A self-hosted Google Photos alternative: Numa Home, Immich, PhotoPrism and Synology Photos compared.
If you want a self-hosted Google Photos alternative, a photo server for your NAS or a Docker photo library, four are worth a look: Numa Home, Immich, PhotoPrism and Synology Photos. This page shows how each one runs, what it does and where it fits best. Numa Home is my project, so I tried to be fair to the others. If something here is wrong or out of date, write to me and I will put it right.
Checked on 5 November 2026 against each project’s own pages and documentation.
In short
| App | Runs as | On a phone | Faces and search | Licence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Numa Home | One Docker container on a 64-bit Intel or AMD NAS or computer, with no database server or model container to set up | The browser, which can go on the home screen. The Numa app for iPhone, iPad and Mac signs in, shows albums and videos, sends photographs and syncs libraries. No Android app | Faces grouped, and you name each person once. Search in words, in English and Dutch | Open source (GPL-3.0 or later) |
| Immich | Docker Compose: a server, a Valkey cache, a Postgres database and an optional machine-learning container, on Intel, AMD and ARM | Apps for iOS and Android, with automatic backup | Face recognition, and search by metadata, objects, faces and CLIP | Open source (AGPL-3.0) |
| PhotoPrism | Docker, on Intel, AMD and ARM, including a Raspberry Pi. A free Community Edition and paid memberships | A web app for the home screen. Backup runs through compatible apps such as PhotoSync, or WebDAV | Face recognition and search filters | Open source (AGPL-3.0) |
| Synology Photos | On a Synology NAS only | Apps for Apple and Android devices, with automatic backup | Albums made from faces, objects and places | Proprietary Synology software, licensed under Synology’s EULA |
Numa Home
Numa Home runs in one Docker container and shows every library in a browser. A library is a folder you already have. Faces are found and grouped, and you name a person once. You search in words, in English or Dutch. Raws are shown as Numa develops them, with the edits you made in Numa. Each person in the house has an account. The owner of an album chooses who may look and who may add. A collecting link lets guests send photographs without an account, and what they send waits until you accept it. Videos and Live Photos play in the browser. Tidy Up offers exact copies and runs of the same frame, and what goes waits 30 days in the trash. Numa Home has the full list.
The image is ghcr.io/simmmmm/numa-home. The face and search models, about 520 MB, come down on the first start. Numa Home answers on your own network only, until an admin opens it from outside on the Reachable tab. It has no cloud of its own.
Numa Home is young and has one developer. The image is for 64-bit Intel and AMD only. There is no Android app. Sign-in is by password, with no single sign-on. Numa Home plays videos but does not edit them or read them for faces or words. Guest upload is only in the browser; the Numa apps for iPhone, iPad and Mac show shared albums, videos and Live Photos. You do not need Numa to use it.
Immich
A photo and video server with native apps for iOS and Android. Its README lists automatic backup when the app is open and in the background, albums and shared albums, partner sharing, RAW formats, a global map, face recognition, and search by metadata, objects, faces and CLIP. It is open source under the AGPL-3.0. Immich.
You run it with Docker Compose. Its Compose file starts a server, a machine-learning container, a Valkey cache and a Postgres database. The documentation asks for at least 6 GB of RAM and 2 CPU cores, and says a 4 GB system can run with machine learning off. The database should sit on local SSD storage, not on a network share. Immich runs on amd64 and arm64. The documentation also says that you must set up backups of your photographs and videos yourself.
PhotoPrism
PhotoPrism describes itself as an AI-powered, privacy-first app for browsing, organising and sharing photos and videos. It has face recognition, search filters, Live Photos that play when you hover over them, and world maps; the 3D vector and satellite maps are for paying members. You host the Community Edition yourself with Docker. The image runs on AMD, Intel and ARM, including a Raspberry Pi and Apple silicon, and the source is under the AGPL-3.0. PhotoPrism.
On a phone you use its web app. Backup runs through compatible apps such as PhotoSync, and WebDAV lets Finder or Windows Explorer connect. PhotoPrism converts RAW files with darktable or RawTherapee when one is installed (its Docker image includes both), and treats a RAW file as an original that does not change. PhotoPrism also has paid memberships, and its site says what members get.
Synology Photos
Synology’s own photo app. It is proprietary software and needs a Synology NAS. It has apps for Apple and Android devices that back up new photographs and videos in the background. Automatic albums come from face and object recognition, places and tags. You can share a photograph, a video or an album with a link that has a password or an expiry date. A Shared Space is a folder-based library where you set access and editing rights for each folder. Synology lists RAW support. Synology Photos.
When another one fits better
Immich fits better if anyone in the house uses Android, if you want the phone to back up photographs by itself, or if your NAS has an ARM processor. It has a native phone app, as Google Photos does. Numa Home has no Android app and runs on Intel and AMD only.
PhotoPrism fits better on a small ARM board such as a Raspberry Pi, or if you want Finder or Windows Explorer to connect over WebDAV.
Synology Photos fits better if you already own a Synology NAS and want an app from the same maker, with phone apps for both Apple and Android.
When Numa Home fits better
Numa Home fits better if you edit in Numa. Raws are shown as Numa develops them, and libraries stay in step both ways with Numa for Linux, iPhone, iPad and Mac. It is one container with no database server or model container of its own to look after. The owner of a shared album chooses, for each person, who may look and who may add. Search works in Dutch as well as English.
Questions
What is a good self-hosted Google Photos alternative?
Immich is the closest in how you use it: native iOS and Android apps with automatic backup, face recognition and search. PhotoPrism, Numa Home and Synology Photos each suit a different setup, and the sections above say which.
Which photo server for a NAS runs in Docker?
Numa Home, Immich and PhotoPrism run in Docker. A NAS with Docker support, such as a UGREEN, Synology or QNAP NAS, or a machine with Unraid, can run them. Synology Photos runs on a Synology NAS only.
Is there a Docker photo library that needs only one container?
Numa Home runs in one container, with no database server and no separate container for the models. Immich’s Compose file starts a server, a machine-learning container, a Valkey cache and a Postgres database.
Does a self-hosted photo library back up my phone by itself?
Immich and Synology Photos have apps with automatic backup, for Apple and Android. Numa Home has no Android app. The Numa app on an iPhone can send its Photos library home on Wi-Fi. PhotoPrism backs up through compatible apps such as PhotoSync or through WebDAV.
Do these photo servers run on an ARM NAS?
Immich runs on amd64 and arm64, and PhotoPrism runs on AMD, Intel and ARM. The Numa Home image is for 64-bit Intel and AMD only. Synology Photos runs on a Synology NAS.
Does Numa Home send my photographs to a cloud?
No. Numa Home runs on your own machine and has no cloud of its own. Faces and words are found on that machine. It answers on your own network until an admin opens it from outside.
Is a self-hosted photo library a backup?
No. Keep a second copy of your photographs somewhere else. The Immich documentation says the same: its database holds metadata, and you must back up the photographs and videos yourself.