Glass prints are a unique way to show off your photos. Instead of just seeing them on a computer or phone screen, you see them on a sheet of glass with no frame, no mat and no paper behind them. The colour sits under a hard, UV-cured surface, so it holds up far better than an ordinary photo print. Here are seven services that produce photos printed on glass.
Fracture is the one I would send most people to first. Printing photos on glass is its entire business, its prints arrive ready to hang with the screw and wall tape already in the box, and every one carries a lifetime warranty. The other six earn their place on size range, shipping region, or the way they handle light.
Photos Printed On Glass: Glass Or Acrylic?
It’s unlikely that you’ll find agreement on this. Glass wins on longevity. It doesn’t yellow, it doesn’t degrade under ultraviolet (UV) light, and it resists scratching far better when you wipe the dust off it.
Acrylic wins on weight and survivability. Glass is heavier, it can have sharp edges, and it will almost certainly break if you drop it. A courier can break one in transit too, and then you wait for the reprint.
The two are easy to confuse while you shop, because a photo of a glossy panel looks identical either way. Read the material line on the product page rather than trusting the picture. If you decide acrylic is the safer call for your wall, we compare those services in a separate guide to acrylic prints.
Glass printing is still quite a specialist service. It’s unlikely you’ll find someone locally that does it. But like metal prints and other specialty products, you arrange your glass photo printing online and have them delivered.
(Depositphotos.com)
What Type of Glass Prints Are Available?
One of the problems comparing glass printing services is that no two of them sell quite the same thing. Comparing like-with-like can be tricky. Four questions sort the seven services below into the right order for you.
Wall or tabletop? Fracture, Beyondprint and Prints on Glass are wall products and ship with mounting hardware. Shutterfly, Snapfish and Cameo are tabletop products that stand on a shelf or a desk. MyPhoto does both.
Opaque or translucent? An opaque print has white ink and a backing behind the image, so it reads like a photo in any light. A translucent one lets light through and glows when you put it near a window or a lamp. Fracture is opaque. Shutterfly and Cameo are translucent by design, and Snapfish sits in between.
Flat or curved? A curved print stands up on its own with no support at all. Shutterfly and Cameo both sell them. Everything else here is flat.
How big? This is where the field splits hardest. Snapfish stops at 8 x 10 inches, Shutterfly at 10 x 12, Cameo at 10 x 14 and MyPhoto at 12 x 12. Fracture reaches 21.6 x 28.8 inches, Beyondprint offers 38 stock sizes plus custom dimensions, and Prints on Glass will print a whole wall.
1. Fracture
Fracture says it invented the process of printing photos directly onto glass, and nearly two decades later it still does almost nothing else. That focus is the reason to start here. There is no frame to choose, no mat to size and no separate mount to buy.
Fracture is proud of its environmental credentials. It is a carbon-neutral company and fulfills orders from a solar-powered plant in Florida. It ships internationally, though customs charges outside the US are yours to pay.
There are eight print sizes. The rectangles run from 4.8 x 6.4 inches (12 x 16 cm) to 21.6 x 28.8 inches (55 x 73 cm), and the squares are 5 x 5, 11 x 11 and 23 x 23 inches (58 x 58 cm). The image is printed straight onto the glass and the ink is cured instantly with UV light, which is why the colour doesn’t fade.
Glossy is the standard surface. A matte finish is a paid upgrade, and it is the one worth taking if the print will face a window. Every print backs onto lightweight foamcore and ships with a wall screw and wall tape, so it goes up the day it arrives and sits 4.76 mm off the wall with no frame around it. Wooden and metal stands are sold separately if you want it on a desk instead.
Two other display options are worth knowing about. A Gallery Wall lets you upload a set of photos into a layout and get the prints back with a paper template for marking the screw positions. The Photo Ledge is a shelf that lets you lean and layer prints instead of drilling at all.
Fracture prints have safe-to-hold edges, and they are opaque by design rather than backlit. That is the main reason to look elsewhere: if you want light coming through the glass, this is the wrong list entry. It is also the wrong entry if you need a size Fracture doesn’t stock, because there are no custom dimensions. Against that, every print carries a lifetime warranty and a 60-day satisfaction guarantee, which is unusually strong cover for a print service.
