You definitely need one of these website hosting sites for photographers if you want to create a website with photos, sell digital photos or just showcase your portfolio.
21 Best Website Hosting for Photographers
Whatever photography genre you specialize in, be it wedding, portrait, landscape, fashion, event, children or wildlife, you need to own a photography business website, to acquaint people with your works.
This implies having enough storage space to host a large massive of photos and the bandwidth to allow visitors to see your pictures in a quick and efficient way. Knowing how time-consuming finding decent web hosting for photographers can be, I’ve selected the best variants and described them below.
1. Squarespace
- Strong, 99.95% Uptime
- Helpful Customer Support
- Free (New) Domain Name with Annual Purchase
- Free WHOIS Privacy and SSL
- Slower Than Average Performance Speeds (955ms)
- Monthly Plans without Refunds
- High, Industry-Standard Pricing Manipulation
Verdict: Squarespace boasts a huge number of features, which makes it one of the best website hosting for photographers. The most remarkable peculiarity that appeals to most photographers is a user-friendly website builder that comes with up-to-date Squarespace templates and e-commerce-oriented options. Even those, using their portable gadgets, can take advantage of this website for photography, as each design is optimized for mobile.
Uptime is secure at 99.95% and the customer support is very comprehensive, though, a bit slow. If you choose the annual plan, you can expect a free domain, SSL and WHOIS privacy. However, the latter are available in all plans.
A very serious issue about this website hosting that can scare off some users is a slow speed. Clients aren’t very tolerant of waiting and may simply go to more snappy resources. You’ll have to put up with this for a year if you want to get the lowest rate regardless of the plan you choose.
- Read about 12 best website builders for photographers.
2. Wix
- Great speed
- Understandable, drag-and-drop interface
- Use Wix App Market to advance your website
- Lots of additional features
- Templates aren’t interchangeable
- You can’t export your website
Verdict: Wix is the best web hosting for photographers just beginning their professional career. If you are one of them and dream of creating a stylish, feature-rich website, opt for Wix.
Paying quite a moderate sum on a monthly base, you get a website with a forum, a blog, an online store, a mailing list, an appointment booking section, a gallery of photos, newsletters and many more. In fact, most of these functions are available even if you stick to the free plan.
Wix for photographers is known for its ease of use. If you feel that you lack knowledge on how to construct a professional-looking website, you can fully rely on support tools, well-crafted wizards, help files and video tutorials.
However, there is a drawback you need to be aware of. You can’t change the template that you selected when you first designed your website. The only way out is to build it from scratch. Moreover, your website isn’t transferrable and it is impossible to access its code, unless you are using the developer’s version called Corvid.
3. HostPapa
- Free domain name
- Unlimited disk space & data transfer
- Free SSL & Cloudflare CDN
- PapaSquad site migration service
- High renewal cost
- Automated site backups only included with the Business Pro plan
Verdict: HostPapa is an efficient WordPress hosting for photographers and other creatives. It appeals to users with high speeds, boosted performance, and 24/7 support. If you already own a domain name, you can transfer it for free and run your site on HostPapa’s advanced servers with 99.9% uptime guaranteed.
With the help of the PapaSquad feature, you can effortlessly transfer your site to WordPress platform without dealing with additional settings. Thus, you receive high-speed, secure WordPress hosting that doesn’t require making manual customizations.
Thanks to free SSL Certificates, you can be sure your website is absolutely safe to use. Besides, there are auto-detect and malware removal features that will make the user experience absolutely enjoyable. HostPapa’s cutting-edge security software keeps tabs on their servers and your website for the utmost protection.
4. Pixpa
- Convenient drag-and-drop controls
- Free domain and SSL certificate included in every plan
- Relatively low prices
- Convenient image sharing with customers
- Support team doesn’t have enough employees
- Basic plan is rather restricted in what it has to offer
Verdict: Pixpa is a user-friendly, end-to-end portfolio site builder that is perfectly suited for photographers and other creatives. It’s also a great choice if you’re interested in selling your images or prints online, as it provides a broad range of intuitive eCommerce features. This platform offers attractive pricing, and convenient controls, and represents an interesting option for both non-tech-savvy users and advanced content creators. The fact that Pixpa doesn’t impose any transaction fees makes it that much more attractive.
I was happy to see Pixpa provide over 60 responsive themes for me to choose from while offering a trendy, clean UI. This platform also has a built-in Client Galleries tool that lets you share, proof, deliver, and sell your creations to customers.
