7 photo gallery apps you should be using instead of Samsung Gallery

Last month we learned that Samsung Gallery will no longer support OneDrive sync and that support will end completely on September 30th. While the feature is still technically usable, Samsung synchronization function from newer versions of the application.

For those who rely heavily on the sync feature, now is a great time to see what else is out there. One natural route is to consider a photo backup app that has gallery features. For those who prefer a more traditional gallery app, there’s also a workaround that will still allow you to have cloud backup capabilities.

With all that said, here are seven gallery or photo apps I recommend over Samsung Gallery.

Samsung Gallery has always been designed with local media in mind, although previously you could easily store everything in the cloud using OneDrive. In contrast, Google Photos focuses primarily on cloud storage and makes all your photos viewable from virtually any device. This means that its UI isn’t as optimized for a pure gallery experience.

That’s not to say Google Photos isn’t a capable Gallery app. Both tools offer a decent amount of editing tools, including AI features like the ability to delete objects. Also, both apps can adjust brightness, saturation, etc. you’ll find it lets you do basic things like tuning. Where Samsung stands out is that it adds features like watermarking, drawing tools and stickers into the mix.

If you’re looking for a more basic feature set and prioritize cloud sync, it’s easy to recommend Google Photos as a replacement. To get the most out of Photos, you’ll likely want a Google One subscription, as the free tier only gets you a maximum of 15GB of storage on Google services.

Amazon Images was already a decent gallery and backup app, but last month it got a major update with a much-improved UI. The old photo grid has been replaced by a curated carousel of memories, and you can now search for images using natural language, such as asking to see photos from a special holiday or family event.

If you’re a Prime member, you’ll appreciate that Amazon Photos includes unlimited full-resolution photo storage, along with 5GB of video storage with the option to buy more. Those on the free tier get just 5GB shared between photos and videos.

You’ll be missing out on Galaxy AI editing tools and a few Samsung-specific features, but whether that’s a worthwhile trade-off depends on your needs. While Amazon Photos manages storage, you can always keep both apps and use Samsung Gallery for viewing and basic editing.

painting It’s one of my favorite third-party options that isn’t from a major platform like Google or Amazon. First, it has a powerful yet easy-to-navigate UI built around simple cards vaguely reminiscent of Windows Metro design.

It also packs some handy features you won’t find anywhere else on this list, including USB drive support and integration with Google Photos, OneDrive, Nextcloud, and a number of other cloud platforms. Whatever you already use for cloud storage, Pictures supports it.

There’s also a Hidden Space feature that isolates sensitive photos behind encryption, giving you extra peace of mind about what might be in the cloud.

The main downside is that Pictures is ad-supported, which might bother those used to the cleaner Samsung Gallery experience. If there is a deal, the ads can be removed for a one-time fee.

If you want a photo app with built-in cloud sync, the above three are the main Android options worth recommending. So we have to talk about OneDrive.

Microsoft OneDrive includes a basic photo backup system directly within the program. It’s limited on the advanced photo features side, but it means you can continue to use Samsung Gallery while managing OneDrive backups instead of everything else living under one roof.

For those who were never quite sold on the Samsung Gallery, this is a good opportunity to explore some of the other options. The rest of the apps here are feature-rich gallery apps with no built-in cloud storage, but any of them integrate well with OneDrive or a similar service.

Focus Go is a lightweight tool and great for minimalists after heavy editing or extra features. You get a clean, simple layout that organizes photos by folder, making it easy to manage files and delete shots you don’t want to keep. It still has a few power user touches, like a fingerprint lock and the ability to display images in HDR.

Aves Gallery It’s a solid choice if you want something that goes a little deeper than a typical gallery app. It includes a statistics page that breaks down your photography habits, including file type counts, shooting locations and time stamps. Aves also makes searching easier by combining user-added tags with existing metadata, and you can lock a specific folder as your home screen for quicker access to your frequently used directories.

You may remember Simple Gallery, which was once one of the most popular open source gallery software. After upgrading to the Premium model, Fossify Gallery appeared as a fork of the original, carrying many of its best features. The UI looks simple at first glance, but underneath it offers a wide range of customization options suitable for almost any level of photographer.

If you like Google’s ecosystem but the cloud-first approach of Google Photos isn’t for you, Google Gallery is another option. It’s been around in some form since 2019 and offers a minimal, no-frills experience similar to the Focus Go. Google Gallery might not be the most feature-rich app on this list, but it supports Android 8 and up, giving it benefits for users on older devices that newer apps don’t.