We’ve tested a lot of digital photo frames and the best options all make it easy to display your favorite stills at home. As you’ll find in our guide, frames come in a range of sizes and styles. Our guide includes something for every taste and budget, from simple, affordable frames to premium, feature-packed models. We’ve tested them all, to make your decision easier.
If we had to choose a digital photo frame to have at home, it would be the Aura Mason Luxe. It’s an attractive frame with a high-resolution display and intuitive app-based interface. There’s a huge variety of digital frames on the market, though, which is why we’ve divided our list for different buyers.
Each entry below summarizes the results of our in-depth reviews, distilling the positives and negatives that our expert team discovered in their real-world tests. We cover everything from ease of setup to screen quality, so that you have a full picture of what to expect from every frame.
Top 3 picks
If you want to get straight to the best digital photo frames, the round-up below will give you an instant overview. When you find one that fits the bill for your budget, you can use the links beneath each entry to jump to our full write-up.
The best digital photo frame for most people
The Aura Mason Luxe is a clear cut above most photo frames. It’s stylish, easy to use and, most importantly, benefits from a sharp, well-saturated display.
The best premium digital photo frame
This larger-than-most 15-inch display in an attractive frame can be positioned in vertical and horizontal format and comes with a wall mount and a stand.
The best budget digital photo frame
Cheap and cheerful, the Aeezo Portrait 01 is more flexible than its price suggests. Its no-frills, plastic build won’t win awards, but it’s neat enough.
Best by use case
The best premium for art fans
With a slick physical design, huge yet natural 27-inch display and free in-app art downloads, this digital canvas is a work of art in its own right.
The best hybrid frame with choice of sizes
A premium photo frame that works in portrait or landscape, its 15.6-inch matte display is a genuinely appealing way to display art at home.
The best value frame
With a true 2K resolution, the Pexar 11-inch offers a peerless resolution for the price. Offline storage also makes it simple to add images.
The best smart display with photo frame
With a large 15.6-inch display and smart features including Alexa voice commands for Amazon Photos, this is a truly smart digital photo frame.
The best realistic frame design
With a generous border and glass facade, the Skylight Frame has real presence on a shelf, making it one of the more attractive photo frames we’ve tested.
The best screen quality
Nixplay’s 2K frame features one of the sharpest, most vibrant screens on the market, with deep blacks, plus lots of detail and brightness.
Tim is TechRadar’s Cameras Editor. He has more than 15 years’ experience in the photo video industry, as both a freelance photographer and a tech journalist. Tim has tested many of the best digital photo frames and knows what to look for when buying one. He notes, “you’ll find a wide range of frames in our list. Several offer additional features such as Wi-Fi connectivity and social media integration. These can make it easier to upload images, but if you’re happy to create offline slideshows yourself, you’ll find better value in a simpler model.”
The best digital photo frames in 2024
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Below you'll find full write-ups for each of the best digital photo frames in our list. We've tested each one extensively, so you can be sure that our recommendations can be trusted.
The best overall digital frame you can buy
✅ You want your photos to look good: With fine detail and natural colors, the Mason Luxe’s 9.7-inch display really does justice to your images.
✅ You value stylish design: It might be made of plastic, but the Mason Luxe’s shell is distinctive in good way, standing out on any shelf.
❌ You want an offline frame: Because photos are stored on Aura’s service, the Mason Luxe must be connected to your Wi-Fi at all times.
❌ You have a limited budget: Clever software and a high-quality screen mean the Mason Luxe comes with a relatively high initial outlay.
The Aura Mason Luxe is a clear cut above most other photo frames. It’s stylish, has greater character to its design and, most important of all, the screen is excellent in most respects. Its 4:3 aspect display is perfect for not just adding some color to your room with your photos, but to actually get an up-close look at them. Pixel density is so high they look sharp and detailed even when you get your face right up to the screen. We found that color is natural-looking and well-saturated too, so you can be sure you’re seeing a fair representation of the photos you fling its way.
