Photokive vs ScanMyPhotos: Choosing The Right Digitizer
- Rodnesha Green
- 5 days ago
- 10 min read
Digitizing old family photos has become essential for preserving precious memories for future generations. Whether you have loose prints or boxes of family albums, turning your photos into digital files keeps them safe from fading and loss. It's important to find the right digitizer to entrust with your family's memories. Today, we'll look at two photo scanning services in particular and discover which is the best fit for your needs.
In Photokive vs. ScanMyPhotos, we’ll introduce you to both brands and explore how they digitize photos. We'll compare features like ease of use, album handling, turnaround time, digital storage, and pricing. By the conclusion, you'll hopefully have an idea of which digitizing service provides you with the optimal solution. Let’s dive in!
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Exploring ScanMyPhotos: A Budget-Friendly Bulk Scanning Digitizer
Founded in 1990, ScanMyPhotos is an established name in photo digitization, having scanned over a billion pictures for customers. They started as a local photo shop and evolved into one of the first mail-in scanning services. If you’re looking to scan thousands of prints at a low cost, ScanMyPhotos’ high-volume approach is very appealing. For this comparison, we’ll focus on how ScanMyPhotos handles digitizing loose photos and albums.
Key Features of ScanMyPhotos’ Service:
Prepaid Photo Box for Bulk Scanning: ScanMyPhotos offers a flat-rate photo box service. You order a prepaid box (holding roughly 1,800 loose photos). Fill it with your prints, and send it in - simple! A video tutorial is available with instructions on how to pack your photo box, which does require album disassembly.
High-Speed Scanning (Same-Day Option): They utilize high-speed scanners to digitize photos rapidly. They even offer an Express ScanFast option that scans all your images the same day the box arrives. In many cases, orders are complete in days. This speed is a huge plus if you’re eager to see your images or have a time-sensitive project.
Multiple Formats & Add-On Services: In addition to standard photo prints, ScanMyPhotos can also handle 35mm slides and negatives. They offer optional enhancements like their “Photo Soap” image restoration to revive faded pictures (for an added fee). You can even choose different scan resolutions (e.g., 150, 300, or 600 dpi) based on how detailed you want your digital images.
Digital Download & Media Options: After scanning, your images are uploaded for digital download via a provided link. Options for physical backups, like a USB drive or DVDs, are available to add for an extra fee. These are also handy for sharing with family members who prefer physical media.
Temporary Online Gallery: Each order includes a temporary online gallery for your scans, but only for a short time. The default is about 5 days of access unless you pay for a longer storage period. In short, you’ll need to download your files promptly or purchase extended cloud storage to access ongoing cloud backup.
A Few Caveats to Consider with ScanMyPhotos:
Prep Work & Album Handling: ScanMyPhotos requires you to remove all photos from albums, frames, or sticky pages before sending. They do offer tips on safely detaching pictures from old “magnetic” albums using dental floss. However, if your memories are in fragile albums, you run the risk of potentially damaging one-of-a-kind photos. With ScanMyPhotos, you have to take apart the album yourself - a tedious task at best.
Additional Fees Can Add Up: The base scanning price is enticingly low, but many conveniences are à la carte. The following come with additional fees: higher resolution scans, having your original photos returned, pictures scanned in a specific order, extended cloud storage, concierge support, and image rotation, to name a few. Some customers have felt a bit “nickel-and-dimed” by the extras. The best advice would be to price potential add-ons you may want before purchase and budget accordingly.
Organization of Digital Files: ScanMyPhotos will scan your images, but organizing them is largely up to you. SCM is all about speed and will only shoot in a particular order if you paid for the add-on service. That means you may have to arrange and sort hundreds of image files on your own. If digital organization is an important factor for you, this service could be lacking.
ScanMyPhotos Pricing for Photo Digitization
ScanMyPhotos’ pricing is structured to favor high-volume orders:
Prepaid Photo Box: Approximately $145 per box (on sale) for up to ~1,800 standard photos (4×6), including shipping. (Regular price is about $240 per box without promotions.)
Smaller Batches: For fewer photos, they offer options like a 250-photo package for $50, or pay-per-photo services (roughly $0.12–$0.20 per image, depending on quantity). These services do not include a prepaid box, so you will also be responsible for shipping via USPS.
