Pre-publish checklist (delete before publishing): verify current prices and free-tier limits. Entry pricing is exactly where vendors compete hardest, so it moves.
Most CRM advice is written for studios doing 60 weddings a year with a team. If you’re solo and booking 15–40, that advice overshoots — you end up paying for capacity you’ll never use.
Here are five tools that stay under $20/month, plus the honest case for using nothing at all.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Best for | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pixieset | Free tier; paid from ~$10/mo | Photographers already delivering galleries here | Light CRM features on lower tiers |
| Studio Ninja | ~$20/mo | Fast, simple core workflow | Limited advanced automation |
| Tave | ~$25/mo (often discounted) | Automation without the big-tool price | Dated interface in parts |
| Sprout Studio | from ~$19/mo | One bill for CRM + galleries | Busier to learn |
| Notion + Stripe | $0–$10/mo | Full control, technical users | You build and maintain it |
1. Pixieset — the “I already use it” answer
If you deliver galleries through Pixieset, its booking and invoicing layer costs you almost nothing extra. The free tier covers basic needs; paid tiers add the client and store features.
Fits: photographers already in the Pixieset ecosystem. Doesn’t fit: anyone who needs deep automation.
2. Studio Ninja — the “I just want it to work” answer
Studio Ninja is deliberately unfussy. Enquiry to quote to booking to invoice, done. It’s about $20/mo and you’ll learn it in an afternoon.
Fits: solos who want the core loop handled and nothing more. Doesn’t fit: teams, or complex conditional workflows.
3. Tave — automation at a lower price
Tave does proposals, contracts, invoices, and workflows, and frequently discounts — landing under honeymoon-tier pricing for automation-heavy users.
Fits: photographers outgrowing spreadsheets who want automation. Doesn’t fit: anyone who dislikes a less-modern UI.
4. Sprout Studio — bundles galleries with CRM
If you’re currently paying for a CRM and a gallery host, Sprout collapses that into one subscription, which is where the “cheap” actually comes from.
Fits: studios that want one bill and one system. Doesn’t fit: people who want the simplest possible tool.
5. Notion + Stripe — the $0 option that actually works
A Notion database for leads and projects, Stripe for invoices. Total cost: $0, or ~$10/mo for Notion Plus. It’s real, and plenty of solos run on it.
Fits: technical photographers who want to own their data. Doesn’t fit: anyone who will not maintain it. DIY means DIY support.
The case for nothing at all
If you book under 15 weddings a year, a well-built Google Sheet plus Stripe Invoicing is genuinely enough:
- Leads in a sheet with a status column.
- Contracts as a reusable template in your docs tool.
- Invoices from Stripe, with payment links you paste in.
The only thing you give up is a client portal — and a lot of clients don’t want one anyway. They want a clean email and a payment link.
How to decide
- Already use Pixieset for galleries? Start there, it’s nearly free.
- Want the simplest thing? Studio Ninja.
- Want automation cheap? Tave.
- Paying for galleries separately? Sprout.
- Technical and cheap? Notion + Stripe.
- Under 15 bookings? A spreadsheet, honestly.
Stop paying for a CRM that’s sized for a studio you don’t have yet.
Get one useful comparison a week
A short email covering the software small businesses actually run on — pricing changes, honest alternatives, and migration tips. No spam.
Some links on this page may be affiliate links. We only link to tools we would recommend regardless, and affiliates never change what we write.