“Where is the best place to have my images printed?”
We’ve heard this question several times recently, and we believe it’s a good question for everyone to ask. Why take the time out of your busy day and spend the money to have a photographer take high resolutions pictures of your family only to end up with subpar prints? Sure they look great on the computer, but there is something about having a beautifully matted and framed picture on your fireplace or hanging on your wall. Because of this, we have spent the last couple weeks gathering information and ordering prints from eight of the most popular photo labs across the country to see how they stack up against each other. The results were surprising to even us.
***update 01/13/14*** Check out Photo Print Comparison Part 2 for a more in-depth look at our top four rated labs.
AdoramaPix
Although we were somewhat unfamiliar with this company, we saw this name come up again and again when searching for popular labs. They had, by far, the best shipping packaging out of all the competition (can’t blame them for the mail carrier leaving the box out in the street) and were the only company to ship via UPS instead of using the postal service.
The Facts:
- Price: $.24 per 4×6
- Shipping Cost: $3.00
- Shipping Speed: 4 days
- Package Quality: Study cardboard box, photo in waxpaper sleeve shrink-wrapped to sturdy cardboard backing
- Paper Type: Kodak Professional Endura Supra paper
- Picture Quality: Although the coloring was only slightly muted, the subject appeared blurry which caused a loss of detail in the image.
mpix
This has always been our go-to lab to order prints so we were really looking forward to see how they compared to the others.
- Price: $.29 per 4×6
- Shipping Cost: $3.95
- Shipping Speed: 5-10 days
- Package Quality: Very sturdy cardboard packaging, photo in plastic protective sleeve.
- Paper Type: FujiColor Crystal Archive Professional Paper
- Picture Quality: True to color. Slightly darker than original. Very minor to no loss of detail.
RitzPix
We have used Ritz Camera in the past and were always impressed by their quality. We were excited that they offered online print ordering through RitzPix.com. Unfortunately, the website is not nearly as user friendly as any of the other sites we used.
The Facts:
- Price: $.15 per 4×6 ($.27 to have printed in store)
- Shipping Cost: $2.99
- Shipping Speed: 5-10 days
- Package Quality: Very sturdy cardboard packaging, photo in paper sleeve.
- Paper Type: FujiColor Crystal Archive Type II
- Picture Quality: Slight yellow tint. Very minor loss of detail.
Shutterfly
We’ve seen a lot of smack-talk toward Shutterfly in online photography forums so we were looking forward to seeing what they had to bring to the table.
The Facts:
- Price: $.10 per 4×6
- Shipping Cost: $1.79
- Shipping Speed: 3-7 days
- Package Quality: Somewhat thin cardboard packaging, photo in thin cardboard sleeve
- Paper Type: FujiColor Crystal Archive paper
- Picture Quality: Slight pink tint. Image was cropped even though the file that was uploaded was already to 4×6 dimensions. Very Minor to no loss of detail.
Snapfish
Snapfish fans have a lot to say when it comes to the quality of their prints. They were usually the ones found in the forums trashing Shutterfly. It was interesting to see the results for ourselves.
The Facts:
- Price: $.09 per 4×6
- Shipping Cost: $.99
- Shipping Speed: 3-5 days
- Package Quality: Somewhat thin cardboard packaging, photo in paper sleeve with sturdy cardboad backer
- Paper Type: Kodak XTRALIFE (claimed to be printed on “top quality Fuji photo paper” on their website)
- Picture Quality: Muted colors with brown tint. Loss of detail.
Target
Since Target has everything, I should have known that it had a photo lab. While only one of the Targets in the area offer kiosk prints, you can order from their online lab at anytime.
The Facts:
- Price: $.15 per 4×6 online ($.19 at kiosk)
- Shipping Cost: $1.75 (or free pickup in store)
- Shipping Speed: 7-10 days
- Package Quality: Slightly thin cardboard envelope, photo in thick paper sleeve
- Paper Type: Kodak XTRALIFE
- Picture Quality: True to color although slightly faded tone. Very minor to no loss of detail.
