Comparison
How does Pixelflare to other image serving alternatives?
Pixelflare vs S3-style Storage
- Edge delivery for faster global image loading
- On-the-fly image transformations (like requesting specific size) to reduce bandwidth and speed up your app
- Nice 'n easy web UI, to make uploading quick and managing easy
- Real-time analytics to track image traffic and origins
Pixelflare vs Free Image Hosts
- Images never expire or get deleted
- Optional backup/sync to your own bucket
- Fast, clean, ad-free UI
Pixelflare vs Commercial Image CDNs
- Lower cost - Pixelflare is free, and you only pay for the compute and bandwidth that you actually use
- No vendor lock-in - URL format is standard, making migration easy
- Full flexibility of self-hosting
Pixelflare vs General File Storage Services
- No rate limits
- Stable, short, permanent URLs
- Optimized specifically for images (faster than generic file hosting)
Interactive Comparison
| Provider | Cost / Pricing | Performance | Images Never Expire | No Forced Compression | No Vendor Lock-in | Quick, Ad-Free UI | Scalability | Organization Features | API Available | Request Stats | Transforms / Variants | Privacy Controls | Self-Host with Docker | Encryption at Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Open-source, Cloudflare-based image hosting and CDN with albums, AI search, and APIs. | ● | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ● | ● | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ● | ⊙ | ✓ |
Ad-supported consumer image host with sharing and embeds. | ● | ◑ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ◔ | ◑ | ◔ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ◔ | ✗ | ⊙ |
Simple free image host with direct links and an API. | ● | ◑ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ◔ | ◑ | ◔ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ○ | ✗ | ⊙ |
Developer-focused image & video platform with powerful transforms and CDN delivery. | ○ | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ◑ | ● | ◑ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ◑ | ✗ | ✓ |
On-demand image CDN with real-time transforms over your existing storage. | ○ | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ◑ | ● | ◔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ◑ | ✗ | ✓ |
Enterprise DAM platform for managing and distributing assets. | ○ | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ◔ | ● | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ● | ✗ | ✓ |
Self-hosted image hosting script to build your own Imgur-like site. | ● | ◔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ◑ | ◔ | ◑ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ● | ✓ | ✗ |
General-purpose cloud storage with sharing links. | ◑ | ◔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ◑ | ◔ | ◔ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ● | ✗ | ✓ |
Cloud file storage and sync with sharing links. | ◑ | ◑ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ◑ | ◔ | ◔ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ● | ✗ | ✓ |
Code hosting; sometimes misused to store and hotlink images. | ● | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ○ | ✗ | ✓ |
Object storage with optional CDN and extensive tooling. | ◑ | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ○ | ● | ○ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ● | ✗ | ✓ |
S3-compatible object storage integrated with Cloudflare’s edge network. | ● | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ○ | ● | ○ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ● | ✗ | ✓ |
Decentralized content-addressed storage protocol, not a traditional CDN. | ● | ○ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ○ | ◔ | ○ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ○ | ✓ | ✗ |
Static hosting + CDN for frontends. | ◑ | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ◔ | ◔ | ○ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ◔ | ✗ | ✓ |
Frontend and serverless deployment platform with built-in image optimization for some frameworks. | ◑ | ● | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ● | ◔ | ○ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ◔ | ✗ | ✓ |
Self-hosted AI-powered photo management app with a rich web UI. | ● | ◔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ● | ◔ | ● | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ● | ✓ | ✗ |
Open-source, self-hosted photo management with face recognition and smart search. | ● | ◔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ◑ | ◔ | ● | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ● | ✓ | ✗ |
Self-hosted, mobile-friendly Google Photos alternative with strong AI features. | ● | ◔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ● | ◔ | ● | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ● | ✓ | ✗ |
Drawbacks of Pixelflare
- Very much built for Cloudflare, and can't (currently) be easily deployed to other clouds
- Requires some technical knowledge for setup and maintenance
- Built by an individual (not corporate backed)
- No guarantees, SLA or professional audit (yet!)
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