The Photos app on your Mac and iPhone is not iPhoto. Apple retired iPhoto years ago, and Photos took over as the default library for anything you shoot or import. But Photos never gained its own book-printing feature; Apple's print service, the one that lived inside iPhoto and early Photos, stopped taking orders on September 30, 2018.

So you're probably staring at years of pictures with no print button. This guide covers what happens when you try to print from Photos today, and seven ways to get a real book out of that library in 2026.

Where did print go from Apple Photos?

Not directly. Photos on Mac and iOS has no built-in book, calendar, or card ordering. Instead, a small set of third-party extensions plug into Photos itself, showing up in the File menu or the sharing sheet. Mimeo Photos is the most established one.

If you'd rather not deal with an extension, export instead. Select the album or the whole library, export the originals, and drop them into a Dropbox folder. Any service that reads Dropbox, including My Social Book, can build the book from there -- more setup, but far better automation.

What to look for in an Apple Photos alternative

• Export, not just extension -- Photos extensions are convenient but lock you into a handful of vendors. A Dropbox export opens the field.
• Keeps captions and dates -- not every export path preserves the metadata Apple Photos stores per photo.
• Handles a full year, not just an album -- for a yearbook-style book, look for automatic chronological ordering.
• Actual print quality -- paper weight and binding vary a lot between extensions and standalone print shops.
• Editing control before you pay -- can you preview every page and change the cover before ordering?

7 best Apple Photos alternatives in 2026

1. My Social Book

Best for: turning a full year of memories into a book without touching a layout editor

My Social Book doesn't plug into Photos, but it solves the problem most Apple Photos searchers actually have: a huge library and no time to lay it out by hand. Export your Apple Photos library to a Dropbox folder, connect that folder, and the service automatically builds a chronological book from what's inside. It also works directly from Facebook or Instagram, so shots living on social media rather than your camera roll come in the same way.

You get a real 21 x 25 cm book (about 8.3 x 9.8 inches), hardcover or softcover, 25 to 500 pages. Before you order, you preview every page, remove anything you don't want, and change the cover.

Pros:

• Automatic layout from a Dropbox export of your Apple Photos library
• Full preview and page editing before you order
• Trustpilot TrustScore 4.6 / 5 (2,700 reviews, September 2026)

Cons:

• No direct Photos extension -- you export to Dropbox first
• Section order is fixed once the book is generated

See your book in minutes -- start from Facebook, Instagram, or Dropbox

2. Mimeo Photos

Best for: staying inside the Photos app itself

Mimeo Photos is a Mac App Store download that adds itself to Photos as a native extension. Pick an album right from Photos and start a project without exporting anything -- the closest thing to what Apple used to offer built in. The catch: you're still doing the layout yourself. Fine for a small, curated album; tedious for ten years of a camera roll.

Pros:

• Native integration, no export step
• Runs sales fairly often

Cons:

• Manual layout, not automatic
• Mac only

3. Motif

Best for: a quick, casual photo book from an iPhone album

Motif, from the team behind Chatbooks, is another extension in the Photos share sheet on iPhone and iPad. Select an album, tap share, and Motif builds a simple auto-layout. It leans casual: soft covers, smaller formats, quick turnaround. Good for something printed fast, not built for a library-spanning project.

Pros:

• Built into the iOS share sheet
• Fast, simple auto-layout

Cons:

• Softcover, smaller formats only
• Not designed for a full-year memory book

4. Shutterfly

Best for: the widest range of sizes if you're willing to upload manually

Shutterfly doesn't plug into Photos, so you export your album first, then upload. Their "Make My Book" tool auto-arranges a layout, and size and cover options are the broadest here. Sales are constant, so list price rarely matters. The trade-off: an editor pushing upsells at almost every step.

Pros:

• Huge range of formats and sizes
• Frequent deep discounts

Cons:

• Manual export and upload required
• Aggressive upselling in the editor

5. Mixbook

Best for: full creative control over every page

If you want to design each page by hand, Mixbook has one of the better drag-and-drop editors around. You export from Photos, upload, and place, resize, and layer images yourself. Templates look modern, not dated. This is the slowest option here; a library with hundreds of photos can take hours to lay out.

Pros:

• Best-in-class manual editor
• High-quality paper options

Cons:

• Time-consuming for a large export
• No automatic layout

6. Snapfish

Best for: the cheapest standalone option

Snapfish sits at the budget end. Their basic softcover starts low, and promo codes push it lower still. The editor is simple and dated. Print quality matches the price -- okay for a casual book, not one you're keeping for decades.

Pros:

• Low starting prices with frequent sales
• Simple, no-frills editor

Cons:

• Print quality is average
• No automatic layout

7. Blurb

Best for: a project bigger than a standard photo book

Blurb is overkill for a simple book from your camera roll, but it's worth knowing. Their BookWright software gives professional-grade layout control, and supports formats others don't, including trade books and magazines. For a travel journal or family history, Blurb is the right tool.

Pros:

• Professional-grade design software
• Unique formats beyond the standard photo book

Cons:

• Steep learning curve
• Overkill for a simple project

Apple Photos alternatives comparison table

Related photo book comparisons

These cover the other brands and sources people check most often:

• iPhoto book alternatives
• Mimeo Photo Book alternatives
• Shutterfly alternatives
• Mixbook alternatives
• Snapfish alternatives
• Chatbooks alternatives
• Make a book from Facebook

Frequently asked questions

Did Apple Photos ever let you print books?

Apple's print service was built into iPhoto and the early version of Photos, letting you order books, calendars, and cards straight from the app. Apple announced the shutdown in July 2018 and stopped taking orders on September 30, 2018. Photos has had no built-in print option since.

How do I get my photos out of Apple Photos to print them elsewhere?

Select the album or your whole library, then use File > Export in the Mac app (or the share sheet on iPhone) to export the originals. Move the folder into Dropbox, and a service like My Social Book can read it directly and build a book automatically.

What's the fastest way to make a book from Apple Photos?

A Photos extension like Mimeo Photos or Motif skips the export step for minimal setup. For the layout done for you too, export to Dropbox and use an automatic service like My Social Book.

Can I make a book from my Facebook or Instagram photos instead of my camera roll?

Yes. My Social Book connects to Facebook and to Instagram through a professional account, building a chronological book the same way as from a Dropbox export. Each book comes from one source; you make separate books from Facebook and Instagram, not a single book from both.

Will exporting from Apple Photos keep my captions and locations?

The export keeps that information in the file metadata, but not every destination reads it. My Social Book pulls dates, captions, likes, and locations from Facebook, Instagram, or a Dropbox folder built from your export, so it carries through to the finished book.

Is there a cheaper option than My Social Book?

Motif and Snapfish both start lower, and they're fine for a small, casual book. Neither builds a full library into a chronological book automatically. For a year or more of photos, the time saved on layout tends to matter more than a few dollars on the cover price.

Facts about competitors checked on September 21, 2026. Prices and features change; confirm on each company's site before ordering.

Create your book from Facebook, Instagram, or Dropbox