Google Sites vs SmugMug: Comprehensive comparison guide for 2024

Final verdict

Google Sites and SmugMug cater to distinct audiences with their unique sets of features and functionalities.

• 
  Google Sites (Overall Grade: 5.6/10)
  
  is best suited for users looking for a straightforward, no-cost solution to create and collaborate on simple websites. It shines with its seamless Google Workspace integration, making it an ideal choice for educational projects, team collaborations, and personal portfolios. Despite its limitations in design customization and lack of native ecommerce features, Google Sites offers a reliable, user-friendly platform for those needing basic website functionality without the frills.
• 
  SmugMug (Overall Grade: 6.3/10)
  
  , on the other hand, is tailored for photographers and creatives who require a robust platform to showcase and sell their work. With its focus on high-quality image display, extensive customization options, and strong ecommerce capabilities, SmugMug stands out as the go-to choice for professionals looking to build a visually compelling online presence. While it may come at a higher cost, the platform’s specialized features justify the investment for those prioritizing photography and creative content.

	Overall grade: 5.6	Overall grade: 6.3
Design functionalities & templates	4.9	7.1
Ease of use	8.3	7.8
Ecommerce	1.8	7.3
Website Editors	7.0	7.3
Product testing options	6.9	7.4
Price	8.1	7.8
Hosting quality	8.2	5.0
Website speed optimization	3.3	5.5
Plugins and integrations	6.4	6.2
Marketing features	2.6	3.8
Customer support	7.2	7.9
Security	9.3	6.0
User Management	7.8	7.2
Overall	5.6	6.3

Best for ecommerce

1.8

7.3

Verdict

: For users looking to sell online, especially photographers and creatives, SmugMug is the superior choice with its dedicated ecommerce features. Google Sites, while useful for basic website needs, falls short for ecommerce.

• 
  Google Sites
  
  : Offers a basic platform that can be adapted for ecommerce with third-party tools, but lacks the integrated features necessary for a seamless online selling experience.
• 
  SmugMug
  
  : Specifically designed for selling photography and creative work online, SmugMug provides comprehensive ecommerce capabilities, including product pricing, tax handling, and support for multiple currencies, making it the go-to choice for creatives looking to monetize their work.

Best for informational & business websites

7.2

7.5

• 
  Google Sites
  
  : Offers a straightforward, no-frills approach to website building, making it ideal for creating basic informational sites. Its integration with Google’s ecosystem and collaborative features are significant advantages for team projects and small businesses looking for simplicity and functionality.
• 
  SmugMug
  
  : Tailored for photographers and creatives, SmugMug shines with its superior design functionalities and templates optimized for visual content. It’s the better choice for businesses that need to showcase high-quality images and seek a platform with robust photo protection and e-commerce capabilities for selling work online.

Detailed comparison

4.9

7.1

🏆

Winner: SmugMug.

If you’re a photographer or a creative looking for a platform that offers a range of customizable, easy-to-use templates optimized for displaying high-quality images, SmugMug is the preferred choice.

Google Sites offers a limited number of templates suitable for various purposes, from personal blogs to business websites. These templates are designed for user engagement, simplicity, and functionality, allowing for customization to meet specific needs. However, compared to other website builders, Google Sites might offer less variety in templates and design customization options.

Google Sites Themes

On the other hand, SmugMug offers a variety of templates and designs, catering to the diverse needs of photographers and visual artists. Users can choose from an extensive collection of customizable templates, ensuring their website or portfolio reflects their unique style and brand. The platform continuously updates its design offerings, incorporating the latest trends and user feedback, to provide a rich selection of modern, sleek, and professional layouts.

SmugMug Themes

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8.3

7.8

🏆 Winner: Google Sites

. Scoring 8.3, Google Sites offers a user-friendly interface that allows individuals with no coding experience to create and publish websites easily. SmugMug, with a score of 7.8, also offers a user-friendly interface but is specifically designed for photographers and creatives, which may limit its versatility for other types of websites.

Learning Resources

🏆 Winner: Google Sites

. Google Sites offers a wide array of learning resources, from practical guides for educators to comprehensive digital skill development programs for the wider public. SmugMug also provides learning materials and features, including beginner’s guides and a wide array of tutorials on YouTube created by content creators.

1.8

7.3

When it comes to ecommerce, SmugMug and Google Sites cater to different needs. SmugMug is designed for photographers and creatives who want to sell their work online, offering robust ecommerce capabilities. Google Sites, on the other hand, is a simple website builder that doesn’t have built-in ecommerce features but allows for the integration of third-party tools and widgets for ecommerce functionality.

