Comparison

Wedding Memory vs Google Photos for Weddings

Google Photos is a free, general-purpose photo and video storage service by Google. Wedding Memory is a purpose-built wedding content platform that costs $299 one-time. While Google Photos can store wedding photos, it lacks wedding-specific features like a digital guestbook, chapter organization, QR code guest access, and the ability to combine professional videographer content with guest uploads in one gallery. Wedding Memory requires only a nickname from guests; Google Photos requires every participant to have a Google account.
Feature Wedding Memory Google Photos
Price $299 one-time Free (15GB shared across all Google services)
Purpose Built for weddings General file storage
Guest access QR code → opens in browser instantly Must share album link; recipients need Google account to upload
Guest identity Nickname only (no account) Requires Google account
Pro + guest content together Yes — one unified gallery No — separate albums, hard to combine
Digital guestbook Yes — comments and 5 emoji reactions No
Chapter organization Yes (Ceremony, Reception, Speeches, etc.) No — chronological only
Mobile viewing experience TikTok-style vertical swipe feed Standard photo grid
QR code generation Built-in, downloadable No
Custom URL yournames.wedding-memory.com Generic Google link
Emoji reactions 5 types (heart, laugh, wow, love, celebrate) No
Storage 30GB dedicated to wedding 15GB shared with Gmail, Drive, everything
Content ownership You keep full rights — display-only license Broad license granted to Google
Privacy No data collection from guests Google collects user data
Ads None Potential ads in free tier

When Google Photos Makes Sense

  • You just want free cloud backup of your own photos
  • All your guests already have Google accounts and are comfortable sharing albums
  • You don't need a guestbook, chapter organization, or QR code access
  • Budget is the single most important factor

When Wedding Memory Is a Better Fit

  • You want professional video and guest photos in one organized gallery
  • You want a digital guestbook where guests leave comments and reactions
  • You want guests to contribute without needing a Google account (nickname only)
  • You want QR code access at the venue — guests scan and go
  • You want content organized by chapters (Ceremony, Speeches, First Dance)
  • You want a dedicated wedding URL, not a generic Google link

Three Scenarios Where Wedding Memory Wins

1

The Reception Table Test

You put a QR code on every table. A guest picks up their phone, scans it, and is uploading a photo 15 seconds later. With Google Photos, you'd need to: explain where to find the shared album, hope they have a Google account, walk them through how to upload. Most won't bother.

2

The "Where's the Video?" Problem

Six months after the wedding, you want to show your family the ceremony video. With Google Photos, it's somewhere in a shared album mixed with 500 other files. With Wedding Memory, it's at sarah-michael.wedding-memory.com under the "Ceremony" chapter.

3

The Grandparent Guestbook

Your grandmother writes a heartfelt comment on the video of your vows. Twenty years from now, you read it again. Google Photos has no comment feature on shared albums. Wedding Memory's digital guestbook preserves these moments forever.

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$299 one-time. Live in 2 minutes. No subscription.

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