6smarketersSoftware
List your software
Home/Design, Web & Creative/Digital Asset Management (DAM)/Cloudinary

Cloudinary

Digital Asset Management (DAM)

Visit websiteCompare
★★★★☆ 4.5 / 5 on G2 · 4.6 on Capterra (400+ G2 reviews)
4.5 / 5
G2 rating, 400+ reviews [source]
Media
Image + video [source]
$89
Plus from / mo [source]
API
Developer first [source]

Quick facts

CategoryMedia management and delivery
VendorCloudinary
Starts atFree; from ~$89/mo
Best forMedia management and delivery
DeploymentCloud, API
Free planYes
IntegrationsAPIs, SDKs, platforms
G2 rating4.5 / 5
Capterra rating4.6 / 5

What is Cloudinary?

Cloudinary is a media management and delivery platform for images and video, with powerful APIs, transformation and optimisation, suited to developers and companies managing and delivering media at scale. More than a traditional DAM, it is a developer first platform that stores, manages, transforms and delivers images and video programmatically, with powerful APIs and SDKs to upload, manipulate (resize, crop, format, optimise) and deliver media through a fast CDN, plus a DAM interface for organising assets and AI features. Used by developers, e commerce and companies with heavy image and video needs, Cloudinary specialises in managing and delivering media at scale and performance. For media management and delivery, Cloudinary is a leading choice.

Cloudinary's distinction is developer first media management, transformation and delivery at scale. Beyond storing and organising assets, it programmatically transforms and optimises images and video and delivers them fast via CDN through APIs, so developers and companies automate media handling and delivery across apps and sites, which traditional DAM focused on organisation does not match for media delivery and performance. That media transformation, delivery and developer focus set it apart.

Cloudinary at a glanceCloudinary is a media management and delivery platform for images and video [Cloudinary]. It holds a 4.5 out of 5 rating across more than 400 reviews on G2 and 4.6 on Capterra, a leading choice for media management and delivery.

Who Cloudinary is best for

Cloudinary is best for developers, e commerce and companies with heavy image and video needs that want to programmatically manage, transform, optimise and deliver media at scale via APIs, with fast CDN delivery. It suits media management and delivery. It is a weaker fit for marketing teams wanting a traditional, non technical brand DAM, where Bynder, Brandfolder or Canto fit, brand guidelines, where Frontify fits, or open source unified data, where Pimcore fits.

Key features

The core strengths are programmatic media management, powerful image and video transformation (resize, crop, format, optimise), fast CDN delivery, APIs and SDKs, a DAM interface for organising assets, AI (auto tagging, content aware features), and integrations with platforms and frameworks. Cloudinary offers developer first media at scale. Its transformation, delivery and APIs are its defining advantages.

Cloudinary pricing

Cloudinary offers a free tier (usage based), with paid plans from around 89 US dollars a month (Plus), scaling by usage (transformations, storage, bandwidth and credits), plus enterprise plans. So developers can start free and scale with usage. Costs are usage based. Confirm details on the Cloudinary pricing page.

Integrations and ecosystem

Cloudinary offers extensive APIs and SDKs for many languages and frameworks, integrations with e commerce, CMS and development platforms, and a DAM UI. Its APIs, SDKs and integrations, which let developers embed media management and delivery into their apps and sites, are a signature strength for technical and media heavy use.

Cloudinary and media delivery

Developer first media management, transformation and delivery at scale is the signature strength: Cloudinary programmatically transforms and optimises images and video and delivers them fast via CDN through APIs, so developers and companies automate media handling across apps and sites, which traditional DAM does not match for delivery and performance. For media at scale, this is the main reason to choose Cloudinary.

Ease of use and support

Cloudinary is well rated by developers for its media transformation, delivery, APIs and performance, with good documentation and support, though it is more technical and developer oriented than traditional DAM, so non technical marketing teams may find it less suited. Its G2 reviews praise transformation and delivery, with its developer focus the main consideration for marketing teams.

Is Cloudinary worth it?

For developers, e commerce and companies with heavy image and video needs that want programmatic media management, transformation and delivery at scale, Cloudinary is an excellent choice. The main caution is that it is developer oriented rather than a non technical brand DAM, so marketing teams may prefer Bynder, Brandfolder or Canto, brand guidelines Frontify, but for media management and delivery Cloudinary leads.

Pricing

Free

$0
usage based
  • Media management
  • Transformations
  • Developers

Plus / Advanced

$89
per month
  • More usage
  • Optimisation and delivery
  • Business

Enterprise

Custom
usage based
  • Scale and SLAs
  • Advanced AI
  • Support

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Powerful media transformation
  • Fast CDN delivery
  • Developer first APIs and SDKs
  • Image and video at scale
  • AI media features

Cons

  • More technical than traditional DAM
  • Usage based pricing can scale
  • Less suited to non technical marketing
  • Developer oriented

Cloudinary alternatives

These digital asset management tools come up most often against Cloudinary.

Bynder

Enterprise DAM and brand management platform

Brandfolder

Brand-focused DAM by Smartsheet

Canto

DAM for marketing and creative teams

Cloudinary FAQ

What is Cloudinary used for?
Cloudinary is used for media management and delivery: programmatically storing, managing, transforming (resizing, cropping, optimising) and delivering images and video at scale via APIs and a fast CDN, with a DAM interface and AI, popular with developers and companies with heavy media needs.
How much does Cloudinary cost?
Cloudinary has a free tier (usage based), with paid plans from around 89 US dollars a month (Plus), scaling by usage (transformations, storage, bandwidth), plus enterprise plans. See the Cloudinary pricing page.
What makes Cloudinary different from a DAM?
Cloudinary goes beyond traditional DAM organisation to programmatically transform, optimise and deliver images and video at scale via APIs and CDN, so it is a developer first media platform for managing and delivering media across apps and sites, as well as organising assets.
Cloudinary vs Bynder, which is better?
Cloudinary is a developer first media management and delivery platform, while Bynder is a traditional all round marketing DAM. Cloudinary suits developers and media delivery at scale; Bynder suits marketing teams managing brand assets.
Is Cloudinary free?
Cloudinary offers a free tier with usage based limits, good for getting started and smaller projects, with paid plans from around 89 US dollars a month scaling with usage (transformations, storage and bandwidth) for larger media needs.
Does Cloudinary handle video?
Yes. Cloudinary manages, transforms, optimises and delivers both images and video at scale, with video specific features and fast CDN delivery, making it popular with companies and developers handling significant video as well as image content.

External links