5. Adobe Portfolio
- Simple interface
- Part of the Creative Cloud subscription
- Beginner-friendly
- Expensive without a full subscription
- Portfolio tied to Adobe CC subscription
- Limited customization and design
Verdict: You have probably heard about Adobe Company and know how quality its products are. This is also relevant for Adobe Portfolio, which is included in the Creative Cloud subscription, and if you are already using it, you can quickly create a nice-looking portfolio. The preparatory steps don’t take long, while fine-tuning may require more time.
Abode devotees call Adobe Portfolio the best photo website, which is equally helpful either you want to make a jaw-dropping portfolio or a simple one.
Many photographers complain that they can’t keep an eye on all portfolio updates because of the lack of time, but thanks to tight integration, you can cope with the task more efficiently. Frankly speaking, Adobe Portfolio is the best website hosting for photographers with the current subscription to Creative Cloud, but even if you don’t have any, you can still make a good use of available tools.
However, don’t expect too much, as the program is designed as a portfolio builder – there is no blog or integrated storage. Of course, such a limited functionality can incite some users to look for a more feature-packed option.
6. Hostinger
- Free domain
- 24/7 technical support
- Full SSD servers
- Unbounded bandwidth
- Hosting plans could include more functions
- File manager contains bags
Verdict: Hostinger doesn’t require you to be an expert to get started. Its comprehensive management panel, easy-to-use interface, and web hosting functions enable you to launch your website in a few minutes.
The service rids you of the language barrier, as the hPanel is translated into 15 languages. As the best shared web hosting provider, they use progressive technologies: from self-healing infrastructure and full SSD servers to unbounded bandwidth.
In addition, Hostinger enables you to relocate your website from your old website hosting to this platform so that you could concentrate on important things. Furthermore, they don’t require any website migration fees to be paid.
7. SmugMug
- Excellent anti-theft protection
- Great uptime and response time
- Overall high performance
- The unlimited photo storage for all users
- Helpful customer support
- You can use your own domain only if you’re paying for the second-tier plan or higher
- Unlike Wix and some other options, SmugMug DOESN’T offer a free plan with ads or limited functions
Verdict: This is one of the most popular photography websites that can offer features and tools required by both professional photographers and those treating this art as a hobby. In general, if you choose SmugMug, you receive a website and a portfolio builder oriented on photographers’ needs, and reliable photo hosting.
Such a package is a fantastic offer. However, not all photographers, both experienced and fanciers, really need such extensive functionality. If you don’t want to waste your time, you may opt for third-party platforms that provide cloud hosting services and ensure enterprise-grade security.
SmugMug combines hosting, sophisticated functions, e.g. e-commerce tools, and site building on a truly user-friendly platform. Besides, the pricing policy here is rather moderate. You don’t need to pay much to enjoy fast performance and all the available features.
8. Host IT Smart
- 3 manageable hosting
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Limitless space
- Monthly plans
- No processing centers in European countries
Verdict: Host IT Smart offers Shared Hosting, WordPress Hosting, VPS Hosting, Dedicated Servers, and plans for Java developers (which is somewhat unusual but cool). It has been functioning as a hosting provider for about ten years and has data centers in India and the US. Many competing services don’t allow you to pay on a monthly basis, so this flexibility is a big advantage.
Host IT Smart offers three manageable hosting plans: Beginner, Performance, and Business. The Beginner plan is limited to one website and two databases, while the Performance variant is limited to 10 websites and 10 databases. The Business plan has no limits. Each plan comes with a "security scan" (although there is not much information about it).
The service offers unlimited space and bandwidth, so you, as a photographer, can upload thousands of RAW photos in no time.
9. Jagoan Hosting
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Speedy network
- 200+ layout templates
- Free website builder
- Ticket response time too slow
Verdict: Jagoan Hosting is one of the low-priced hosting services in Indonesia that has been inviting thousands customers to do web hosting, Cloud hosting, and VPS since 2007. I like that the company’s crew gets it right to take your website traffic as very important, putting forward the unlimited bandwidth to your benefit.
You can also take advantage of the servers whose network is able to speed up to 500 Mbps with no fear of getting slow! The servers the company provides are well-optimized in accordance with the demands of the website and its application. Several of its tech partners do cooperate with Google and VeriSign. By effectively using advanced hosting equipment and infrastructure top-of-the-line, Jagoan Hosting can provide its clients with shared hosting free of risk and sound VPS solutions at a fair cost.
