Alamy review: Only 5,000 prints with the basic license

This week I opened Alamy after several months when I was desperately looking for an image. I noticed they completely overhauled their pricing system, so I decided that this Alamy review needed a refresh.

Alamy is a stock photo site similar to Getty Images in the sense that you can buy images and videos only on-demand (there are no subscriptions). They also have a very similar collection size and what it covers—creative and editorial content. But compared to Getty, Alamy is cheaper, though both are much more expensive than Shutterstock or Adobe Stock, for instance.

Cheaper Alamy alternatives worth considering

Pricing & licensing: Alamy is expensive and not good for printing

I refresh my Alamy review only every couple of months because I’m not an avid fan of this platform. And every time I come back, I find their pricing has changed.

In short, Alamy sells images and videos (licenses, is the actual term) on-demand only, meaning you buy each file individually. You can buy packs of 5 to 25 files to save money. But Alamy doesn’t have image subscriptions or video plans that would save you money in the long term.

To license a media, find the one you like and click on it. This will open all your buying options. You can license them as an individual or a team.

Right off the bat, that’s confusing because, as an individual, you get somewhat limited licensing rights (such as only 5,000 prints, while most competitors limit print runs to 500,000). To get extended rights, you can pay more for a team license, even as an individual. Team licenses also allow for license sharing among multiple users.

Now onto the pricing itself. I’ll start with images. As far as I can tell, all images, be it photos, vectors, or 360° panoramas, cost the same. There’s also no difference among different resolutions.

A single image costs $39. That’s cheaper compared to the old Alamy pricing, where a single image cost $45. But you also used to get a better license with a 100K print limit instead of a mere 5,000. You pay less per image if you pay upfront for 5 ($21.60/image), 10 ($13.50/image), or 25 ($9.76/image) images.

Let’s compare this to on-demand prices at some of the best alternatives. On-demand images cost from $9 to $14.50 at Shutterstock, $8 to $10 at Adobe Stock, and $8 to $12 at iStock. And they all come with better royalty-free licenses. Getty Images is much more expensive at $130 to $500 per image.

If you need broader rights than what the individual license offers, you need more than 5K prints or work in a team, then pick the team license. It’s going to be more expensive, and there will be many more options. So, for a detailed explanation, please go to the Alamy license comparison page.

In short, depending on which of the 7 team licenses you pick, you will pay between $60 and $465 for a single image. The cost gets up to 10% lower if you pay for 20 upfront.

Now, I’ll briefly explain video pricing. A single HD video costs $70, while 4K footage goes for $90. You can pay for 25 videos upfront for up to 62% off the cost per video. Team video licenses go for between $71 and $300 for HD footage, and between $100 and $350 for 4K footage. You can save up to 10% with video packs.

The best part about the Alamy checkout process is that you don’t even have to create an account (but you do have to provide an email address to get the invoice). And if you buy packs, you’ll also need an account.

Accepted payment methods include various credit cards and PayPal. There are no refunds at Alamy, unless stated otherwise. For instance, you may get a refund if the content contains defects.

Search tools

Alamy’s interface is just like any other: preview cards make up most of the screen, a search bar at the top, and filters in the left sidebar. A classic among stock media platforms. It’s also clean enough to make browsing relatively simple.

I’ll share my biggest irk first. Every time you select a filter—and I like applying multiple filters to narrow down my search—the entire interface flashes multiple times. I replicated this among several devices and browsers, and I couldn’t make it go away.

(It gets really frustrating after even 2 minutes of browsing.)

Beyond this annoyance, there’s not much else to say about Alamy’s interface. There are plenty of filters that help you narrow down your search, and they work as expected. For instance, for images, you can filter by orientation, file size, colors, and people characteristics, while for videos, you can also filter by resolution, duration, and FPS.

Is Alamy legit?

Alamy has a long history in stock photography. Founded in 1999 and now based in the UK, it’s grown into one of the largest image libraries in the world. Since 2020, it’s been owned by PA Media Group, keeping its reputation steady in the publishing and creative industries.

If you’re buying images, Alamy feels reliable. Despite minor quirks, the platform makes it easy to find high-quality or editorial images. Search, choose your license type, and pay. There are no subscriptions; you pay for each image, or you can buy packs for a discount.

Alamy is a safe and established platform. I’ve found no major reports of fraud, data breaches, or shady practices. For buyers searching for quality images and clear licensing, the experience is solid.

This article was originally published in April 2020. The most recent update was in May 2025.

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Matic Broz

Matic Broz is a stock media licensing expert with over 10 years of experience using and testing creative platforms for his own creative work. He has personally licensed over 5,000 stock assets and helped 20,000+ creators choose the right subscription services through his work at Photutorial.

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• Images
• Video & audio