Extra Services: Add-ons such as express turnaround ($97), scanning in a specific order ($88), image restoration ($59), or returning original prints ($16.95) all incur additional fees (ranging roughly $20–$100 per box for each service). Even with some extras, the overall cost per photo can remain manageable.
Value for Album Preservation: If your goal is specifically to preserve albums, the value proposition of ScanMyPhotos depends on your willingness to do some legwork. The per-photo price can be extremely low, but remember you’ll have to remove photos from albums yourself and possibly purchase multiple boxes if you have thousands of photos.
For someone with a huge collection of loose photos, ScanMyPhotos is cost-effective. But for someone with carefully arranged albums or scrapbooks, you might weigh the “sweat equity” required against a service that handles albums intact.
What Customers Have to Say – ScanMyPhotos Reviews
ScanMyPhotos reviews often highlight its affordability and speed. Many customers are amazed at how quickly their thousands of photos come back digitized and how cheap the service works out per picture. People also enjoy being able to easily share old photos with relatives once they’re in digital format.
“I mailed in two boxes of family photos. Just days later, I had every image in my inbox. It was like opening a time capsule.” ~ Tina R.
ScanMyPhotos also enjoys media accolades! Tech experts have recommended it as a top choice for photo scanning thanks to its combination of price and speed.
On the other hand, reviewers also mention certain pain points with the service. The extra charges caught some by surprise, while the effort to extract photos from albums overwhelmed others. Several reviewers raised image-quality concerns, often with default settings. They noted that base-resolution scans weren’t sharp enough for large displays and that auto-cropping occasionally slipped.
Overall, users feel ScanMyPhotos delivers on its promise of bulk scanning at a bargain price. It will get the job done fast, though perhaps without some of the personalized touches of a more boutique service. ScanMyPhotos will certainly preserve your memories, but is it the best way to handle delicate, intact photo albums and give you a beautifully organized digital collection?
Let’s explore how Photokive takes a different approach
Photokive – Premium Digitizing for Priceless Family Albums
Photokive is a newer entry in the digitizing space. Launched by The Kive Company, they specialize in digitizing photos from fragile albums with a white-glove approach. While ScanMyPhotos and others handle various media, Photokive focuses solely on preserving printed photographs and photo albums. This process provides each photo with extra care, keeping your original albums intact and safe.
Photokive builds on The Kive Company’s years of expertise in safeguarding mementos for over 500,000 families since 2012. The process is straightforward: Photokive sends you a crush-proof shipping box with a protective sleeve, prepaid return label, and instructions. The key difference is that with Photokive, there is no need to remove photos from your albums or scrapbooks at all. You can send an entire album as-is, and their team will digitize each page without unbinding or peeling out the photos.
They use skilled photographers to capture high-resolution images of each photo directly from the album pages. If a photo is too visually obstructed in the album, the team will carefully remove it for separate scanning and then return it to its place. In the end, your albums come back to you in the same condition you sent them, just with all the contents now digitized.
Key Features of Photokive’s Photo Digitization:
Consistently High Image Quality: Photokive digitizes each photo at 300 DPI or higher using professional equipment. Photo digitization includes color correction, balancing, and blemish removal at no extra cost. Your digital images will look as good as, often better than, the originals, thanks to this careful enhancement process.
No Album Disassembly Needed: Photokive’s workflow is specifically designed so you do not have to remove photos from your albums. Their team captures each picture directly from the album’s pages, keeping your books intact. For anyone who has struggled to pry pictures out of an old, sticky album, this is a godsend – making. Photokive is arguably the best way to digitize photos in albums without risking damage.
Photokive Concierge Support: Each Photokive order comes with a dedicated concierge who personally updates you at key steps and answers any questions. Unlike services where you only have a tracking number, here you have a direct contact overseeing your project. This white-glove support provides great peace of mind when sending off irreplaceable heirlooms.
Free Extended Cloud Storage: When your scans are ready, Photokive provides a secure online gallery for easy viewing and downloading. You can use the provided labels to sort your albums or groups of photos. To preserve the original organization of your collection, Photokive will create corresponding folders in your digital gallery. Every order includes 90 days of free cloud storage (plenty of time to share with family), and you can extend cloud access for just $18/year if desired.
Optional Photo Book Creation: Given its Artkive roots, Photokive can seamlessly turn your newly digitized images into a premium coffee-table photo book. For $99, you can add a 100-page hardcover book of your restored images. It's a wonderful way to gift a copy of an album or simply enjoy a fresh, space-saving version of your memories.