10. Carbonmade
- Beautiful, newfangled designs
- Simple setting up
- Free trial with no credit card
- Clear pricing policy
- Limited customization
- High price
- Lacks e-commerce features
Verdict: If you feel like creating something one-of-a-kind and need photography inspiration websites to externalize your creative ideas, Carbonmade definitely deserves your attention. This resource allows organizing your photos, writing a CV, finding new clients and interesting job offers. Look through the photography websites templates and pick the one that can reflect your artistic vision, upload images, add custom text and that’s it.
Carbonmade allows generating something unique, neat and eye-pleasing, which is of invaluable importance in this highly competitive photography world. Your website helps make the first impression, and with Carbonmate it is always positive. But don’t rush to publish your site and go live. First, open the preview mode to see how all the changes applied will look online.
- Choose the best cloud storage for photos.
11. Crevado
- 2-Week free trial
- You can host videos, photos, PDFs, and more
- Optimized for mobile devices
- Secure HTTPS hosting for advanced privacy protection
- You can’t make more than 1 gallery
Verdict: Crevado allows making large thumbnail galleries, with a sleek B&W background. The website looks neat and comprehensible. Once you decide to upgrade your account, you receive access to more profound functions like PayPal purchasing options, galleries protection with passwords, privacy control, and 2+ pages.
For my task, 3 pages were enough – one for a portfolio and another one for a pricing table. If you need a more elaborate structure, get ready to spend more money.
In case, you want to showcase your works related to several photography genres, you either need to buy an upgraded version or choose another option from this rundown.
12. ScalaHosting
- 99.9% uptime guarantee
- Fully cater to clients’ needs
- Offer next-generation control panel
- Lack a website builder
Verdict: ScalaHosting is an innovative web hosting provider with a focus on VPS solutions. Their servers are well-optimized for maximum performance and impenetrable security. Additionally, Scala develops their own unique hosting solutions for easier management and better control. The host offers feature-packed servers with very high upload limits in three top-tier data centers across the US and Europe.
Photographers and media outlet owners can choose from several fixed plans or fine-tune a server as per their exact requirements. Even the most media-heavy projects can find an affordable home with ScalaHosting. Additionally, the VPS plans support all popular image gallery apps like Piwigo, Coppermine, ZenPhoto, and more.
Should users have any difficulties installing the needed software or configuring their server - Scala Support can help them out in a friendly and effective manner.
13. Zenfolio
- Unlimited storage space
- Many options to sell and advertise products
- Oriented solely on photographers
- 7% service fee
Verdict: Zenfolio offers amazing photography portfolio templates, which you can quickly adapt to your needs regardless of your photography specialization.
This web hosting platform also boasts reliable e-commerce features such as an integrated shopping cart, a printing lab partnership and a full package of marketing instruments. Zenfolio also exceeds at privacy protection, allowing users to add watermarks and create passwords for each gallery.
14. WPX Hosting
- Has one-click WordPress installer
- Quick responsive live chat and ticket support
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Impressive uptime at 99.95%
- Monthly and yearly payment plans
- No mobile or email support
Verdict: If you are on the lookout for the best website hosting for photographers that doesn’t require deep programming knowledge, you can safely rely on WPX Hosting. It is helpful if you need to increase your site’s hosting provisions or to create a new website from scratch.
There are 3 pricing plans you can choose from. They all ensure the simple and fast creation of WordPress-based website. If you have already a WordPress site, you can transfer it by means of a free migration service.
If you are mainly dependent on WordPress hosting services, your main concerns are probably loading times and the speed of the site. WPX Hosting ensures that both values will reach the top level. Whatever billing plan you choose, you get DDoS protection, manual & auto backups, malware scanning and removal, so you may not worry about your data safety.
15. A2 Hosting
- Industry-highest server speeds
- Uptime commitment to minimize lost business because of downtime
- Diversified plans to serve sites of any size
- No free domain
- Requests for support of new technology accepted, but there is no ETA
Verdict: A2 Hosting is a feature-rich web host that boasts many hosting packages, including those designed specifically for photographers. If you decide on this photography website platform, you get a whole range of top-notch security options, first-class photo hosting tools and some other great features. Thanks to strong infrastructure, you can easily manage big medial files. In fact, you can even select where your data will be stored.
The feature that allows A2 Hosting to stand out among other website hosting for photographers is the integrated gallery of software. For example, you can resort to Coppermine to generate a PHP-based photo gallery or make use of Piwigo to configure a gallery backed with an active community. This web host gives you more than 16 original software tools to manage and present your images/photos in a better way. Thus, you don't need to waste time looking for third-party digital asset management software for photographers. You can also read the difference between A2 Hosting and SiteGround.
- Take a look at the best WordPress photography themes.
