MyPhotoShare vs Piwigo
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted photo management options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Piwigo
Open-source photo gallery for the web
| Feature | MyPhotoShare | Piwigo |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 0 · At risk | 87 · Excellent |
| Category | Photo Management | Photo Management |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 15 | ★ 3,862 |
| First released | 2014 | 2002 |
| Replaces | Google Photos, Flickr | Flickr, Google Photos |
What are MyPhotoShare and Piwigo?
MyPhotoShare
MyPhotoShare is a self-hosted, lightweight photo gallery generator that creates a static web gallery from a folder of photos and videos. It produces a fast, responsive browsing experience with no database or server-side code needed.
- Static photo gallery generator
- No database needed
- Responsive browsing
- Video support
Piwigo
Piwigo is a mature open-source photo gallery application for organizing, sharing, and showcasing photo collections. It targets photographers and organizations managing large galleries. It is deployed via Docker or a PHP stack.
- Large gallery management
- Plugin and theme ecosystem
- Granular access control
- Upload from desktop and mobile
MyPhotoShare vs Piwigo: key differences
MyPhotoShare is written in JavaScript, while Piwigo is built with PHP. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for MyPhotoShare versus GPL-2.0 for Piwigo. MyPhotoShare is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Piwigo. Piwigo is the more established project (first released 2002), while MyPhotoShare arrived in 2014. Piwigo has the considerably larger community, at 3,862 GitHub stars versus 15. Piwigo lists first-class Docker deployment; MyPhotoShare does not.
Why pick each one
Choose MyPhotoShare if…
- Fast static output
- Low maintenance
Watch out for
- No upload interface
- Regeneration required for changes
Choose Piwigo if…
- Very mature and stable
- Extensible
- Good for big collections
Watch out for
- Interface feels classic
- No modern AI search
Frequently asked questions
Is MyPhotoShare or Piwigo better?
Piwigo is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider MyPhotoShare if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are MyPhotoShare and Piwigo free and open-source?
Yes. MyPhotoShare is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Piwigo under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run MyPhotoShare and Piwigo with Docker?
MyPhotoShare: check the project docs for container support. Piwigo: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, MyPhotoShare or Piwigo?
MyPhotoShare has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Piwigo. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.