Walgreens
Walgreens is probably one of the most famous photo labs. We were interested in seeing if this was due to clever marketing or for the quality of their work.
The Facts:
- Price: $.12 per 4×6 ($.20 in store)
- Shipping Cost: $.99 (or free pickup in store)
- Shipping Speed: 5-7 days
- Package Quality: Thin cardboard envelope, photo in very thin cardboard sleeve.
- Paper Type: FujiColor Crystal Archive paper (Only glossy available in store)
- Picture Quality: Dull, dark color with brown tint. Major loss of detail.
Walmart
Walmart prides itself in that they offer everything you can imagine. It’s convenient to do all your shopping in one place. We were interested to see if you had to sacrifice quality for convenience by printing your photos at Walmart.
Original vs Walmart
The Facts:
- Price: $.09 per 4×6 ($.19 in store)
- Shipping Cost: Free
- Shipping Speed: 3-5 days
- Package Quality: Sturdy cardboard packaging, photo in paper sleeve with somewhat sturdy cardboard backer
- Paper Type: Kodak XTRALIFE
- Picture Quality: Dull, dark color with brown tint. Some loss of detail.
Conclusion:
Don’t be fooled into thinking just because a lab prints on a certain type of paper that it’s going to be a quality photograph. Majority of the labs listed use FujiColor Crystal Archive Paper and don’t get me wrong—this is quality paper that has the potential to produce beautiful images with brilliant colors while showing off details, not to mention its excellent resistance to fading (and they’re not even paying me to say this). But the paper isn’t the only factor in producing quality images as seen when comparing RitzPix’s print with the photo printed at Walgreens. Same paper, huge difference.
As far as the ongoing Snapfish/Shutterfly rivalry, we would choose Shutterfly over Snapfish any day based on the results of our comparison—if not for the difference in quality, for the fact that Snapfish’s website claims that they print on Fuji paper when in fact the print sent to us was printed on Kodak paper. Although Snapfish is slightly cheaper, when ordering prints, you won’t see as big of a difference in your wallet as you’ll see in your photographs.
Ranking by best quality:
- mpix
- RitzPix
- Target
- AdoramaPix
- Shutterfly
- Snapfish
- Walmart
- Walgreens
While mpix certainly had the best quality out of all the labs tested, it also had the highest price per print as well as shipping cost. If you don’t mind sacrificing a little bit of quality for price, RitzPix tested a close second. And for goodness sake, if you have your photos printed at Walgreens, do yourself a favor and stop. There are better and cheaper choices out there. You will thank us.
Have any thoughts or comments? Please let us know. We’d love to hear for you!
***update 01/13/14*** Check out Photo Print Comparison Part 2 for a more in-depth look at our top four rated labs.
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Jennifer S.
Our school has had a professional photographer do the class pics the last few years because she does such a great job (outside) and you don’t get stuck with that one snapshot under a spotlight with a blue background! For $20 we get the CD with all the photos to print where we wish. But I still pay for her to process the 8×10’s for my wall because there is such a difference between the photos that come from her and the 4×6 and wallet prints I get from Costco or Snapfish/Shutterfly to send to the family!
pandwphotography
What an awesome idea Jennifer! We’ve thought about suggesting this in our area too. You can’t beat natural light and why not get some great outdoor shots of your kids to hang in the house that show their personality instead of getting the same old school photo year after year. I’m sure they are pictures that you’ll treasure for the rest of your life!
Also, Costco was another lab that we saw coming up again and again by people claiming that Costco was the only lab they would order from. We would have loved to have used them in this test as well, but there are no stores in the area and you have to have a membership in order to get prints. From what I can tell by others who have done similar testing is that it ends up being more about convenience than it does about quality. (I mean, c’mon, we’re all busy, right?) Unfortunately, I cannot validate that personally.
Maria Martinez
Hi Jennifer I would like to know how much you paid for the cd please.
Anna M.