There’s also a social side to the Aura Mason Luxe. You can invite friends and relatives to send photos to the frame, and everyone in this inner Aura circle can “like” and comment on the images, creating a cosy sort of private social network. The cost of the Mason Luxe may seem high for a 10-inch photo frame, but after our tests, we conclude the quality of the software and hardware justifies the expense.
- Read our in-depth Aura Mason Luxe review
The best premium large display digital photo frame
✅ You want a large display: Most digital photo frame displays measure in at 10 inches, but the Aura Walden goes bigger with a 15-inch panel.
✅ You want unlimited cloud storage: Aura's app is super easy to use and add family members and friends to, plus it comes with unlimited free cloud storage.
❌ You get up close: This frame is better viewed a few paces back – get too close and you can see pixelation due to the relatively modest resolution.
❌ You're not sure about the size: 15-inches might be an awkward size for you – too small for a wall, too large to stand up on a sideboard.
If you're looking for a premium frame with larger-than-average display and high-quality finish, look no further than the Aura Walden. The 15-inch display dwarfs the 10-inch options in this guide, while the quality of the frame itself is top drawer. It comes supplied with a wall-mount kit and a stand – and you can easily switch between vertical and horizontal formats whether the frame is rested on a sideboard or on a wall. A nice touch is the light-colored power cable with fabric exterior than blends in nicely with lighter walls.
Aura has also created one of the best apps to upload your pictures, and provides free unlimited cloud storage – that's more than can be said for many of the alternative frames. It's also easy to invite friends and family as members and also upload their own photos and videos. The frame resolution is on the low side for such a big frame, and we found the size a little awkward – almost too big for a sideboard and too little for a wall. However, if it's the right fit for you, you'll struggle to find a better digital frame in 2024.
Read our in-depth Aura Walden review
The best budget digital photo frame
✅ You want good value: Simple and affordable, the Aeezo Portrait 01 is a bargain photo frame with a decent set of features for the price.
✅ You want an offline frame: Instead of cloud storage, photos are added via SD card, USB stick or the Frameo app to its 16GB of internal storage.
❌ You want a distinctive frame: With a generic plastic build and unstable stand, the Aeezo Portrait 01 isn't as well-designed as others here.
❌ You value a polished interface: The Portrait 01 works fine, but its software isn’t the slickest and the app is less glossy than rivals.
A cheap and cheerful photo frame, the Aeezo Portrait 01 is more flexible than its price tag suggests. Its no-frills, plastic build won’t win any design awards, but it’s neat enough – even if our tests found that its simple stand has limited stability. We were largely happy with its photo reproduction in our review. Color depth isn’t exceptional, but the 10-inch display strikes a good balance when it comes to detail: hard edges aren’t too soft or too sharp. It is less bright than other frames in the same price bracket, though.
Rather than cloud storage, you can load photos onto its 16GB of internal storage via the Frameo app, or from an SD card or USB stick. That means you’re not reliant on constant Wi-Fi connectivity or third-party servers. We found that the interface isn’t sophisticated and the app is less glossy than others in this list. But like most of the frame, it all works as it should. Overall, the Portrait 01 is good value.
- Read our in-depth Aeezo Portrait 01 review
The best premium frame for art fans
✅ You want a large display: The Textura's 27-inch display is substantially bigger than any other frame featured in this guide.
✅ You want free art: The Vieunite art gallery is subscription-free and there's plenty of choice to upload to your frame.
❌ You want to choose your size: Unlike the Netgear Meural canvas, the Textura is only available in one size – and it's a whopper.
❌ You're only going to display family photos: For displaying family photos only, the Textura is overkill compared to the smaller and cheaper frames in this guide
With a display measuring a mighty 27 inches, we think the Vieunite Textura is a supercharged frame. More than just a screen, it serves as a window to a world of art, as well as connecting you to an online community. New art, photos and videos are added daily to the Vieunite gallery, and that's just the free stuff. One day you can have a famous painting like Waterloo Bridge by Monet, the next an AI-generated white tiger in a jungle, plus of course your own image and video uploads.
