When reviewing the best online photo printing services, important criteria is whether the site is easy to use, if it is flexible, what kind of creative choices do I have and are the products affordable. The issue is, with the large number of photo companies and price and feature variations, it's sometimes difficult to decide which service to utilize. Below is a guide for selecting an online digital photo service.

Capabilities

Nowadays, online photo processors do far more than simply print photos. One can order a remarkable array of photo items, from photobooks to custom cards, blankets, mugs and so on. Shutterfly particularly excels at this and offers a vast range of customized photo gifts.

One will discover that the best online digital photo printing services are at the cutting edge and incorporate social media. A few websites enable users to upload pictures from social sites lke Flickr and produce web photo galleries for online sharing. Shutterfly and Kodak Gallery and even offer users their own private sharing site.

Costs

Interestingly, prices can vary widely, so it would be a good idea to check out a few different services. On average, a digital photo printing service costs between 8 cents to 27 cents for a 4x6 print, which is a pretty big range. Nevertheless, printing at home usually costs a lot more, as much as $0.27 up to $0.50 each print, taking into account the price of ink and paper and the printer model. If you use an online photo printing service, you may find that you don't have to pay top price to get top quality. A number of online photo printing services, for example Snapfish, print high quality photos at a low price.

Quality

A good digital photo printing service will print your pictures as close to the original colors as possible with vivid color, avoid over- or under-saturation, and with proper cropping. Certain photo printing services, Kodak Gallery for instance, feature image optimization for proper exposure, real-life color and correct neutral areas. The majority of photo services offer the option of glossy or matte finish and use only acid free photo paper.

More and more sites are offering the convenience of in-store pick-up at retail locations. However, if printing is done at the retail partner there may be some quality variation versus having photos processed directly by the digital printing service.

Online Photo Editor

You'll find that the majority of online photo services feature image editing of some kind. Several companies provide simple editing such as cropping and red eye removal, although a few sites have tools for adjusting color and saturation. For more than basic touch-ups, it is better to use a specialized graphics software program to make your enhancements.

Online Photo Storage

Many companies offer the lure of free, unlimited photo storage but be aware that you usually have to make a purchase at least once a year to keep your account open. One photo service that offers free online storage without asking for a yearly purchase is Shutterfly. Kodak Gallery is one site that lets you download your stored pictures in their full resolution.

The best online photo printing service will be the one that best fits your own needs in terms of cost, quality, flexibility, etc. Happily, you'll discover that there are more than a few photo sites that you'll be pleased with.