Ecommerce themes and templates	0.0	8.0
Product page customization	0.0	6.5
Payment processing and commissions	1.0	6.0
POS capabilities	0.0	0.0
Payment gateways	2.0	5.0
Product numbers	0.0	9.0
Additional ecommerce features	0.5	6.5

Google Sites ecommerce features:

Google Sites itself does not have built-in ecommerce features. However, you can integrate ecommerce functionalities into a Google Sites website by embedding third-party tools or widgets, linking to an external ecommerce platform, or using buttons that link to payment processors. For instance, you could use Google Forms for order forms and integrate PayPal or another payment service for transactions. To have a full-fledged ecommerce platform with Google Sites, you’d need to rely on these external integrations or services.

SmugMug ecommerce features:

• Digital Downloads
• Product Pricing
• Tax handling
• Discounts and Coupons
• Multiple Currencies support

Ecommerce themes & templates

Google Sites does not have any ecommerce templates. On the other hand, almost all of the templates of SmugMug are designed with ecommerce in mind, providing built-in shopping cart functionality.

Product page customization

Google Sites lacks any product page customization features, as the products can be listed with embedding third-party platforms, all the customization can be done within the mentioned platforms. SmugMug, on the other hand, prioritizes photography, offering a platform tailored for photographers to showcase and sell their work. Despite having more limited product page customization compared to dedicated e-commerce platforms, it still provides enough functionality to detail digital and printed photography products effectively, enabling users to sell online with ease.

Payment processing

You can integrate payment gateways into Google Sites using external tools or links, not through native features. This can be done by embedding HTML code for payment buttons from services like PayPal, Square, or Stripe, or by linking to an external checkout page. Third-party eCommerce widgets also offer a way to add payment functionalities. However, Google Sites doesn’t offer the comprehensive eCommerce capabilities that dedicated platforms provide.

SmugMug has a unique approach to payment processing. Payment processing for your sales is managed through your account settings, where you must complete a Tax & Payment form to set up your payment preferences. You can choose your profit payment schedule, with automatic monthly payments for balances over $500, or request payments for lower amounts. Your earnings are calculated as 85% of the markup on print prices or download sales, with SmugMug retaining 15% to cover various costs. Payments are made via ACH direct deposit for U.S. users or PayPal for international users, processed on the first business day after the 7th of each month for profits accumulated through the end of the previous month.

7.0

7.3

🏆

Winner: SmugMug

. SmugMug, with a score of 7.3, offers a user-friendly interface that allows for the creation of visually appealing, professional-grade photography websites without the need for coding knowledge. Users can customize their site by choosing from a variety of templates, adjusting layouts, and incorporating their own branding elements like logos and colors. The editor also supports easy uploading, organizing, and showcasing of high-quality images, with robust privacy and security settings to protect content. Additionally, SmugMug provides tools for selling prints and digital downloads directly from the website, making it a comprehensive platform for photographers looking to display and monetize their work online.

Google Sites’ editor, scoring 7.0, offers a user-friendly website builder editor that allows users to create and design websites without needing coding knowledge. With its drag-and-drop interface, users can easily add, customize, and arrange elements such as text, images, and videos on their web pages. It also provides a variety of templates and design options to help users get started quickly and ensure their site looks professional. Additionally, Google Sites integrates seamlessly with other Google services, enabling the incorporation of Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Maps directly into the website.

Mobile editor/app

0

7.5

🏆

Winner: SmugMug

. Google Sites does not offer a mobile editor app, which means users cannot edit their websites on mobile devices. On the other hand, SmugMug does offer a mobile editing app, but its functionality is limited to adding new photos and editing descriptions. Despite its limitations, SmugMug’s mobile app still provides more functionality than Google Sites, which does not offer a mobile editing app at all. Therefore, SmugMug is the clear winner in this category.

6.9

7.4

Overall Result

:

SmugMug Wins

. SmugMug scores 7.4, slightly higher than Google Sites’ 6.9. Both Google Sites and SmugMug offer a 14-day free trial, but only SmugMug allows testing of premium features during the trial. Google Sites does offer a free version, but it does not provide a money-back guarantee.

Free Plan	Yes	No
Trial Duration	14 days	14 days
Testing Premium Features	Some features during free trial	All features during free trial
Money Back Guarantee	No	No

8.1

7.8

Google Sites offers a more affordable pricing structure, while SmugMug provides more specialized features for photographers and creatives.