Hardware-wise, the Vieunite is a luxury frame with internal mount, available in four finishes: Pine, Walnut, Birch and Black. It’s much larger than your standard digital photo frame, though still outgunned by the Samsung Frame TV. We found it easy to rotate the wall-mounted display between landscape and portrait orientation, or to simply rest it on a sideboard – though we do wish there was a built-in stand. The frame is pricey, and we think it's overkill if you're simply going to display family snaps. But it's also an effective way to get art onto your walls, on a sensibly-sized and high-quality display.
- Read our in-depth Vienuite Textura Digital Canvas review
The best hybrid photo frame with choice of sizes
✅ You want art on your walls: The Netgear Meural offers paid access to a library of art pieces that look great on its paper-like display.
✅ You prefer a larger frame: The Meural dwarfs most other frames with a 15.6-inch display that gives images more presence.
❌ You have a sharp eye for quality: With a 1080p resolution spread across 15.6 inches, the Meural’s display quality isn’t the best out there.
❌ You want a compact display: With a big screen and matching border, plus a stand that can’t go flat against the wall, this isn’t a small frame.
The Netgear Meural isn’t like other digital photo frames. By the standards of this category, it’s a pretty high-end purchase – but it’s actually the entry-level model in Netgear’s series of art displays. This is a 15.6-inch photo frame that you can orient in portrait or landscape. It gives you a large canvas to work with, and the Meural app includes a huge catalogue of artwork to choose from. You have to pay for a subscription to unlock full access, but a handful are available for free. While this won’t appeal to everyone, we think the option to pick paintings gives Netgear’s frame a unique flourish.
In our time with the Meural, we found its matte display a genuinely appealing way to display art: it doesn’t look like a repurposed tablet or smart display. However, its color depth isn’t perfect and we think a panel sharper than the Meural’s 1080p screen would be better if you want to really inspect your images. Still, it’s a lovely way to creatively enhance a room.
- Read our in-depth Netgear Meural Wi-Fi Photo Frame review
The best value digital photo frame
✅ You want a high-res display: With a 2000 x 1200 pixel resolution, the Pexar’s 11-inch display has a true 2K resolution with an impressive 212ppi density that few frames can match.
✅ You want easy offline storage: With 32GB of built-in storage space, plus SD and USB support, the Pexar makes it easy to load stills without having to rely on the cloud.
❌ You want a large frame: Its 11-inch display makes it a neat fit for most shelves, but if you want more space for your photos to breathe, you’re better of with a bigger option.
❌ You to add large batches: You can upload photos to the local storage using the Frameo app for free, but you’ll need to pay for a subscription if you want to add more than 10 at a time.
We think this Pexar digital photo frame hits the sweet spot for a mid-sized model: it’s more affordable than many premium alternatives, yet based on our tests, it still delivers solid specs and impressive performance. Smartly designed and sized at a convenient 11 inches, it offers unmatched resolution for the money. With a true 2K display measuring 2000 x 1200 pixels, images appear crisp on the bright matte display, with accurate colors.
Setup is easy: images can be added to the 32GB of on-board storage via the free Frameo app. There’s no cloud storage here, which will appeal if you prefer to manage your images offline. That also means there’s no subscription to pay for, unless you want to upload more than 10 images at a time. In our review, we also appreciated the flexibility of support for SD cards, plus USB-A and USB-C flash drives. Together with auto-rotate functionality and a wall-mounting option, it solid feature set and competitive price make the Pexar our top pick for value.
- Read our in-depth Pexar 11-inch Digital Photo Frame
The best smart display for photos
✅ You want a large, wall-mounted display: The Echo Show 15 has a large 15.6-inch display with useful wall-mount or freestanding options.
