fgallery vs Photoview
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted photo management options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | fgallery | Photoview |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 9 · At risk | 72 · Good |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Photo Management | Photo Management |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 248 | ★ 6,535 |
| First released | 2013 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Flickr, Google Photos | Google Photos |
What are fgallery and Photoview?
fgallery
fgallery is a static photo gallery generator that produces a minimalist, self-contained HTML gallery from a folder of images. The generated gallery is fully static, privacy-respecting, and can be hosted on any web server.
- Minimalist static galleries
- Self-contained output
- Mobile friendly
- No tracking
Photoview
Photoview is a simple, user-friendly photo gallery designed to work with photos stored directly on the filesystem. It targets users wanting a lightweight gallery over an existing folder structure. It is deployed via Docker.
- Works on existing photo folders
- Face recognition
- Timeline and albums
- RAW and video support
fgallery vs Photoview: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: fgallery's repository is archived and no longer developed, while Photoview is actively maintained. Fgallery is written in JavaScript, while Photoview is built with Go. Licensing differs — MIT for fgallery versus AGPL-3.0 for Photoview. Fgallery is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Photoview. Fgallery is the more established project (first released 2013), while Photoview arrived in 2019. Photoview has the considerably larger community, at 6,535 GitHub stars versus 248. Photoview lists first-class Docker deployment; fgallery does not.
Why pick each one
Choose fgallery if…
- Clean simple design
- Privacy respecting
Watch out for
- Command-line only
- Minimal features
Choose Photoview if…
- Uses your folder structure
- Lightweight
- Easy setup
Watch out for
- Fewer features than Immich
- Slower development
Frequently asked questions
Is fgallery or Photoview better?
Neither is universally better. Photoview has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are fgallery and Photoview free and open-source?
Yes. fgallery is licensed under MIT and Photoview under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run fgallery and Photoview with Docker?
fgallery: check the project docs for container support. Photoview: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, fgallery or Photoview?
fgallery has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Photoview. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.