Wow! You told me you were working on this and I was looking forward to the results, but I didn’t think I would be so shocked. I have gotten pics from Snapfish and Shutterfly, and have been very happy with Snapfish and very unhappy with Shutterfly (I only ordered there once…I had ordered like 50 prints of David and I for sending out in Christmas cards and the print turned out so dark and blurry, you could barely tell it was us!) Is there a possibility that there is a variance on which Snapfish/Shutterfly location processes them or something? I will definitely look into RitzPix (I liked that photo better than mpix- it was brighter). Do you know if they ever offer great deals like Snapfish does, like 100 penny prints or free shipping during a special promotion time? I’ll have to look into that. Thanks for this research!
pandwphotography
Hey Anna, thanks for the comment. We were equally shocked by the results.
It is certainly possible that your pictures will turn out differently depending which Snapfish/Shutterfly location prints your images. I think this was emphasized with the fact that Snapfish claimed to print on a different type of paper than the one they sent us. I would assume that some labs use one paper and others use a different kind. (I have tried to contact them about this matter but have been unsuccessful in reaching anyone with an answer) You will see different result depending on the photo paper used. With Snapfish, you can also order from them and pick up your prints at any Walgreens or Walmart location. With this option, you wouldn’t even be using Snapfish’s labs, but would be having them printed directly from one of these stores…which we would not recommend from what we’ve seen in this test.
Although Ritz had a slightly brighter print than mpix, I’d like to point out that this isn’t exactly a good thing. Sure, if you have a really dark image, then brightening it up probably won’t hurt. But if you have an already bright image, you are going to lose details in the highlights. Mpix gave a nearly perfect representation of what the original image looked like. If you have a professionally edited image, a lot of time is spent getting you the most out of your image. The further you get away from an exact representation of your image, the further you get from what the photographer wanted you to have in your final image. The print we received from Ritz also had a slight yellow tint which is a cause for concern to us. Once again, it might not be the worst thing is every situation, but is certainly something to take into consideration.
We didn’t find any deals for RitzPix or for mpix. That doesn’t mean they are not out there. I wouldn’t expect anyone to want to pay a thousand dollars for a couple 4×6’s and 8×10’s, but I’m a firm believer that you get what you pay for. If you order a penny 4×6, you’re going to get a penny 4×6. If someone who reads this doesn’t want to go with mpix because they are the most expensive choice, I completely understand where they are coming from. We try to be the best stewards of our money as well! But hopefully everyone who reads this will come away with a better understanding and be able make an informed decision with quality and price in mind before they have their pictures printed.
Mandy
That was fantastic! I was able to do 3 senior photo shoots this summer and never had any suggestions for them as to where to print from. I hope you don’t mind me using your suggestions! I have always used Shutterfly, and have had many pics that I was not completely satisfied with. Especially when I am the one taking the picture, I know what it SHOULD look like. But, because of money, I think they do a fair job. Some day I will have to use mpix, but I am afraid I will get hooked on Great looking pics instead of fair looking pics. Thanks so much for all the research!!!!
pandwphotography
Hey Mandy! Thanks for stopping by! We’re so glad to hear that this is a useful tool; PLEASE use it! We really didn’t know where to send people before doing this either, so it was a great learning experience for us as well. Everyone has different priorities—for some it’s quality, for others it’s cost. Hopefully, after reading this, everyone will be able to make an informed decision with their priorities in mind.
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Eden
great info, thanks! but I usually print through Costco and am trying to figure out how costco compares. any thoughts?
pandwphotography
Hey Eden! Thanks for checking out the comparison and hopefully you find it helpful. I have never used Costco. Unfortunately there are none close, otherwise I would certainly become a member! Since I have never used their photo printing services, I cannot speak to their quality. I wish I could. Sorry!
luke
I have ordered from mpix, adorama pic as well as walmart/walgeeens and a few other small labs. I wish I found this article first before all the disappointment trial and error. Well organized and very thorough. Thx!! 🙂
pandwphotography
Thank you so much, Luke! I think we’ve all been there at one time or another. That’s why we thought this comparison was so essential. Hopefully it will spare someone the disappointment that we’ve had to experience. Thanks for the comment!
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