Photography · head to head
digiKam vs Pic-Time
digiKam
Photography
Open source photo manager with face recognition, geotagging and a shared database option
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Pic-Time
Photography
Client galleries with an automated print store and marketing campaigns built in
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: digiKam raw conversion quality is behind Lightroom, Capture One and DxO PhotoLab, so most users treat digiKam as a catalogue and develop files in a second application.; Pic-Time the commission on store sales means the true cost rises with your success, so a photographer with strong print revenue may pay far more than the subscription implies and should price the top tier against the percentage before choosing.
- They diverge on capability: digiKam covers Catalogue database, Pic-Time covers Designed galleries.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which digiKam and Pic-Time actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Photography).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in digiKam
- Catalogue database
- Face recognition
- Metadata handling
- Geotagging
- Batch queue manager
- Showfoto editor
Only in Pic-Time
- Designed galleries
- Automated store campaigns
- Wall art visualiser
- Album proofing
- Regional lab fulfilment
- Digital delivery
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
digiKam
- A small studio or department that needs two or three people working against one catalogue without paying per seatnot Pic-Time
- Archiving a large personal or institutional library where metadata must live in the files rather than in a vendor databasenot Pic-Time
- Photographers who want face recognition and geotagging processed locally with nothing sent to a cloud servicenot Pic-Time
- Migrating off a subscription catalogue while keeping tags and ratings, since digiKam reads and writes standard XMPnot Pic-Time
Pic-Time
- A wedding photographer who wants print revenue from past clients without writing and sending the promotions personallynot digiKam
- Studios where the gallery itself is part of the perceived product and a plain grid of thumbnails undersells the worknot digiKam
- Album based workflows that need clients to comment on spreads rather than exchange PDFs by emailnot digiKam
- Photographers with clients in several countries who need orders fulfilled by a lab local to the clientnot digiKam
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
digiKam
- Raw conversion quality is behind Lightroom, Capture One and DxO PhotoLab, so most users treat digiKam as a catalogue and develop files in a second application.
- The interface exposes an enormous number of options across crowded panels, and new users routinely fail to find basic functions without reading the manual.
- Libraries beyond roughly one hundred thousand images need deliberate maintenance of thumbnails and the database, and the SQLite backend slows noticeably before the MySQL one becomes worth configuring.
- The Windows and macOS builds receive less testing than Linux, and crashes and packaging problems on those platforms are resolved more slowly.
- There is no commercial support contract, no client delivery and no cloud sync, so an organisation adopting it accepts that its own staff are the support line.
Pic-Time
- The commission on store sales means the true cost rises with your success, so a photographer with strong print revenue may pay far more than the subscription implies and should price the top tier against the percentage before choosing.
- Storage is counted by photo, so high volume delivery pushes you up the tiers even when the files themselves are small.
- There is no contracts, invoicing, booking or CRM module, so a working studio still pays for a separate management tool and reconciles two systems.
- Lab coverage is uneven by country and some regions have a single partner, which removes any ability to shop for print quality or price.
- The automated campaigns go out under your studio name on Pic-Time schedules, and photographers with a small or recently marketed client list can look pushy unless every sequence is edited by hand.
Pricing, plan by plan
digiKam
Free- digiKamFree
- GPL licensed with no seat limit
- All features including the MySQL backend
- Community support through mailing list and bug tracker
Pic-Time
Free- FreeFree
- Small photo allowance for evaluating the platform
- Store available with the commission that applies to this tier
- Paid tiers$undefined/month
- Priced by the number of photos stored
- The sales commission differs by tier and falls on the higher plans
- Automated marketing campaigns included from the paid tiers upward
Which should you pick?
Choose digiKam if
- You need catalogue database.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Linux, Windows, macOS.
- You also want face recognition.
Choose Pic-Time if
- You need designed galleries.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want automated store campaigns.
Questions people ask
- Is digiKam or Pic-Time better?
- Neither clearly leads. digiKam starts at Free and Pic-Time at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, digiKam or Pic-Time?
- digiKam starts at Free and Pic-Time at Free.
- Does digiKam or Pic-Time run on more platforms?
- digiKam runs on Linux, Windows, macOS. Pic-Time runs on Web, iOS, Android.
- Can I use digiKam for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is digiKam best used for?
- digiKam is most often used for a small studio or department that needs two or three people working against one catalogue without paying per seat, archiving a large personal or institutional library where metadata must live in the files rather than in a vendor database, photographers who want face recognition and geotagging processed locally with nothing sent to a cloud service, migrating off a subscription catalogue while keeping tags and ratings, since digikam reads and writes standard xmp. Of those, a small studio or department that needs two or three people working against one catalogue without paying per seat and archiving a large personal or institutional library where metadata must live in the files rather than in a vendor database are not what Pic-Time is typically brought in for.
- What can digiKam do that Pic-Time cannot?
- digiKam covers Catalogue database, Face recognition, Metadata handling, Geotagging. Pic-Time covers Designed galleries, Automated store campaigns, Wall art visualiser, Album proofing.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
digiKam: Can several people use one digiKam catalogue?
Yes, by pointing digiKam at a shared MySQL or MariaDB database with images on a network volume. It is not designed for simultaneous heavy editing but it works for shared cataloguing.
Pic-Time: Does Pic-Time take a percentage of print sales?
Yes, and the rate depends on the plan you are on, with the higher tiers reducing it. Check the current rate for your tier, because it usually outweighs the monthly price difference.
digiKam: Does it move or change my files?
Not unless you ask. It catalogues folders in place, and metadata can be written to sidecar files rather than into the originals.
Pic-Time: Can it replace my studio management software?
No. There is no contract signing, invoicing or booking. Pic-Time covers delivery and sales only.
digiKam: Is it a Lightroom replacement?
As a catalogue, yes. As a raw developer, no. Most people who switch pair it with darktable or RawTherapee for editing.
Pic-Time: Do clients need an account to view a gallery?
No. Galleries open from a link with an optional password, and an email is only requested when a client downloads or orders.
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