, and a portfolio site, all under one login.
Picstack launched from Germany in 2024 and deliberately does less. It is a gallery delivery tool with real-time activity tracking, hosted entirely on European servers. If you already have a contract tool and an accountant you like, most of ShootProof's surface area is something you would be paying for and not using.
Pricing comparison
ShootProof's tiers are named after photo counts, but its pricing page states the real ceiling in gigabytes, which makes a like-for-like comparison with Picstack straightforward. Picstack lists in euros and ShootProof in US dollars, so each column below is the vendor's own published price rather than a conversion.
| Plan | Storage | Billed annually | Billed monthly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Picstack Hobby | 5 GB | 5 EUR/mo | 6 EUR/mo |
| Picstack Professional | 250 GB | 10 EUR/mo | 12 EUR/mo |
| ShootProof 1,500 Plan | Up to 5 GB | 10.99 USD/mo | 12.99 USD/mo |
| ShootProof 5,000 Plan | Up to 75 GB | 19.99 USD/mo | 21.99 USD/mo |
| ShootProof 25,000 Plan | Up to 250 GB | 26.67 USD/mo | 31.99 USD/mo |
The 250 GB row is the one to look at, because it is the only true like-for-like: Picstack Professional at 10 EUR a month against ShootProof's 25,000 Plan at 26.67 USD a month. At the bottom of the ladder the gap is wider still, since ShootProof's cheapest paid tier costs more than Picstack's most expensive one and carries 5 GB against 250 GB.
That gap is not a trick, it is the trade. ShootProof's price covers invoicing, contracts, booking, and a print store that takes no commission on sales. Picstack's price covers galleries. Both also offer a free plan, and ShootProof sells storage above 250 GB where Picstack currently stops.
Data privacy and GDPR
Picstack operates from Germany and stores everything on European servers. There are no cross-border transfers to disclose and no supplementary agreement to sign before a European client's photos go up.
ShootProof operates from Atlanta and runs on Amazon AWS without publicly committing to specific regions. It has stated GDPR compliance since 2018 and provides a Data Processing Addendum, but there is no European-only data residency option. For most photographers this is a non-issue. It becomes one the moment a corporate client, a venue, or a privacy-minded couple asks you where the files are stored, because the honest answer is that you cannot fully say.
Gallery features
On the fundamentals the two land in the same place: custom branding, password-protected galleries, download controls, and mobile-friendly viewing.
Picstack adds subgalleries, so a wedding or a conference splits into sections behind one link, and real-time activity tracking that shows when a gallery was opened, which photos were viewed, and what was downloaded. Those notifications are included on every plan rather than unlocked by tier.
ShootProof's depth is in the surrounding workflow: client proofing with favorites and custom labels, watermarking, gallery expiry dates, and an interface localised into 18 languages, which is genuinely useful if your clients are not English speakers. The gallery design itself is more functional than fashionable, which some photographers prefer and others do not.
What ShootProof offers that Picstack doesn't
- Commission-free print store with white-labeled lab fulfillment
- Online booking with contract signing and payment
- Invoicing with packages and custom pricing
- Client proofing with favorites and custom labels
- Branded mobile apps for client photo viewing
- Portfolio website builder
- Gallery interface in 18 languages
- Storage above 250 GB, up to 1250 GB on its largest tier
What Picstack offers that ShootProof doesn't
- European-only hosting, so GDPR compliance rests on data residency rather than a contract addendum
- Real-time activity tracking and notifications on every plan, including the free one
- 250 GB for roughly a third of what ShootProof charges for the same capacity
- Storage metered purely in gigabytes, with no photo count to watch alongside it
- Subgalleries for splitting a single event into sections behind one link
Who should choose Picstack
Choose Picstack if the gallery is the only part of ShootProof you would actually use. Photographers who invoice through their accounting software, sign contracts elsewhere, and do not sell prints are paying ShootProof roughly three times as much for the storage and leaving most of the product untouched. The EU hosting is the second reason, and for photographers working with European clients it is often the first.
Who should choose ShootProof
Choose ShootProof if you want one subscription to run the business rather than four. Booking through to contract, invoice, delivery, and print sale in a single system is worth paying for, and the print store taking zero commission means a photographer selling regularly can recover the price difference quickly. It is also the stronger option if you need more than 250 GB, sell prints in the US, or serve clients who need the gallery in their own language.