In this post, we explore the cost of owning Lightroom across three different use cases and compare those costs to four of Lightroom’s subscription-free alternatives, helping you decide whether Lightroom is worth it. Jump to Conclusion
ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW
LIGHTROOM
LIGHTROOM ONLY
US$11.99
PER MONTH. INCLUDES 1TB STORAGE
Can you buy Lightroom outright?
You cannot buy Lightroom outright because, unlike most other photo editing studios, Lightroom is built from the ground up to work with the Cloud.
This enables you to place your photos into Adobe’s cloud storage and access them from a multitude of devices, such as Windows PC, Mac, iOS, and Android, resulting in a singular, highly accessible photo library. However, all of this depends on you continuing to consume Adobe’s cloud storage; therefore, you will also continue to pay for it. Read Lightroom Review
Lightroom Cost
Lightroom and 1TB of Cloud storage will cost you US$11.99 each month when you agree to sign up for one year. Alternatively, you can subscribe monthly for $17.99 or pay your whole year’s subscription upfront for $119.98.
You can also subscribe to a package that combines both Lightroom and the excellent Photoshop. However, this analysis focuses on Lightroom only and will not be included in this analysis.
Is Lightroom worth it?
Lightroom represents excellent value, but only when it comes to specific use cases. At its best, Lightroom may be your cheapest option, and at worst, a complete rip-off. To that end, we’ll explore three different use cases to see whether Lightroom is worth it for you.
For the sake of contrast, we’ll be comparing Lightroom against four of its rivals. ACDSee Pro is notable for having a Lightroom-like feature set, while DxO Photolab and Capture One Pro suffer from inferior photo management but deliver superior photo editing. Finally, we have the jack of all trades – ON1 Photo Raw. Critically, unlike Lightroom, all four of these applications can be bought outright and subscription-free.
Case 1 – The Casual user
The casual user will likely have a photo collection that falls well short of 1TB in size. Nor do they need to be drip-fed the latest features every month or have any particular desire to exploit the connectivity benefits of the Cloud. In other words, they want to be able to edit and manage their photos on their home computer. Such a person is unlikely to upgrade often; thus, in this case, we will base our cost analysis on a 36-month lifecycle.
| Software | Total Cost (36 Months) |
|---|---|
| Lightroom | $444 |
| ON1 Photo Raw | $100 |
| ACDSee Pro | $100 |
| DxO PhotoLab 7 Elite | $239 |
| Capture One Pro | $317 |
Over 36 months, Lightroom will cost our casual user US$444. Alternatively, the casual user could spend just $100 and get ACDSee Pro or ON1 Photo Raw instead. DxO PhotoLab’s DeepPRIME Noise reduction might tempt him or her to spend a bit more, and even Capture One Pro feels like a deal. But what if our user wants to keep up with the latest features and ensure compatibility with the newest cameras and lenses? Try Lightroom – For Free
Case 2 – The Traditional Enthusiast
The traditional enthusiast loves exploring new software features and buys more cameras and lenses than they really ought to. Therefore, they need to keep up with the latest version of their preferred software and, thus, will upgrade their software each year. However, they have all the storage they need and prefer to keep their files stored at home on their own disk.
| Software | Total Cost (36 Months) |
|---|---|
| Lightroom | $444 |
| ON1 Photo Raw | $337 |
| ACDSee Pro | $307 |
| DxO PhotoLab Elite | $596 |
| Capture One Pro | $1,268 |
While subscription-based Lightroom has no upgrade fees, its perpetual-license-based alternatives do. However, upgrading each year is not as expensive as it could be, as most vendors offer existing customers discounts on their latest release, and these discounts are reflected here.
Nonetheless, the value dynamic has shifted considerably, and at $444, Lightroom has become our third-cheapest option. While ON1 Photo Raw and ACDSee Professional are cheaper still, Lightroom’s feature set may fit your needs better, making it a better value overall. Meanwhile, Capture One Pro fans should consider moving away from their perpetual license and adopt a subscription instead. Try Lightroom – For Free
Case 3 – The High Volume Enthusiast
The high-volume enthusiast needs all the features and compatibility with the latest cameras and lenses. But critically, they need storage for their extensive collection of photos. However, storage always costs, regardless of whether you’re buying cloud storage or an external disk drive.
Since Lightroom already provides its users with one terabyte of storage, we will add $100, the going rate for a 1TB external SSD hard disk, to the three-year cost of Lightroom’s perpetually licensed rivals.
| Software | Total Cost |
|---|---|
| Lightroom | $444 |
| ON1 Photo Raw | $437 |
| ACDSee Pro | $407 |
| DxO PhotoLab Elite | $696 |
| Capture One Pro | $1,368 |
In this use case, at $444 over three years, Lightroom is a fantastic value. At $407, ACDSee Pro remains the cheaper option, but Lightroom’s Cloud-powered feature set offers far greater value overall. ON1 Photo Raw remains a good option if you value photo editing over photo management, while DxO PureRaw and Capture One Pro are becoming challenging to justify despite being excellent products otherwise. Try Lightroom – For Free
Conclusion
Lightroom is a poor-value option for those of you with smaller photo collections, as you’ll be unable to exploit Lightroom’s 1TB of inclusive storage. In other words, you’ll be unable to exploit the service you’re paying for, and you will be better off buying one of Lightroom’s subscription-free rivals.
It’s much the same with features. You might prefer Lightroom’s steady trickle of updates, ensuring access to the latest features and compatibility with the newest cameras and lenses. But you can save a lot of money by waiting a few years and making fewer but higher-impact upgrades to your favourite software.
Yet, if you do need the latest features, Lightroom begins to make sense, and if you need an extra 1TB of storage, it becomes the obvious choice. Not only can Lightroom provide the right user with all the features and storage they need, but its native Cloud integration offers a level of execution and function that its subscription-free rivals, even with added Cloud storage, cannot match. Try Lightroom – For Free
LIGHTROOM
LIGHTROOM ONLY
US$11.99
PER MONTH. INCLUDES 1TB STORAGE
About the Author
Read more about Lightroom,
Is Lightroom Worth it – Lightroom Cost compared
Lightroom Review – Not For Everyone
Luminar Neo vs Lightroom
Best Alternatives to Lightroom 2025
Best Photo Editing Software 2025
Lightroom Denoise Review – It’s good, but is it enough?
