How to Migrate from Pixieset to Sprout Studio (2026 Guide)

Pixieset is where many photographers start: beautiful galleries with just enough CRM (Studio Manager) to get going. But as your business grows, you may need more automation, deeper lead management, and a more powerful CRM.

Sprout Studio gives you all the CRM capabilities you are outgrowing Pixieset for, plus galleries that compete with Pixieset's quality. This guide covers the migration, with special attention to the gallery transition since that is your biggest concern.

Plan for a 2-3 week transition with a 30-day overlap period.

Why Photographers Switch from Pixieset to Sprout Studio

The most common reasons:

1. CRM Depth: As your business grows, you need real lead management, pipeline tracking, and workflow automations. Pixieset's Studio Manager covers the basics, but Sprout's CRM is significantly more capable.

2. Automation: Sprout's automations can trigger based on client actions, gallery events, and workflow milestones. Pixieset's automation capabilities are more limited.

3. Unified Analytics: Sprout shows you booking pipeline, revenue, and gallery engagement in one dashboard. With Pixieset, your gallery analytics and CRM data live in separate views.

4. Album Proofing: Both platforms offer album proofing, but Sprout's is more tightly integrated with the CRM workflow, so you can trigger automations based on proofing completion.

Note: If Pixieset's gallery design is the single most important thing to you, be aware that while Sprout's galleries are excellent, Pixieset has a slight edge in pure visual design polish.

What Transfers from Pixieset

Pixieset-to-Sprout is a unique migration because both platforms have galleries:

Easy to transfer:

• Contact list (CSV export)
• Your original image files (you have these on your hard drives already)
• Invoice records (PDF downloads)

Needs to be rebuilt:

• Gallery collections (re-upload images to Sprout and apply branding)
• Email templates
• Contract templates
• Pricing packages
• Store products and pricing

Does not transfer:

• Gallery URLs (clients will need new links for any active galleries)
• Pixieset store analytics
• Pixieset-specific integrations
• Gallery download analytics and client activity history

Important: If you have active client galleries with pending orders, complete those in Pixieset before migrating. Do not move active galleries mid-delivery.

Step-by-Step Migration Process

Week 1: CRM Setup

1. Export your contact list from Pixieset
2. Copy email template text
3. Copy contract legal text
4. Sign up for Sprout Studio (use code ANTIGRAVITY for 20% off your first 3 months)
5. Import contacts into Sprout
6. Recreate email templates
7. Rebuild contracts
8. Configure pricing packages

Week 2: Gallery Migration 9. Set up your Sprout gallery branding (colors, fonts, layout) 10. For future shoots, configure your Sprout gallery preferences 11. Set up your print store products and pricing in Sprout 12. Test gallery delivery with a sample shoot 13. Configure workflow automations

Week 3: Testing & Go Live 14. Run a full test: lead to booking to gallery delivery to print order 15. Verify payment processing 16. Start using Sprout for all new bookings AND new galleries 17. Keep Pixieset active for any galleries with pending orders 18. Cancel Pixieset when all pending orders are fulfilled

Gallery Migration Strategy

This is the part Pixieset users worry about most. Here is the practical approach:

Do NOT try to move existing galleries. If a client already has a Pixieset gallery link, leave it in Pixieset. Those links will break if you cancel your account, so either:

• Download the galleries and keep the images (you should have originals anyway)
• Or keep a minimal Pixieset plan for legacy galleries while using Sprout for everything new

For new shoots: Start uploading to Sprout immediately. Sprout's gallery system is different from Pixieset's in layout and design, but it is equally professional. Spend 30 minutes customizing your Sprout gallery branding to match your style.

For print store: Recreate your product list in Sprout's store. If you have custom products or lab partnerships set up in Pixieset, check that Sprout supports the same labs.

Timeline Expectations

The gallery migration component makes this slightly longer than a CRM-only switch:

• Contact import: 20 minutes
• Email and contract recreation: 2-3 hours
• CRM setup (packages, automations): 2-3 hours
• Gallery branding and store setup: 2-3 hours
• Testing: 2-3 hours

Total active work: 9-12 hours, spread over 2-3 weeks.

The biggest time investment is setting up your gallery branding and print store in Sprout to match the quality your clients expect.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Sprout's galleries as beautiful as Pixieset's?

Sprout's galleries are modern, clean, and professional. Pixieset is known for having the most visually polished galleries in the industry, so there is a slight difference in design flair. However, most clients will not notice the difference, and Sprout's galleries offer more CRM integration (like triggering automations based on gallery activity).

What happens to my existing Pixieset gallery links?

If you cancel Pixieset, those links will stop working. Either keep a minimal Pixieset plan for legacy galleries, or notify clients and provide new Sprout gallery links for any that are still being accessed.

Can I keep Pixieset for galleries and use Sprout for CRM only?

You can, but this defeats the purpose of switching to an all-in-one platform. You would be paying for two subscriptions and managing two systems. We recommend fully committing to Sprout's galleries for new shoots.

What about my Pixieset print store?

You will need to recreate your product catalog in Sprout's store. Check that Sprout supports the same print labs you use. The product data (dimensions, prices, markups) will need to be re-entered.