Printify and Gelato solve the same problem — print on demand with no inventory — in two different ways. Printify is a marketplace of print shops focused on price and choice, Gelato a global network with local production focused on delivery. Which solution pays off for you?
At first glance they look similar: both offer a free account, native store integration and dozens of products to print. The difference shows only when you start dealing with specific customers, margins and delivery times — and that's where each platform goes its own way.
The verdict in brief
Printify wins on catalog breadth and product price and rates higher (4.6 vs 4.2 on Trustpilot). Gelato leads on local production in 30+ countries, delivery times and sustainability. Simply put: Printify for maximum margin and choice, Gelato for international delivery and décor.
Neither rules out the other's success — it depends where your business's center of gravity lies. If you want to push on price and offer the widest range, Printify is on your side; if your priority is fast and gentle delivery to an international audience, the scales tip toward Gelato.
Two different models
Printify (since 2015) connects hundreds of independent print shops. You pick the maker for each product, so you get a huge catalog and the ability to optimize price — but quality varies by the specific printer.
Gelato (since 2007) is a single network with local production in 30+ countries. It automatically sends an order to the nearest partner, so the product is made close to the customer with shorter shipping and a lower carbon footprint.
This implies a different amount of hassle: with Printify you have more control but also more work — you have to compare, test and watch the printers. Gelato, by contrast, routes orders automatically, so you don't deal with picking a facility, but in exchange you lose the option to switch to a cheaper supplier. It's the classic trade-off between flexibility and convenience.
Prices and plans
Both have a free account. Paid tiers:
- Printify Premium — $39/mo ($24.99 annually), up to 33% off products, up to 10 stores.
- Gelato+ — $23.99/mo ($19.99 annually), up to 25% off, premium mockups and fonts.
On product prices Printify tends to be cheaper: a unisex t-shirt from $7.90 ($6.30 with Premium) vs about $9.00 at Gelato; an A2 poster $7.80 vs $6.20 at Gelato — for posters Gelato is the cheaper one.
Which comes out cheaper therefore depends on your product mix: for apparel and mugs usually Printify, for posters, canvases and décor Gelato. So add up the base prices of exactly the products you actually plan to sell, plus shipping to a typical customer — an average across the whole catalog easily leads you the wrong way.
Catalog and products
Printify has the widest catalog in the industry, including apparel, mugs, stickers and products for pets and kids. Gelato is narrower but strong on posters, canvases and photo prints — for décor and wall art it's often the better choice.
If you plan a store with a varied range across categories, Printify gives you more room to grow without having to find another service. If, on the other hand, you're building a narrowly focused store — say a poster or photo-canvas gallery — you'll get more out of Gelato's specialization, because those formats are among its strongest and cheapest products.
Production, delivery and integrations
Thanks to local production, Gelato shortens delivery times across Europe, North America and Asia. Printify mainly covers the US, Britain, Germany, China and Australia — it depends which printer you choose.
Integrations: Printify connects natively to Shopify, WooCommerce, Etsy, eBay, Amazon, Wix and TikTok Shop. Gelato natively to Shopify, WooCommerce, Etsy and Wix — a slightly narrower selection.
The difference in integrations matters mainly depending on where you sell: if you want to target Amazon, eBay or TikTok Shop, Printify is the clear choice thanks to native support. For a classic store on Shopify or WooCommerce and supplementary sales via Etsy, both platforms handle the connection equally smoothly, so here it's the prices, products and delivery times discussed above that decide.
Who each is for
- Choose Printify for the lowest product prices, the widest catalog and the most integrations; expect to test printers.
- Choose Gelato for fast international delivery, sustainability and selling posters or décor.
The two services can also be combined in one store — Gelato for posters and décor with local production, Printify for the rest of the catalog at the lowest prices. Before deciding, go through your planned range item by item and compare base price, availability and delivery time for each; the result is usually more conclusive than a general "which is better."
PODpickr is an independent comparison site. We base our recommendations on score, not on the size of the affiliate commission.
