Comparison
PartyLab vs Pixieset
Pixieset delivers a photographer's finished work to clients. PartyLab collects photos from every guest at your event — one QR code, real-time uploads, live gallery. Two completely different tools.
Feature by feature
| Feature | PartyLab | Pixieset |
|---|---|---|
| Guests need to create an account | No | No |
| Guests need to download an app | No | No |
| One link / QR for all guests to upload | Yes | No |
| Photos collected centrally from all guests | Yes | No |
| Original photo quality preserved | Yes | Yes |
| Private event gallery | Yes | Yes |
| Live shared gallery during the event | Yes | No |
| Built-in party slideshow for TVs | Yes | No |
| Digital guestbook captions | Yes | No |
| Photo reactions & likes | Yes | No |
| ZIP download of all photos | Yes | Yes |
| One-time pricing — no subscription | Yes | No |
The Pixieset gap for live events
Pixieset delivers photos — it doesn’t collect them
Pixieset is a professional photographer client gallery platform: photographers upload the finished, edited photos and clients download them. There is no guest upload flow, no QR code for attendees to scan, and no mechanism for collecting photos from multiple people at a live event. If you are hoping every guest at your wedding, birthday, or corporate event can contribute their own photos to a shared album, Pixieset simply cannot do that — it is a one-way delivery tool, not a crowd-sourced collection tool.
Subscription pricing built for professional photographers
Pixieset’s pricing is designed for professional photographers who use it as a recurring business tool: plans start around $8/month and scale up to $25/month for unlimited storage. For a one-time event where you just want to collect photos from 50 guests, paying a monthly subscription for a professional photographer delivery platform is not the right fit. PartyLab is $19 for a single event with unlimited photos, no subscription, and no ongoing cost after the event.
No live gallery or slideshow during the event
Pixieset galleries are designed for post-event viewing after a photographer has finished editing, culled, and published their work — a process that takes days or weeks. There is no live gallery that updates in real time as guests upload, no slideshow designed for display on a TV or projector during the event, and no QR code that guests can scan to see their photos appear immediately. For a live event experience where the gallery grows as people upload throughout the night, Pixieset has no equivalent feature.
Hosts who made the switch
“Our photographer uses Pixieset to deliver the professional edited photos after the wedding, which is great. But for collecting candid shots from 120 guests during the reception itself, we needed something totally different. PartyLab is what we printed on the table cards and it was perfect — real-time uploads, slideshow on the screen behind the DJ, incredible.”
Sophie K.
Bride, wedding host
“I thought Pixieset could work for our company retreat since I knew it from working with photographers. But there’s no way for employees to upload their own photos — it’s purely for professional delivery. PartyLab had a QR code working in 2 minutes and we had 80 employee photos in the gallery before dinner was over.”
Lauren M.
HR Manager, corporate events
“We tried to use Pixieset for our graduation party and quickly realized it only works if one person is uploading all the photos. PartyLab let every single person at the party contribute in real time. The slideshow was running on the TV by the pool and everyone loved seeing their photos appear live.”
Tyler B.
Graduation party host
Frequently asked questions
Can I use Pixieset to collect photos from event guests?
No — Pixieset is a one-way delivery platform. It allows a single photographer to upload photos for clients to view and download. There is no guest upload functionality, no QR code for attendees to scan, and no way for multiple people to contribute photos to a shared gallery. For collecting photos from every guest at a live event, you need a tool designed for crowd-sourced uploads like PartyLab.
What’s the difference between Pixieset and PartyLab?
Pixieset is for professional photographers delivering edited client galleries after the event. PartyLab is for event hosts collecting candid photos from every guest during the event. They solve opposite problems: Pixieset delivers one photographer’s finished work to viewers; PartyLab collects photos from hundreds of guests in real time. Many hosts use both — PartyLab for live guest uploads on the night, and Pixieset to receive the professional edited photos from their photographer afterward.
Is Pixieset free while PartyLab costs money?
Pixieset has a free plan with limited storage but requires a monthly subscription for anything beyond basic use, starting around $8/month. PartyLab is free for events up to 30 photos and $19 one-time for unlimited uploads, 12-month gallery, ZIP export, and TV slideshow. For a single event, PartyLab’s one-time model is more cost-effective than a recurring photography-business subscription.
Can I use both Pixieset and PartyLab for the same event?
Yes — this is the ideal workflow for events with a professional photographer. Use PartyLab on the night to collect candid guest photos via QR code in real time. Use Pixieset to receive the photographer’s polished, edited gallery a few weeks later. Your guests get two galleries: a spontaneous live collection of everyone’s candid shots, and a curated professional gallery. The two tools complement each other perfectly.
Collect every guest's photos — not just the photographer's
Create a free event in 30 seconds. Every guest scans a QR code and uploads instantly — no Pixieset account, no subscription, no photographer required.