✅ You love Alexa: The Echo Show 15 can display your favorite memories with simple Alexa prompts, as well as other voice-activated features.
❌ You're not an Amazon Prime member: You'll need a (free) Amazon Photos account to get the best photo features.
❌ You want the best photo quality display: It's a big display, but the colors and contrast aren't as punchy as other screens.
The majority of the models in this guide pack a 10-inch display inside a slick mount and frame, yet then there's the Echo Show 15. It takes on a similar form to these frames, only it's much bigger at 15.6-inches, plus you've also got its smart display features to enjoy. Since its release (and our initial four-star review), it has benefitted from a number of software updates that make it even more versatile, including the addition of Fire TV that unlocks access to all of your favorite streaming services. As well as Fire TV, you can set up customizable widgets on the Echo Show 15 to keep your home organized, use a litany of Alexa skills, and yes, enjoy your family photos on its large 15.6-inch display with Full HD resolution.
If you're a Prime member, Amazon Photos provides free unlimited photo storage and up to 5GB of videos, plus paid plans if you need more storage than that, or up to 5GB of photos for any Amazon customer. You can then easily display those photos and favorite memories on an Echo Show 15, including ask Alexa functionality, "Hey Alexa, show me photos from our summer holiday last year." This truly is a smart digital photo frame experience.
- Read our in-depth Echo Show 15 review
The best realistic frame and mount
✅ You like a classic design: With a responsive glass touchscreen and sizeable border, the Skylight Frame makes an attractive statement.
✅ You want an offline storage option: You need a connection to load photos, but you can run your slideshow from the 8GB of internal storage.
❌ You’re picky about quality: Skylight uses heavy compression to save data, which can cause digital artifacts and give images a soft look.
❌ You don’t want a subscription: Many of the Skylight’s features, including video support, are locked behind an annual subscription paywall.
With a generous border and glass facade, the Skylight Frame is one of the more attractive photo frames we’ve tested. It’s larger than most 10-inch models, but its white surround and classy design give it real presence on a shelf. In use, its responsive touchscreen feels quite a lot like a tablet: you can pinch to zoom and swipe to switch photos. It’s not sophisticated, but it works smoothly and makes it easy to find specific images.
We don’t think the Skylight Frame does a perfect job of representing images. In our time with the frame, we found that its compression software added visible artifacts, softened images and made certain hues look unnatural. That said, its 1280x800 pixel LCD did hold up well against similarly priced rivals, even if its 255-nit brightness is a long way below the Aura Carver. The frame works fine without Wi-Fi, but key features are only available with a paid subscription, including cloud storage. Despite these reservations, we still think the Skylight Frame is a good choice if you want a statement photo frame.
- Read our in-depth Skylight Frame 10-inch review
The best digital photo frame for screen quality
✅ You want the sharpest display: With a 2K resolution, Nixplay’s Smart Digital Photo Frame has one of the most detailed screens on the market.
✅ You like to adjust settings: Like most Nixplay frames, the 2K’s menu lets you customize a whole range of settings, from color to sensitivity.
❌ You hate fingerprint marks: In matte black the bezel is understated, but the metal-effect version is super reflective and easy to smudge.
❌ You like easily readable text: Because of the high resolution, menu text can appear small, making it difficult to read at a distance.
Nixplay’s 2K Smart Digital Photo Frame features one of the sharpest screens out there. Our tests found it both detailed and vibrant, with deep blacks and enough brightness to beat the reflective coating. At 9.7 inches, we also felt it struck a good balance: with a flexible stand that works in portrait or landscape, the frame fits on most shelves, yet still gives images space to be seen. The option to wall-mount is also a useful one. We did find that the metal-effect bezel is distractingly reflective and a serious fingerprint magnet, so we suggest choosing the matte black variant.
