Pixel Gallery Android

Comparison

Pixel Gallery vs F-Stop Gallery

Verdict: Pick F-Stop if you tag and rate photos by hand and want XMP that Lightroom can read. Pick Pixel Gallery if you want faces, search by content and cleanup done for you, with no ads.

F-Stop Gallery is a long-running manual organizer: tags, star ratings, smart albums and XMP metadata. Pixel Gallery organizes automatically with on-device AI.

Last updated . F-Stop Gallery website

Pixel Gallery vs F-Stop Gallery at a glance

Pixel Gallery vs F-Stop Gallery feature comparison, data as of November 8, 2026.
Capability Pixel Gallery F-Stop Gallery
Photos stay on the phone Yes Pixel Gallery never uploads your photos or videos. Yes Listing and site describe a local organizer only; no cloud library or upload feature mentioned
Works without an account Yes Yes No account mentioned; the Pro key is a separate app checked on the device
On-device smart search Yes SigLIP2 model, ~375 MB optional download. No Searches by tags, ratings and some EXIF data; free version shows only 10 results
Face grouping Yes Runs on the phone. No Not mentioned in the Play listings or on fstopapp.com
Duplicate and similar cleanup Yes No No duplicate or similar-photo finder documented
Encrypted metadata database Yes Not documented
No ads Yes No Free app carries "Contains ads"; the Pro key unlocks all features
No subscription Yes Free, plus an optional one-time Premium purchase. Yes Free with ads and in-app purchases; full features via a one-time paid Pro key app
Cloud backup No Pixel Gallery has no cloud. Backup is up to you. No Not offered per listings and website
Open source No No Proprietary; no public source code found
Tags and ratings written to files (XMP) No Yes With the paid Pro key.
Rule-based smart albums No Yes With the paid Pro key.
Private photos behind a password Partly Blurs items behind a biometric lock; files are not encrypted. Yes
Photo and video editor Yes No Edits metadata, not images.
Automatic organization (faces, content search) Yes No
Sources (5)
  1. F-Stop Gallery on Google Play, accessed
  2. F-Stop Pro key on Google Play, accessed
  3. F-Stop data safety on Google Play, accessed
  4. F-Stop official site, accessed
  5. F-Stop privacy policy, accessed

It depends on how you like to organize. F-Stop is built for manual work: tags, star ratings, rule-based smart albums and XMP that desktop tools can read. Pixel Gallery organizes automatically: faces, search by what a photo shows and cleanup, computed on the phone.

  • Manual organization. Tags, ratings, nested folders and albums, smart albums.
  • Interoperability. Tags and ratings as XMP, readable by Lightroom.
  • Batch metadata. Renaming and editing titles and captions in bulk.
  • Automatic organization. People, semantic search, text and QR recognition.
  • No ads. F-Stop’s free version shows ads until you buy the Pro key.
  • Editing and creating. Photo and video editors, collages and stories.
  • Cleanup. Duplicates, similar shots and low-quality photos with swipe review.

Who should pick which?

Pick F-Stop if you curate by hand and want your tags to travel to desktop software. Pick Pixel Gallery if you want the library organized for you.

Install Pixel Gallery and allow photo access. Your files and folders appear as they are; XMP tags stay in your files for other tools.

What makes Pixel Gallery different

  • On-device AI

    Faces, semantic search, text recognition and captions run on the phone. Gemini Nano captions on supported devices.

  • Never uploads your photos

    Pixel Gallery never uploads your photos or videos. No account, no cloud library.

  • Encrypted metadata database

    The index of faces, places, text and embeddings is encrypted on the device.

  • No ads, no subscription

    Free to use with no ads. Premium is a one-time purchase.

Beyond the table

20 more things Pixel Gallery does

The table sticks to where Pixel Gallery and F-Stop Gallery differ most. This is the rest of the app, all on the phone. Features marked Premium are part of the one-time purchase.

On-device AI

Search & discover

Organize

Create & edit

Insights

Sharing

Experiences

Gallery basics

All features What's in Premium

Pixel Gallery vs F-Stop Gallery: questions

Is F-Stop Gallery still maintained?

Yes. The free app was updated in October 2026 and the Pro key in August 2026.

Is the F-Stop Pro key worth it?

If you rely on tags, ratings, smart albums and XMP, yes: those features need it, and it also removes ads. If you want automatic organization instead, Pixel Gallery does that for free.

Is there an F-Stop alternative with face recognition?

Yes. Pixel Gallery groups faces and searches by content on the phone, with no ads.

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Free on Google Play

Requires Android 13 or newer. No account. Optional one-time Premium upgrade.

Get it on Google Play Details & requirements