16. Krop
- Rather a high price
- No upsells
- Limited customization options
- Confusing user interface
- Updating takes some time
Verdict: Krop is frequently called the best photography hosting website because of the extended possibilities it offers to users. Here you can create an online portfolio and also keep a track of creative jobs. Though in most cases the second feature is needless, some photographers may still benefit from monitoring the job boards from time to time.
Developers made a reasonable move allowing users to test this website for photography for 2 weeks to decide whether it can satisfy their needs. If you like how everything works, you can sign up for a suitable plan (regular one or the Pro annual plan) and receive complete access to the website’s features.
During the first year, you can use a free domain name. Fill in your selected domain name during registration or choose a domain credit for future use.
17. Strikingly
- Reasonably priced
- Excellent customer support
- Low-cost builder to sell images
- Adjusting templates is a breeze
- Limited e-commerce features
- Weak tools to level up a business
- For 1-page websites only
Verdict: If you are mainly interested in marketing your products in an efficient manner, without tackling numerous settings and creative controls, Strikingly is a wonderful variant.
Photographers like this web host because of understandable photography website templates it offers at a very reasonable cost. Though it can’t stand in one line with industry-leading website hosting options, Strikingly comes with all the necessary features for a regular website, which you can get without going bankrupt.
18. WP Engine
- WordPress optimization
- Supports simple managing of your site
- Provides strong, consistent performance
- Boast a great deal of dedicated and expert support
- May be too expensive for some users
- Offers managed hosting only on shared servers
Verdict: If you are constantly working with huge assets of visual data, you need to choose famous photographers websites that can handle such a load. WP Engine is just like that. Another advantage of this website host is the possibility to contact professional WordPress support team in case some problems arise.
Obviously, the users just learning the trade, will find this website builder to complicated, leaving some functions untouched. But those with years of experience, can use the impressive potential of WP Engine to the fullest. Such additional features like auto backups, WordPress updates, security scanning are bound to make managing the website stress-free.
If you are a bit deterred from using this website for photography because of its price, think about 35 top-quality WordPress themes that are a part of the package.
19. Kinsta
- Cloud-based architecture oriented on speed
- Software to turbocharge you
- Strong uptime at 99.9%
- Terrific technical support
- High price
- No email hosting
- No mobile support
Verdict: The biggest issue of this website hosting for photographers is its price. However, it is absolutely justified by the range of available tools and features. If you are searching for the methods to boost the traffic of your website or need all-in-one domain registration and email hosting, Kinsta with its premium WordPress support may be a good option.
I believe that this is one of the best sites for photographer struggling with low traffic and trying hard to scale and secure their platforms. Either way, Kinsta has the cloud-based infrastructure, offers lighting operation speed, advanced management tools/systems and impressive customer support, which makes it a mighty option to reckon with.
20. Site123
- Wonderful support, especially its live chat feature
- Templates are mobile and tablet-optimized
- Straightforward app market
- Some features should be improved
- It is impossible to change templates once your site has been published
- Little creative freedom and flexibility
Verdict: Site123 is a great example of a powerful web hosting for photographers that doesn’t cross the line of ease of use. It is mostly focused on beginners or those trying to avoid long and tiresome fine-tuning.
Some may say that such a limited set of photography websites templates are more of a disadvantage, but if you need just the basic aesthetically pleasing options, Site123 can fully satisfy your requirements.
If you cooperate with people from all over the globe, Site123’s multilingual support will come in handy. Very few photography websites can boast such a feature. Another serious argument in favor of this web host is that most functions are available for free (but your site will have Site123’s banner and subdomain), and the plan updates are reasonably priced.
21. Webscreations Design
- Regular free backups
- High-speed MySQL with SSD drives
- Over 200 pre-installed apps
- Comes with a firewall and antivirus
- 24/7 technical assistance
- No free version
Verdict: Webscreation Design is a Kenya-based company that provides a variety of services, such as web hosting, web design, domain services, dedicated servers, SSL certificates, asset management and tagging. It provides the most affordable, high-quality hosting services for photographers. Its cPanel allows you to control your hosting settings.
Thanks to this service, it will be easier for you to schedule Cron jobs, organize your files and databases. You will get access to the integrated website builder with a drag-and-drop UI. On the cPanel, you will also find the Softaculous installer that allows you to install WordPress and various apps.
The Cloudflare CDN integration accounts for quick page load time and local caching. Your data will be protected from online threats thanks to the in-built firewall and malware protection features.
You can use RAID storage to store your data and create internal and remote backups to prevent data loss.
Tata Rossi
Hi there, I'm Tata Rossi - a professional blogger, read more