	Offerings	Offerings
$0-$10	Business Starter ($7.20/month): This plan includes basic features suitable for individuals or small businesses, offering professional email through Gmail, 30GB of storage per user, and video meetings for up to 100 participants. It allows to manage 1 website and there is no limitation on number of pages. Value for price: 6.0	No offering at this amount.
$10-$20	Business Standard ($14.40/month): Suitable for growing businesses, this plan provides 2 TB of storage per user, video meeting capacity for up to 150 participants with recording features, and access to smart booking pages and shared drives. It allows to manage 1 website and there is no limitation on number of pages. Value for price: 7.5	Power ($15.00/month): Best for the photographer who wants their entire photo catalog safe and shareable on their own terms. Unlimited storage, Seamless Lightroom integration Value for price: 6.5
$20-$40	Business Plus ($21.60/month): Designed for larger businesses needing more robust capabilities, offering 5 TB of storage per user, advanced security options, and video meetings for up to 500 participants. It allows to manage 1 website and there is no limitation on number of pages. Value for price: 8.5	Portfolio ($31.00/month): Best for the photographer who wants to start selling photos and keep their archive organized perfectly. All Power plan’s features, plus 21 premade templates, prints and digital downloads sales, Custom Watermarks, Payment integration for credit cards and PayPal, Integrated cart and checkout experience, Sales statistics. Value for price: 8.0
$40-$50	No offering at this amount.	Pro ($45.00/month): Adds to Portfolio with custom price lists and coupons, Platform access for assistant or second shooter, Full control over client downloads, Branded packaging and thank you notes for print sales, coupon creator. Value for price: 8.5
$500+	No offering at this amount.	Venture (Starts with $500/month): All Pro features, plus dedicated support contacts and account representative for all Smugmug needs, Design, workflow, and organization consultation and support. Value for price: 9.0

8.2

5.0

🏆

Winner: Google Sites

Google Sites offers cloud-based managed hosting with a 99.9% uptime guarantee and a network of 21 global data centers. It’s a reliable choice for team projects, personal portfolios, and small business websites. SmugMug, while it does offer hosting, lacks transparency about its hosting features, uptime, and data centers, making it difficult to assess its reliability.

Do they offer hosting?	Yes, included in all plans	Yes, included in all plans
Data Centers:	Google operates a total of 21 data centers across the globe: 2 in Asia, 5 in Europe, 13 in US and 1 in South America	SmugMug does not provide any information about their data centers
Type of hosting:	Cloud based managed hosting	SmugMug does not provide any information about their hosting types
Uptime:	99.9%	SmugMug does not provide any information on their uptime statistics
Uptime Guarantee:	Yes, 99.9%	Yes, 99.9%

3.3

5.5

🏆 Winner: Google Sites

Both Google Sites and SmugMug prioritize website performance and page speed, but Google Sites takes the lead with a more comprehensive approach to speed optimization.

Focus	Automated Optimization, CDN, Mobile Optimization, Browser Caching, Code Minification, Use of AMP	Mobile Responsive design
Performance Tools	Google Lighthouse, PageSpeed Insights	Google PageSpeed Insights Integration
Key Strategies	Automated Optimization, CDN, Mobile Optimization, Browser Caching, Code Minification, Use of AMP	Mobile Responsive design
Load Times	Google does not disclose statistics about website Page Speed scores, or load times	Both load times and Page speed scores varies widely, depending on the optimization, website complexity
Page Speed Scores Range	Google does not disclose statistics about website Page Speed scores, or load times	Both load times and Page speed scores varies widely, depending on the optimization, website complexity
Core Web Vitals Improvement	Emphasis on LCP, FID, CLS improvements	Smugmug does not share any information on CWV improvements

Google Sites uses a comprehensive approach to speed optimization, including automated optimization, CDN, mobile optimization, browser caching, code minification, and the use of AMP. However, Google does not disclose statistics about website Page Speed scores or load times. Google Sites also emphasizes on LCP, FID, CLS improvements for Core Web Vital improvements.

On the other hand, SmugMug uses mobile responsive design for speed optimization. However, both load times and Page speed scores vary widely, depending on the optimization and website complexity. SmugMug does not share any information on CWV improvements.

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6.4

6.2

🏆 Winner: Google Sites.

Google Sites scores 6.4, slightly ahead of SmugMug’s 6.2. Google Sites offers a wide array of plugins and extensions to enhance website functionality, catering to various needs such as social media integration, e-commerce, chats, forms, video, audio, and more. On the other hand, SmugMug supports integrations with several photo-hosting services, enhancing its functionality for photographers. These integrations include Dropbox, Adobe Lightroom, Google Photos, Flickr, and Amazon Drive. This capability allows for efficient and easy importation of photos directly from these services to SmugMug, bypassing the need to first sort through or store photos on a computer. However, Google Sites’ broader range of plugins and extensions gives it the edge in this comparison.

