Why I still pay for Google Photos, even with free alternatives available

Google Photos used to offer unlimited storage for free, a feature many of us relied on. That all changed back in June 2021. Like many others, I quickly received the inevitable “storage full” message after the change and decided to pay up. I’ve been paying for a Google One plan ever since, and honestly, I don’t plan on changing that anytime soon, even though free alternatives exist.

Convenience is king

I’ll admit, I kind of resented Google when it ditched the unlimited free storage for Photos. It certainly felt like a classic bait-and-switch: get everyone hooked on a great free service, build a massive user base dependent on it, and then start charging once we were all accustomed to it.

Well, you got me, Google. It wasn’t long before I had to subscribe, initially driven purely by convenience, even though I genuinely like the service. Being able to access my photos seamlessly across multiple devices is a must for me, and the platform offers useful basic editing tools to quickly improve images. Sharing albums is also incredibly easy, something my partner and I do constantly.

Simply put, it works, is easy to use, has all the core features I need, and is incredibly convenient. With that in mind, paying seemed far easier than the alternative: researching a new service, figuring out how to migrate thousands of images, and then hoping the new platform would work as advertised and meet all my needs. The potential hassle just wasn’t worth it.

While convenience was the primary reason I initially subscribed, the extra features Google Photos has added over the years have become significant perks I’d genuinely miss if I switched.

The Memories feature is a standout. I love seeing curated collections pop up, like photos taken exactly five years ago, reminding me of what I was doing that day. It brings a wave of nostalgia and prompts reflection on how things have changed. Google Photos also automatically creates collages and albums, grouping images by theme — whether it’s summer vacations, holiday gatherings, or even just pictures from restaurants.

I really enjoy this aspect of Google Photos, although I’ll admit the sheer number of notifications for new creations can sometimes feel overwhelming.

Google Photos’ search function has steadily improved and really simplifies managing my vast photo library. I have a lot of photos, partly because my partner wants her picture taken with every cat we encounter and generally enjoys being in front of the camera.

With so many images, scrolling endlessly is a pain when searching for a specific photo. For example, we moved recently and are still buying furniture. I took pictures of various furniture pieces we were interested in. When I need to compare them later, I just type a keyword like “bed,” and the relevant photos appear.

Okay, sometimes the results include more than I strictly need — like unflattering pictures of me half asleep on hotel beds during past travels — but even that can be useful, highlighting images I might want to delete. More impressively, I can search by face, allowing Photos to instantly filter images containing specific people. It’s a powerful and incredibly convenient feature that continues to get better.

While I know numerous Google Photos alternatives exist, I rarely see strong recommendations for any particular one over Google Photos, at least for the average user. It often feels like Google’s service remains the benchmark for usability and features for most people.

My colleague Andy, for instance, has experimented with several alternatives, including Amazon Photos and Flickr, but ultimately found they didn’t quite meet his wants and needs compared to Google Photos. Knowing I can be quite demanding myself, with specific requirements, I suspect trying to switch would likely be a frustrating waste of time for me.

So, for now, I’ll continue paying for Google Photos and the associated Google One storage. It delivers the convenience and features I value most, even if I still occasionally long for the good old days when the service was completely free.