A SmugMug alternative: Aurant vs SmugMug
SmugMug is a photo hosting and portfolio platform with unlimited photo storage on every plan, and print sales with order fulfilment from its Portfolio plan. Aurant puts files, galleries and the client work (invoices, contracts, booking) in one account, with a free plan and films as well as photos. Here is how to choose.
What we say about SmugMug was checked on SmugMug’s own pages, as of October 2026. Prices and features change, so check their site before you decide.
Choose SmugMug if…
- You want unlimited photo storage on every plan, with RAW files stored as an add-on.
- You want a portfolio website and print sales in one subscription, with SmugMug handling order fulfilment (Portfolio plan and up).
- You edit in Lightroom and want SmugMug’s Lightroom integration, included on every plan.
Choose Aurant if…
- You want invoices, contracts and booking pages in the same account as your galleries: SmugMug’s plans do not list them.
- You want to start without paying: Aurant has a free plan with no card and no time limit, where SmugMug has a 14-day trial.
- You deliver films as well as photographs: on Aurant, films play straight from the link and the original file is the download.
- You or your clients work in French: the app and the pages your clients open are fully in English and French.
- Your files must arrive exactly as you exported them: Aurant keeps them at full resolution and never recompresses them.
- You want your delivered work kept: on Aurant, galleries stay online, read-only, whatever your plan, and are never deleted.
- You would rather pay in your local currency: in much of Africa, an Aurant plan can be prepaid by mobile money.
Side by side.
| What you get | Aurant | SmugMug |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes: 5 GB, one portfolio, unlimited galleries with no limit on files per gallery. No card. | No free plan; a 14-day free trial. |
| Paid plans from | £9 a month (Basic, 200 GB). Yearly billing saves 15%. | $20 a month, billed annually (Direct). Selling and a website start on Portfolio, at $23.50 a month billed annually. |
| Most storage | 4 TB on Ultimate. | Unlimited photo storage on every plan. RAW files are an add-on: up to 1 TB for $10 a month, then $6 a month for each extra TB. |
| Print and product sales | No print store or lab integration. From Basic, you can sell digital downloads from a gallery if you choose to, at your price, and Aurant takes no cut. | From Portfolio: prints and downloads at your own profit margins, with order fulfilment handled by SmugMug. Pro adds custom price lists and coupons. |
| Invoices, contracts, booking | In the same account: invoices, quotes and client management on every plan (Free includes 3 clients and 3 invoices, unlimited from Basic); contracts with online signing and booking pages on every plan, Free included. | None listed: SmugMug’s plans page lists no invoices, contracts or booking. |
| If you stop paying | Delivered galleries stay online, read-only, and are never deleted. Export everything, any time. | Its privacy policy says photos and videos in a closed account are taken offline almost immediately and permanently removed from its active systems 60 days later. |
What we say about SmugMug was checked on SmugMug’s own pages, as of October 2026. Prices and features change, so check their site before you decide.
Switching from SmugMug
Download your galleries from SmugMug as folders or zip files, then use Import galleries in Aurant: each folder becomes a gallery and its sub-folders become sets, at full resolution. Your client list comes across from SmugMug’s export file. Imported galleries stay hidden until you have checked them.
Questions.
- Is Aurant cheaper than SmugMug?
- It depends on how much you store. Aurant has a free plan with 5 GB, and its paid plans start at £9 a month with 200 GB. SmugMug starts at $20 a month billed annually, with unlimited photo storage (as of October 2026). If you keep several terabytes of photographs online, SmugMug’s unlimited storage is likely the better deal; if you also pay for invoicing, contracts and booking elsewhere, count those too.
- Can I sell prints with Aurant?
- Not today. Aurant has no print store or lab integration; from Basic, you can sell digital downloads from a gallery if you choose to, at your price, and Aurant takes no cut. If print sales matter to your income, SmugMug’s Portfolio or Pro plan is the stronger choice.
- Can I bring my SmugMug galleries over?
- Yes. Download them from SmugMug as folders or zip files, then use Import galleries: each folder becomes a gallery and its sub-folders become sets, at full resolution. Imported galleries stay hidden until you have checked them.
- Does Aurant have unlimited storage?
- No. Aurant’s largest plan, Ultimate, has 4 TB, and extra storage is not on sale yet. If you need more than that, SmugMug’s unlimited photo storage is the better fit.
- Is Aurant available in French?
- Yes, fully. The app, and the galleries and pages your clients open, are in English and French.
- What happens to my galleries if I stop paying?
- On Aurant, nothing is deleted: your galleries, files and portfolios stay online, read-only, and you can export everything at any time. SmugMug’s privacy policy says a closed account’s photos and videos are taken offline almost immediately and permanently removed from its active systems 60 days later, so download your originals before you close it.
Try it on a real job.
Where these facts come from
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