Photo book buying guide

Last year I worked for a family with two wonderful children and when I left I wanted to make a photo book for them with some of the hundreds of photos I’d taken during the year. Well, things got chaotic as I packed up my life to move 3, 429 miles across the country, and in the end I simply didn’t have time to chose the photos, upload them to a suitable website, order the book, and wait for it to be delivered.

The idea came back into my head recently as I was thinking about Christmas gifts and this time I was just about organised enough to pull it off. But, man are there a lot of website offering photo books out there! So for those of you who might be looking for a quick comparison of prices here’s the little table I made while I was searching for the best deal.

Company

Book Size

Cost

Shipping

Other Info

Shutterfly

12×12

$54.99
for 20 pages

$1.50/extra page

$9.99

25% off
extra books if you

order more than one.

8×8 or 8.5×11

$29.99
for 20 pages

$1/extra page

$6.99

Apple iPhoto

8.5×11 (single sided)

$29.99
for 20 pages

$0.99/extra page

Not quoted

Requires iPhoto software

8.5×11 (double sided)

$29.99
for 20 pages

$1.49/extra page

Not quoted

Blurb

7×7

$22.95 for 20-40 pages

Not quoted

8×10

$29.95 for 20-40 pages

Not quoted

11×13

$54.95 for 20-40 pages

Not quoted

Lulu

9×7

$24.95
for 20 pages

$0.50/extra page or $10 for 20
extra

Not quoted

8.5×11

$25.95
for 20 pages

$0.50/extra page or $10 for 20
extra

Not quoted

Picaboo

11×8.5

$29.99
for 20 pages

$1.99/extra page

$8.99

8×6

$19.99
for 20 pages

$0.99/extra page

$7.99

Qoop 8.5×11 $29.99 for 20 pages

$.99/extra page

Not quoted  

These are the sizes and prices for hard cover books, most of these sites also offer soft cover books at a cheaper price. The deadline for Christmas ordering is coming up so if you want to put Santa’s name on a photo book you better get a move on!

And if you’ve used any of these services, please share your impressions in the comments.