Ente Photos vs PiGallery2
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted photo management options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Ente Photos
End-to-end encrypted photo storage and backup
VS
PiGallery2
Fast directory-based photo gallery with search and maps
| Feature | Ente Photos | PiGallery2 |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 98 · Excellent | 82 · Excellent |
| Category | Photo Management | Photo Management |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | Dart | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 29,050 | ★ 2,283 |
| First released | 2022 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Google Photos, iCloud Photos | Google Photos |
What are Ente Photos and PiGallery2?
Ente Photos
Ente is an end-to-end encrypted photo storage and backup service with apps across platforms and a self-hostable server. It targets privacy-focused users wanting encrypted photo backup. It is deployed via Docker.
- End-to-end encryption
- Apps for all platforms
- Self-hostable server
- Family sharing
PiGallery2
PiGallery2 is a fast, directory-driven photo gallery server that does not move or modify your files. It supports faces, geolocation maps, and a powerful search syntax with a lightweight footprint.
- Directory-based galleries
- Geolocation maps
- Powerful search syntax
- Read-only on your files
Ente Photos vs PiGallery2: key differences
Ente Photos is written in Dart, while PiGallery2 is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Ente Photos versus MIT for PiGallery2. PiGallery2 is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Ente Photos. PiGallery2 is the more established project (first released 2016), while Ente Photos arrived in 2022. Ente Photos has the considerably larger community, at 29,050 GitHub stars versus 2,283.
Why pick each one
Choose Ente Photos if…
- Strong encryption
- Polished apps
- Privacy-first
Watch out for
- Self-hosting is advanced
- Server setup nontrivial
Choose PiGallery2 if…
- Does not touch your files
- Runs well on a Raspberry Pi
Watch out for
- No editing features
- Limited multi-user support
Frequently asked questions
Is Ente Photos or PiGallery2 better?
Neither is universally better. Ente Photos has the larger community, while PiGallery2 is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Ente Photos and PiGallery2 free and open-source?
Yes. Ente Photos is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and PiGallery2 under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Ente Photos and PiGallery2 with Docker?
Ente Photos: yes. PiGallery2: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Ente Photos or PiGallery2?
PiGallery2 has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Ente Photos. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.