Pixta Review (2023)

Photutorial’s take

With vague licensing terms, uncompetitive prices, and below-average image quality, we think you shouldn’t download stock images or videos from Pixta. Instead, we recommend you pick one of the numerous trustworthy alternatives, including Shutterstock and Adobe Stock.

Pros

• Good variety of buying options.

Cons

• Vague terms and conditions that can be exploited against you.
• More expensive than much better options.
• Subscriptions renew 3 days in advance.

at Pixta’s website

1.3

Photutorial Score

We score stock media sites based on objective testing data and subjective expert analysis. Our 5 scoring factors are weighted based on importance and designed to showcase the best stock media sites. For more information see our testing and scoring system explanation here.

Pixta Review Introduction

Pixta is one of Japan’s largest microstock agencies, licensing images and videos on a subscription and on-demand basis at average prices. The site is also an English-language version aimed at the US and European markets.

Although prices are comparable to those of reputable agencies like Shutterstock and Adobe Stock, Pixta’s collection includes many more images (54 million). It is a bit more expensive than the better alternatives if we want to be picky.

Overall, the image quality is satisfactory but not great. Combined with the relatively small selection and less-than-optimal artistic and technical execution, there is no reason to buy images from Pixta since there are many excellent alternatives at the same or better prices.

Image Pricing

Pixta sells images and videos with subscriptions and on-demand. Subscriptions are much cheaper but require a monthly or yearly commitment, while on-demand packs offer the most flexibility but are more expensive.

Image subscriptions for 1 person

Image subscriptions for 2–5 people

Prepaid credits

Using credits, you can buy any content on Pixta. Images are priced based on size and resolution as follows:

• S: 5 credits
• M: 15 credits
• L: 30 credits
• XL: 50 credits
• V (vector): 35 credits

The more credits you buy, the more you save. In other words, the price per credit gets lower with bulk purchases:

• 10 credits: $10
• 30 credits: $30
• 50 credits: $50
• 103 credits: $100 (Save 3%)
• 315 credits: $300 (Save 5%)
• 535 credits: $500 (Save 7%)
• 1,100 credits: $1,000 (Save 10%)
• 2,240 credits: $2,000 (Save 12%)

Yet, the savings are smaller than at Adobe Stock (25%), Shutterstock (36%), or Depositphotos (80%).

Single purchase

Single purchases are the most expensive and best used when you need only one image.

• S: $5
• M: $15
• L: $30
• XL: $50
• V (vector): $35

Video Pricing

Like images, videos can also be bought on-demand, and subscriptions come for 1 person or 2–5 people.

Video subscriptions for 1 person

Video subscriptions for 2–5 people

Single purchase

Single purchases are the most expensive and best used when you need only one video.

• Web(S): $15
• Web(L): $25
• NTSC/PAL: $50
• HD720: $70
• HD1080: $90
• 4K: $180

Licensing

Pixta license all of its content under a royalty-free (RF) license, which means that you may use all content you download perpetually without paying additional royalties. There are two RF licenses available: the Standard and the Extended.

While the Extended license is cheaper at Pixta (~$30) than at other agencies (~$70), you may need to buy it more frequently than elsewhere since the Standard license isn’t as comprehensive. The most notable difference is that the Standard license of Pixta allows only 300,000 reproductions of an image, while most other agencies allow up to 500,000 reproductions.

The Standard license is included with every image and footage download with subscriptions or credits. When you need an Extended license, you can buy it with cash for $30 or with 30 credits.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. Company, Pixta. Retrieved September 25, 2022.
2. Image subscription plans, Pixta. Retrieved September 25, 2022.
3. About licenses, Pixta. Retrieved September 25, 2022.