As with other Nixplay frames, the settings menu offers no shortage of customisation options, from colour adjustments to the sensitivity of the motion sensor. Controlled via a physical remote (or the virtual replica in the app), the frame proved responsive and pretty intuitive during our review, even if the high resolution means text can appear small. One of our favorite things about this frame is how straightforward it is to load photos using the app. You can create playlists using photos from your smartphone, or sync with Google Photos to display AI-generated smart albums. You can also connect with friends to easily add their snaps to your frame.
Also consider
We've reviewed a range of digital photo frames and not all of them made the cut above. Here are a few honorable mentions which are also worth considering.
Best landscape-only frame – Aura Carver Mat: Tidy and beautifully designed, the Carver Mat is incredibly easy to set up and use through the Aura app, while the display itself is sharp and punchy. The caveats are that viewing angles are narrow and it can only be positioned as a landscape frame, meaning portrait shots only fill part of the screen.
Best low-cost, mid-sized frame – DragonTouch Classic 15 Pro: With a straightforward design, relatively accessible app and a display that’s decent enough for the price, this mid-sized frame is a good-value choice for family users. It’s not the brightest frame out there and others give a more premium feel, but this is a good option for the money.
Best for Google Photos – Google Nest Hub Max: If you want a smart display that also doubles up as a digital photo frame, the Google Nest Hub Max is a good choice. It integrates well with Google Photos, letting you display smart albums from the cloud. The screen isn’t the sharpest and the angle is fixed, but its tablet-like functionality adds a lot of value.
How to choose
How do I choose the best digital photo frame?
Where will you place it?
Most digital photo frames include some kind of stand, but not all can be wall-mounted. Similarly, some only work in one orientation, while others can switch from portrait to landscape. It pays to consider placement, including how a frame’s finish will fit with your decor.
What screen size do you need?
Screen size can vary substantially, from 8 to 13 inches. Frames with smaller displays can be easier to place and are sometimes sharper. Larger options offer more space for your snaps but won’t always have a higher resolution. The sweet spot is usually somewhere around a 9-inch Full HD display.
How will you add images?
Many of the latest digital photo frames rely on cloud storage to host your slideshow, letting you add photos directly from different devices. Others feature social media integration. But if your images live on hard storage, consider something with a memory card or USB input.
How much control do you want?
Some digital photo frames offer seamless simplicity, while others allow you to adjust every setting – from brightness to sleep schedules. It’s worth checking what a given frame lets you tweak, especially if you’re particular about color balance or slideshow transitions.
How smart does it need to be?
More than passive panels, several of the best digital photo frames in 2021 are actually fully fledged smart displays. That means voice control, media streaming and smart home integration. Whether you need this additional functionality will depend on the other devices already in your abode.
What is the best size digital photo frame?
Digital photo frames are available in a wide range of sizes. Which dimension is right for you will depend on your available space, as well as your own personal preference. Smaller digital photo frames are more compact and easier to place in your home, but offer less canvas space for your digital images. Larger photo frames give your treasured snaps room to shine, but require a larger footprint – and the biggest screens risk dominating a room.
While you can find digital photo frames with screens as small as 5 inches, we think the smallest you should realistically look at is 8 inches. A frame such as the Nixplay Nix Digital Photo Frame 8-inch benefits from a small footprint that’s easy to place almost anywhere, while still giving your images enough room on screen to be clearly visible. Any smaller and you risk having to squint to see your snaps.
The largest digital photo frames feature displays to rival your average laptop. The Nixplay Seed Wave, for example, ships with a 13-inch panel. This puts your pictures clearly front and centre, but it’s not exactly subtle. It risks looking like a small TV and blends less well into the background – although it certainly makes your shots unmissable.
We think the best size digital photo frame is between 9 inches and 10 inches. Models like the Google Nest Hub Max, Aura Carver and Facebook Portal all feature screens which measure in at around the 10-inch mark, while our favorite digital photo frame right now – the minimalist Aura Mason Luxe – has a 9.7-inch display. These hit the sweet spot for visibility and flexibility. A display at this size will also provide better pixel density than a much larger screen, improving clarity and sharpness (especially with Nixplay’s 2K frame, which features a high-resolution 9.7-inch screen).