Google Sites Applications

2.6

3.8

🏆

Overall Winner: SmugMug

. SmugMug edges out Google Sites with a slightly higher score, offering basic SEO tools, social media integration, and analytics and reporting. Google Sites, while offering similar features, falls short in its lack of email marketing and blogging capabilities.

SEO Tools	Basic SEO settings	Basic SEO settings
Email Marketing	No	No
Blogging	No	No
Social Media Integration	Yes, you can easily embed social media links and widgets	Yes, allows sharing work directly on social platforms
Analytics and Reporting	Yes, Google Analytics integration	Yes, possibility to integrate Google Analytics
Ads and Promotions	No	No

7.2

7.9

🏆 Winner: SmugMug

. With a customer support score of 7.9, SmugMug edges out Google Sites in this category. SmugMug provides customer support mainly through email and chat, available 364 days a year, with rapid response times. Users can contact support by submitting a form via the “Contact Us” button on any page of their help center. Additionally, chat support offers an immediate response option through their help portal. While these support options are widely accessible, phone support is available exclusively for users with a higher-tier business subscription.

Google Sites offers customer support primarily through self-service resources like a Help Center and community forums, accessible to all users. Direct support, including phone, email, and live chat, is available to Google Workspace customers, with the level of support varying by subscription tier. Google Workspace provides 24/7 support for critical issues to eligible customers, with support availability and response times depending on the user’s specific plan. Free users of Google Sites have access to self-help resources, while paid Google Workspace subscribers benefit from more comprehensive direct support options.

9.3

6.0

🏆

Winner: Google Sites

. Google Sites, with a security score of 9.3, offers robust security measures including SSL encryption, two-factor authentication, and automatic malware scanning. It also benefits from Google’s regular security updates and compliance with international data protection standards. Google Sites’ infrastructure provides DDoS protection and data redundancy, ensuring site accessibility even under heavy traffic.

SmugMug, scoring 6.0 in security, takes privacy and security seriously, implementing strict privacy settings and controls. However, it does not disclose detailed information about its website security measures, apart from the ability to protect website content with passwords and hide account owner information.

0

0

Personalized Design
SEO Optimization
Customer Behavior Analysis
Sales Predictions
Inventory Management
Content Generation

🏆 Winner: None

. Neither Google Sites nor SmugMug offer AI capabilities. Both builders focus on providing a straightforward, user-friendly interface for building websites. While Google Sites is integrated with Google Workspace and SmugMug is designed specifically for photographers, neither platform utilizes AI for personalized design, SEO optimization, customer behavior analysis, sales predictions, inventory management, or content generation.

7.8

7.2

🏆 Winner: Google Sites

. Both Google Sites and SmugMug offer collaborative features, but Google Sites provides a more flexible approach to user management.

• Google Sites allows multiple users to collaborate with different roles, including Owners, who have full control, and Editors, who can modify content but not site settings. There’s no strict limit on the number of users who can edit a site, allowing flexibility in management and development. Viewers can only see the site, with no editing permissions. This structure supports collaborative website building with varied levels of access and control for different users.
• SmugMug allows the primary account holder full control over the account, with the ability to add additional users through “Shared Account Management” for Portfolio and Pro level accounts. These additional users can be given various roles with different permissions, enabling them to manage or edit the website without full access to billing or account settings. The number of users and the extent of their permissions depend on SmugMug’s current offerings.

SmugMug User Roles and Access Levels:

Additional Features

SSL Certificate
Custom Domain
Free Custom Domain Included
International Domains
Mobile Responsive
Page Speed
Website Builder Mobile App
Convert a Website To An App
Website Analytics
Multilingual Sites
Multiple Users

User Feedback

Google Sites

42,340 reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars

SmugMug

33 reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars

Google Sites is highly praised by users for its seamless integration, ease of use, and collaborative features. It is a popular choice for various professional and educational needs due to its simplicity and user-friendly interface. While some users desire more customization options and additional features, Google Sites remains highly valued for its versatility and streamlined workflow facilitation.

SmugMug, on the other hand, is appreciated for its reliability, ease of use, and the platform’s ability to securely host and share high-resolution photographs and videos. Users highlight its seamless mobile device syncing, excellent gallery features, and robust customization options. However, some users desire improvements in facial recognition technology, expanded asset management capabilities, and more advanced search functionalities. Despite concerns about rising costs and the platform’s intuitiveness, SmugMug is valued for its central storage solution, privacy features for client photos, and its ability to simplify file sharing and photo sales.

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