“Photokive Guarantee” for Disasters: Photokive offers a unique guarantee born from the founders’ experience with the California wildfires. If a natural disaster ever destroys your original photo albums, Photokive will reprint all your digitized images into new photo books at no cost. This extraordinary promise means your memories remain protected, even in worst-case scenarios.
A Few Things to Consider with Photokive
Photos-Focused Service: Photokive specializes solely in photos and albums. This narrow focus makes Photokive excellent at photo preservation, but it’s not a one-stop shop. If you also need to digitize other media (like tapes or film), you’ll need a different service for those.
Premium Add-Ons: Photokive’s base price is quite reasonable, but some premium options do cost extra. For example, a USB backup is $19.99, a custom photo book is about $100, and extended cloud storage after 90 days is $18/year. None of these are mandatory, but if you opt for several extras, it can increase your total spend.
Turnaround Time: Photokive’s meticulous process typically takes about 6–8 weeks for completion. This is faster than some all-in-one services, but not as fast as a bulk scanner like ScanMyPhotos. If you have an urgent deadline, you may need to request a rush or plan ahead.
Photokive Pricing for Photo Digitization
Photokive offers four tiered packages (with 50% off for first-time customers):
Photokive's 4 Digitizer Packages:
Snapshot (up to 100 photos) – $59 for first-timers (regularly $118.00)
Portfolio (up to 250 photos) – $139.99 for first-timers (regularly $279.98)
Gallery (up to 500 photos) – $259.99 for first-timers (regularly $519.98)
Archive (up to 1,000 photos) – $489.99 for first-timers (regularly $979.98)
Included in each package:
Crush-proof shipping kit & prepaid return label
Photo digitization and basic editing of all photos
Secure online gallery (with optional folder organization)
90 days of free cloud storage
Safe return of all original items
If you exceed the photo count of your package, extra pieces are simply billed at a per-photo rate. With the 50% discount, that comes to about $0.59 per additional photo beyond the package limit. You’ll only be charged for what was actually photographed.
A Strong Start! – Photokive Reviews in Summary
Because Photokive is a relatively new service, dedicated Photokive reviews from customers are just beginning to roll in. Early feedback we’ve seen echoes many of the sentiments from Artkive’s customer reviews – which is a great sign.
"The pictures are so crisp and clean, incredibly professional looking.” ~Emily M.
Users who have tried Photokive love that they don't have to take apart their fragile albums. In fact, for many, this was the number one reason they chose Photokive over a competitor. Customers often highlight how relieving it is to send the full album and skip risky photo removal.
Customers also highlight the personal touch of the concierge service. Photokive keeps you in the loop throughout, which greatly eases the common anxiety of shipping off irreplaceable photos. One early user noted that working with Photokive felt like “a collaborative project” because of the inclusive communication. That level of trust and personal engagement is not something most big-box digitizers provide.
Since Photokive is so new, if you search online for “Photokive reviews,” you might not find a lot yet. In those cases, it’s worth looking at Artkive reviews to gauge overall reputation. Artkive currently holds a 4-star rating on TrustPilot and TrustIndex, and reviews are fairly consistent.
In short, Photokive draws strong reviews for delivering high quality with minimal hassle. For families seeking a hands-off way to preserve albums, it performs well. It may be pricier than ScanMyPhotos, but the concierge approach and comprehensive care add notable value.
Photokive vs. ScanMyPhotos: Which Service Should You Choose?
At the end of the day, both Photokive and ScanMyPhotos will help you restore old photos and bring them into the digital age.
ScanMyPhotos is ideal if you have a massive quantity of photos to scan on a limited budget. It’s incredibly quick and cost-effective, as long as you’re willing to prep a bit and handle your own file organization.
Photokive, meanwhile, is perfect if you want a hands-off, high-touch experience. It’s the better choice when you have delicate albums or you simply value convenience and quality over speed. You’ll get white-glove treatment and pristine results, with none of the hassle.
Whichever route you choose, you’ll be taking an important step. By digitizing your old photos now, you ensure that decades from now, your family’s stories will still be there. In digital form, those birthdays, weddings, vacations, and everyday memories remain vivid and ready to share. The sooner you embark on this project, the sooner you can relax knowing those memories are safe.
And if you feel Photokive is the solution that best fits your needs, click the link below to get started preserving your photo memories today.