What is a good brand of digital photo frame?
A range of manufacturers make excellent digital photo frames. As you’ll see from our comprehensive list, frames from a number of brands feature prominently among the best options.
Aura and Nixplay are arguably the biggest players in the digital photo frame market, with both offering several sizes and styles to suit different budgets. Aura makes our current favorite digital photo frame, the Mason Luxe, which is a great example of the brand’s chic, minimalist approach. Nixplay’s 2K Smart Digital Photo Frame comes in second, with its super-sharp display.
Skylight is another notable brand, while Aeezo can be a good choice if you’re looking for a budget digital photo frame. If you’re buying your first digital photo frame, there’s every chance you won’t know these names. That’s why it’s so important to make your buying decision based on the factors tested in our expert reviews, as well as the tips set out above.
Several familiar names also feature in our round-up, including the likes of Netgear, Google and Meta – Facebook’s parent company. While these brands might be more recognizable than others, that’s no guarantee that their digital photo frames will be the right fit for your specific requirements. That’s why we suggest reading our ranked list thoroughly before choosing a frame.
Meet the team
Our team of reviewers has amassed many years of camera experience and testing, covering all of the latest and greatest cameras and photo products over the last 20 years. They can all appreciate the benefits of a quality digital photo frame for displaying stills and getting the best out of your photos.
Tim is TechRadar's Cameras Editor and has been cutting his teeth in the photo and video industry for almost 20 years. He looks after all of TechRadar's cameras content, covering buying guides, features, reviews and news. He knows the benefits of purposeful creativity with a dedicated camera instead of a smartphone.
Mark is TechRadar's Senior news editor and has been a technology journalist since 2004. Formerly Trusted Reviews and TechRadar's cameras editor, Mark has tested cameras over many years from all of the leading brands.
James Abbott is a professional photographer and freelance photography journalist. He contributes articles about photography, cameras and drones to a wide range of magazines and websites where he applies a wealth of experience to testing the latest photographic tech.
Paul is a digital expert. In the 20 years since he graduated with a first-class honours degree in Computer Science, Paul has been actively involved in a variety of different tech and creative industries that make him the go-to guy for reviews, opinion pieces, and featured articles. You'll also find his writing in other places, including Creative Bloq, Digital Camera World, and 3D World Magazine.
How we test digital photo frames
☑️ 10s of digital photo frames reviewed
☑️ 15 years of product testing
☑️ Over 16,000 products reviewed in total
☑️ Nearly 200,000 hours testing tech
Digital photo frames are unique devices with a range of specific factors to test. We put each frame through a range of scenarios to ensure each one is worthy of a recommendation.
We place each digital photo frame in a series of similar viewing scenarios to assess the sharpness and brightness of its display. This will usually include a dark environment, a daylit room and a bright spot in direct sunlight. Using an identical set of photos, we look at the accuracy of color reproduction, the clarity of each image and the viewing angles of the frame. We also take into account the proportions of the display and whether any cropping is likely to affect standard-sized digital images.
When it comes to ease of use, we start by adding a batch of images to each frame. We’ll do this in every way supported by a specific frame, so if there’s an app as well as memory card support, we’ll assess how simple it is to upload images using both techniques. We’ll also dive deep into settings menus to understand how straightforward a given frame is to operate, as well as which settings can be customized. We look first and foremost for commonly desired options, such as customizable slideshow intervals, sleep timers and color adjustment sliders.
We also review the physical design of each frame in a few ways. Unboxing a frame, we try each of its potential orientation and mounting options to assess how simple it is to assemble and switch between different positions. Then by placing each frame in a range of locations (usually including a shelf, desk and wall), we look at the footprint and dimensions of the frame, focusing specifically on whether its shape, size and stand angle make it easy to position and arrange as required.
