Ente or Immich: which should you choose for your photos?
Ente for most people: end-to-end encrypted cloud, no technical skills required, 10 GB free. Immich for those who own a NAS or a server: free software, total control, but a Docker installation and backups on you. Managed service versus self-hosting, that's the real match. The full step-by-step method is in chapter 8 of my book, Vivre sans Google.
Information verified on July 11, 2026
Ente and Immich both want to replace Google Photos, but they’re not really fighting each other. The real match is managed service versus self-hosting. On one side, an encrypted cloud where someone takes care of the servers for you. On the other, free software that runs at your place, on your own machine. The question is not which one is better, but who manages your photos, and where.
The match in one table
| Criterion | Ente Photos | Immich |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free (10 GB). 50 GB at $2.49/month, 200 GB at $4.99/month, 1 TB at $9.99/month | Free and open source software, you provide the hardware |
| Hosting | Cloud managed by Ente | At your place (NAS or server) |
| Privacy | End-to-end encryption, even Ente sees nothing | Your files never leave your hardware |
| Installation | Create an account | Docker, more technical |
| Maintenance | None | Backups and updates on you |
| Level | Beginner | Intermediate |
What Ente does better
Peace of mind. You create an account, the app backs up your photos, and end-to-end encryption guarantees that nobody can see them, not even Ente. No server to install, no outage to handle, no backup to schedule: that’s Ente’s job, not yours.
The migration too. Import tools from Google Photos are built in, and it’s the simplest path to leaving Google Photos. Against the giant, Ente already holds its own; against Immich, it wins on simplicity, plain and simple.
What Immich does better
Control, total control. Your photos live on your drives, at your place, and no middleman enters the equation. The software is free and open source: your only cost is the hardware. And the experience is anything but austere. Facial recognition, content search, a capable mobile app: version 2.0, stable since October 2025, wrapped up four years of intensive development.
The trade-off is clear. Installation goes through Docker, you need a NAS or a server, and the backups and the updates fall on you. If your drive dies without a backup copy, your memories go with it.
The real choice: managed or self-hosted?
Ask yourself a single question: do you want to administer a server? If the answer is no, take Ente and stop thinking about it. If it’s yes, Immich is one of the finest projects in all of self-hosting. My own photos live at my place: installing Immich took me thirty minutes of Docker, then a night of indexing. But I take on the maintenance that comes with it, and not everyone wants that.
Verdict
Choose Ente if you want truly private photos without becoming a system administrator. It’s my default recommendation, the one in the book for most people.
Choose Immich if you already have a NAS or a server, and Docker doesn’t scare you. You get complete control, at the cost of real technical responsibility.
The detailed profiles: Ente Photos and Immich, with the overview on the photo alternatives page. And to see where this project fits in your journey, take a detour through the diagnostic.
This topic is chapter 8 of my book
It answers these questions, among others:
- what do you really need to know before installing Immich at home?
- who backs up the backup, and how do you sleep at night?
- and if I had to do it again, which path would I take?
Forthcoming 22/10/2026 from Éditions Eyrolles
Where do you stand?
24 questions to measure how much you depend on Google services. Free, no sign-up.
Frequently asked questions
Is Immich really free?
The software, yes: open source and free. But you have to provide the machine that hosts it, a NAS or a server, and take on the backups and the updates. Ente follows the opposite model: 10 GB free then a subscription from $2.49/month for 50 GB, with no server to manage.
Do you need technical skills to use Immich?
Yes, a minimum. Installation goes through Docker and assumes a compatible server or NAS. Then count on regular maintenance: backups and updates. If those words mean nothing to you, Ente does the same job with no server to manage.
Still weighing your options?
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