The global photo printing market in 2022 was valued at US$20.41 billion. The market value is projected to reach US$29.19 billion by 2028. Photo (Photographic) printing is basically the reproduction of a finished photo on either paper or other media for viewing. Photo printing uses different methods to transfer photos to paper which is typically either inkjet or thermoplastic.

The market value is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.14% during the forecast period of 2023-2028, with digital photo printing segment being the dominant type owing to rising adoption of photo printing products and services and shift towards variable data print and customization, and rising demand for premium packaging materials. The constant increase in the number of photos taken worldwide, particularly with Smartphones is one of the major drivers in the photo printing industry. Also, buyers increasingly prefer personalized gifting products. This has open gates for various photo products such as photo mugs, photo puzzles, photo clocks etc. Besides, the relentless desire to have a tangible object of would further augment the photo printing market as social networks are immaterial, and their emotional impact can be lower than that of a printed photo.

Market Segmentation Analysis:

By Type: The report provides the bifurcation of the market into two segments based on the type: digital photo printing and film photo printing. In 2022, in terms of value, digital photo printing segment held the major share in the market. Digital printing methods are designed to provide cost-effective, accurate, and short-run color printing within short time frame. The digital printing industry is expected to witness growth during the forecast period, owing to rapid adoption of laser and inkjet printing solution across packaging and paper sector due to flexible and cost-efficient feature.

By Product: The report provides the bifurcation of the market into into nine segments based on the product: photo books, photo prints, photo albums, mugs, calendars, photo gifts, wall art, gift cards and others. In 2022, photo books held the major share in the market, followed by photo prints. The demand for photo books is driven by various factors such as increase in the use of mobile devices for creating and ordering photo books. Additionally, there has been a rise in the popularity of personalized and custom photo books, as well as an increase in the use of advanced printing techniques such as lay-flat binding and foil stamping.

Market Dynamics:

Growth Drivers: One of the most important factors impacting the global photo printing market is the shift towards the mobile-to-print channel fuelled by a high equipment rate, more photos taken with smartphones and the better quality of these photos owing to technological innovations. Furthermore, growing preference for personalized gifting products and increasing need for 3D images are influencing sellers for installing advanced technologies and inventive products. In addition to this, the market has been growing over the past few years, due to factors such as increasing number of photos taken, growing demand for 3D images and growing consumer income and many other factors.

Challenges: However, the market has been confronted with some challenges specifically, high cost of dye-sub printing and declining roll film market prices, etc.

Trends: The market is projected to grow at a fast pace during the forecast period, due to various latest trends such as proliferation of social media, growing focus on photo printing kiosk, increasing emphasis of e-commerce companies on online photo printing services etc. The trend of personalized gifting is boosted through the social media. Various photo gifts such as photo mugs, photo pillows, photo puzzles, etc. are usually displayed in an aesthetic way on social media. Besides, various small scale businesses have started their own ventures of photo gifts through their social media platforms. Furthermore, a number of e-commerce companies are focused on offering online photo printing services, in order to expand their consumer base. Increasing emphasis of e-commerce companies on online photo printing services can provide major business opportunities.

Impact Analysis of COVID-19 and Way Forward:

The sudden global lockdown due to COVID 19 in the first quarter of 2020 caused irreparable losses for many printing companies. The printing sector did not grew smoothly throughout the quarantine, as this growth was unevenly distributed. Some companies printed more than usual, while others ceased to order print at all. In light of the quarantine, many companies switched to home offices, which further accelerated the trend toward going paperless from a business perspective (there were significantly fewer orders for envelopes, business cards, letterheads, binders, etc.). Since people had to stay home, they looked for distractions and spent money online.

Competitive Landscape:

Photo printing market is fragmented market. Mobile-to-print companies have been able to outpace the market growth rate over the past few years (high single-digit or double-digit growth), while website players have suffered (low single-digit growth).

The key players in the global photo printing market are:

Shutterfly, LLC
Cimpress plc
Walmart Inc. (Walmart Photo)
Photobox
Printique (Adorama)
Digitalab
Circle Graphics, Inc.
Cewe, Claranova S.E.
Moonpig Group plc
Picanova Group
Fujifilm Corporation

The web-to-print market is quite mature and concentrated already, with just a few players dominating the industry (Cimpress with Vistaprint, Shutterfly, CEWE and Photobox), While the mobile-to-print market is less mature and more fragmented with recent new entrants such as PlanetArt. This segment is expected to continue to fuel the sector growth in the years to come, surfing on increasing smartphone adoption and easy-to-use applications ?