PicaJet
Search Build shortlist

Piwigo, Frontify, Optimizely, OpenAsset

Side by side on what we have verified on each vendor’s own pages. Where a fact was not checked, the table says so rather than leaving a blank that reads as “no”.

What decides it · Runs on your own servers

If the files genuinely cannot leave your infrastructure, this is not a close race — the platforms marked No below should not be on the call at all.

Piwigo

Yes

Frontify

No

Optimizely

No

OpenAsset

No

Everything else

Piwigo
Frontify
Optimizely
OpenAsset
Verdict
A self-hosted, permission-based photo/video catalog with album hierarchies, tagging and a large plugin ecosystem, for archives and small orgs willing to maintain their own server as the library grows.
A brand-management platform built around a single, always-current source of truth for guidelines, logos and templates, aimed at brand teams working with internal staff and external agencies.
A DAM module bundled inside the Optimizely CMS/Content Marketing Platform/DXP, for teams already on Optimizely who don't need best-of-breed asset management, bulk operations, or metadata governance.
A project-based DAM for AEC design and architecture firms that syncs with Deltek Vision/Vantagepoint and places tagged project photos directly into InDesign proposals and RFPs.
Price published
Yes
No
No
No
Billed on
Flat price per account by storage; users are unlimited
Monthly active users
Quoted per customer
Quoted per customer
Deployment
On-premise, Cloud
Cloud
Cloud
Cloud
Free plan
Yes
No
No
No
Free trial
Yes
No
No
No
Transparency index
100%
30%
0%
0%
Most common complaint
A ten per cent price rise is announced for 1 September 2026
The MAU model favours occasional users, but there is no figure to verify that with
Not one tier and not one figure on the pricing page
A page titled pricing that contains a benefit calculator instead of prices

“Not checked” means exactly that: we have not verified it, not that the platform lacks it. Every other value was read off the vendor’s own pages on the date shown on each platform page.

What to ask on the demo

One question per platform, drawn from what actually goes wrong with it — not a generic checklist. Vendors run the demo; this hands the agenda back to you.

Piwigo A ten per cent price rise is announced for 1 September 2026 — ask them to answer this in writing before the trial.
Frontify The MAU model favours occasional users, but there is no figure to verify that with — ask them to answer this in writing before the trial.
Optimizely Not one tier and not one figure on the pricing page — ask them to answer this in writing before the trial.
OpenAsset A page titled pricing that contains a benefit calculator instead of prices — ask them to answer this in writing before the trial.

No email required — the page prints as it stands.