# Alternatives to Immich

Self-hosted Google Photos replacement.

Immich ranks #6 of 7 in Photo storage, with an Alt Score of 78. It is licensed under AGPL-3.0, donationware from Free and available on iOS, Android and Web. 8 of 10 checklist rows are verified against a public source.

Source: https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/immich/
Category: Photo storage

## Overview

- **Who it's for**: Privacy-conscious individuals, families, and self-hosters who want to replace Google Photos or iCloud with a photo/video library they run and control themselves, typically on a home server or NAS.
- **What you get**: Automatic backup from mobile devices with duplicate detection, shared and favorite albums, and full-text/metadata search. AI-powered features include facial recognition, object detection, and CLIP-based smart search, plus support for RAW formats and 360-degree images. It also generates 'memories' (on-this-day photos) and supports partner and public link sharing.
- **How it works**: You deploy the Immich server via Docker on your own hardware, then install the iOS or Android app and point it at your server to enable automatic background backup of photos and videos. From there you browse, search, and organize your library through the mobile app or a web interface, both talking to the same self-hosted backend.

## Profile

- **License**: AGPL-3.0 (verified 2026-07-09)
- **Pricing model**: Donationware (verified 2026-07-09)
- **Starts at**: Free (verified 2026-07-09)
- **Platforms**: iOS, Android, Web
- **Status**: active (verified 2026-07-09)

## Ranked alternatives

| # | App | Alt Score | Licence | Platforms |
|---|-----|-----------|---------|-----------|
| 1 | [Ente Photos](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/ente-photos.md) | 96 | AGPL-3.0 | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS |
| 2 | [PhotoPrism](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/photoprism.md) | 91 | AGPL-3.0 | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS |
| 3 | [Amazon Photos](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/amazon-photos.md) | 82 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android |
| 4 | [Google Photos](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/google-photos.md) | 82 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android |
| 5 | [iCloud Photos](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/icloud-photos.md) | 82 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS, iOS, Web |
| 6 | [LibrePhotos](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/librephotos.md) | 68 | MIT | Linux, Android, Web |

Alt Score = Verified coverage (90%) + Visibility (10%). See https://altcatalog.com/how-alt-score-works/

## Feature comparison

Legend: Yes / No / Partial / ? (not verified).

| Photo storage checklist | Immich | Ente Photos | PhotoPrism | Amazon Photos | Google Photos | iCloud Photos |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Donationware | OSS + paid hosting | OSS + paid hosting | Freemium | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starts at | Free | $2.99/mo | €2.00/mo | $1.99/mo | $1.99/mo | $0.99/mo |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 | Proprietary | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Platforms | iOS, Android, Web | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Web | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Web | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Web | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Web | Windows, macOS, iOS, Web |
| Free storage amount | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Original quality kept | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| AI search (faces, objects) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Albums & sharing | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| E2E encrypted | ? | Yes | ? | No | ? | Partial |
| RAW support | Yes | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Auto-upload from phone | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Import from competitors | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial |
| Video support | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |

## Sources

Sources for Immich. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.

- **Starts at**: Free — <https://docs.immich.app/overview/support-the-project> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “all features will be free, forever! Nothing will ever be put behind any paywalls.”
- **License**: AGPL-3.0 — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/immich-app/immich/main/LICENSE> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “GNU AFFERO GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE Version 3, 19 November 2007”
- **Status**: active — <https://docs.immich.app/features/sharing> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Last updated on Jul 2, 2026 by github-actions”
- **Pricing model**: Donationware — <https://docs.immich.app/overview/support-the-project> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Note: Fully free OSS; the product key is an optional supporter purchase that gates no features.
  - Quote: “Don't worry, all features will be free, forever! Nothing will ever be put behind any paywalls.”
- **Platforms**: iOS, Android, Web — <https://docs.immich.app/features/mobile-app> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Note: Web client confirmed in the docs FAQ and README feature table; no official native desktop client.
  - Quote: “Google Play Store Apple App Store F-Droid GitHub Releases (apk)”
- **Original quality kept**: Yes — <https://docs.immich.app/FAQ> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Immich always keeps your original files.”
- **AI search (faces, objects)**: Yes — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/immich-app/immich/main/README.md> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Search by metadata, objects, faces, and CLIP | Yes | Yes”
- **Albums & sharing**: Yes — <https://docs.immich.app/features/sharing> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Immich supports local sharing, with users on the same Immich instance, and public sharing via public links.”
- **Self-hostable**: Yes — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/immich-app/immich/main/README.md> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “High performance self-hosted photo and video management solution”
- **RAW support**: Yes — <https://docs.immich.app/features/supported-formats> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “RAW .raw ✅ RW2 .rw2 ✅”
- **Auto-upload from phone**: Yes — <https://docs.immich.app/features/mobile-backup> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Immich supports uploading photos and videos from your mobile device to the server automatically.”
- **Import from competitors**: Partial — <https://docs.immich.app/features/command-line-interface> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Note: Import is via a recommended third-party community tool, not a built-in first-party importer.
  - Quote: “If you are looking to import your Google Photos takeout, we recommend this community maintained tool immich-go”
- **Video support**: Yes — <https://docs.immich.app/features/supported-formats> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “MP4 .mp4 .insv ✅”

---
Ranked by verified data, never by who paid. https://altcatalog.com/trust/