2. Snapfish
While Fracture only sells glass prints, Snapfish sells dozens of different print media, and its glass range is the narrower product because of it. There are two sizes, 5 x 7 inches (12.5 x 17 cm) and 8 x 10 inches (20.5 x 25.5 cm), and that is the whole ladder.
The finish is gloss only, on thick glass with a bevelled edge running all the way round the front. Each print comes with two small acrylic feet and stands in either landscape or portrait. The image carries a hint of translucency, so it lifts a little when light gets behind it, but it is not a true backlit print like Shutterfly’s or Cameo’s.
Snapfish suits someone who already prints family photos there and wants one glass piece added to the same order. It does not suit a wall, a large image, or a photographer who sells prints and needs a size ladder to sell up. Snapfish’s European and Australian sites don’t carry glass prints at all, and the US store only delivers to US addresses.
3. Beyondprint
Like Snapfish, Beyondprint offers a range of print services. You can choose metal, wood, fine art paper, or even poster-size self-adhesive prints.
Its glass range is the most flexible here short of a custom quote. There are 38 stock size combinations, starting at 20 x 20 cm (roughly 8 x 8 inches), and you can specify your own dimensions on top of that. The glass has a glossy finish (actually, the firm is Finnish too). It is 7 mm laminated safety glass with polished bevel edges, so the panel is smooth to touch on every side.
The bonding process is paper-free and hermetically sealed, which is why Beyondprint rates the prints as weatherproof. They will take a bathroom, a sunroom or an outdoor wall. Small and medium prints hang on a pair of plates and larger ones get a built-in aluminium cleat, with wall spacers holding the panel parallel to the wall. Prints are ready to ship in five to seven working days.
The catch hasn’t moved in four years. Beyondprint prints in Central Finland and its FAQ still says it ships EU-wide only. If you live outside Europe, this one is off your list however good the size range looks.
4. Shutterfly
Shutterfly is a well-known print-to-order company. They have a seemingly endless range of products, of which glass prints are one. You can order flat or curved, and the two are genuinely different objects rather than two shapes of the same thing.
Flat glass prints come in three sizes: 5 x 7, 8 x 10 and 10 x 12 inches (12.5 x 17 cm to 25.5 x 30.5 cm). Each one includes a clear acrylic stand. Curved glass prints come in three sizes as well, 5 x 7, 7 x 10 and 10 x 12 inches, and they need no stand at all because the curve holds them upright.
Both styles are translucent, with wide bevelled edges. Shutterfly prints them so light passes through the image, and that is the whole point of buying one. Sit it on a shelf near a window or a lamp and it glows. Hang it on a dark wall and it will look flatter than a Fracture print.
Shutterfly is the wrong pick if you want wall art, because neither style is built to hang, and the wrong pick if you want anything large. It is the right pick for a desk or a shelf with light behind the glass, and it is the one to use if you want collage layouts, custom text or a design template rather than a bare photo.
5. MyPhoto
MyPhoto produces glass prints on what they claim is the “world’s lightest wall art.” It is a similar product to mobile phone screen glass. AirGlass prints are available in four sizes: 5 x 7, 8 x 8, 11 x 14 and 12 x 12 inches (12.5 x 17 cm to 30.5 x 30.5 cm).
Each one weighs 2.8 oz (79 g) and arrives with re-stickable mounting tape already on the back. You press it to the wall, and if you want to move it, it comes right off leaving no mark and no screw holes. Nothing else on this page lets you rearrange a photo wall in an evening, and that is the reason to choose MyPhoto over the rest.
MyPhoto’s Infinity Glass prints are the thicker, heavier line, with rounded corners. They come in five sizes, 4 x 4, 5 x 7, 8 x 8, 8 x 10 and 11 x 14 inches (10 x 10 cm to 28 x 36 cm), and at checkout you choose a clear acrylic stand or a wall-mounting kit.
Everything is printed and shipped from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and shipping is free once your order passes their minimum. Skip MyPhoto if you want a print longer than 14 inches on its long edge, and skip it entirely if you are outside the US, because they deliver only to US states, territories and armed forces addresses.
6. Prints on Glass
Prints on Glass leaves no doubt about what it does, although it prints on acrylic, metal and canvas too. Its specialty is scale. They make kitchen and bathroom splashbacks, whole glass feature walls, architectural panels, glass signage, glass awards and even glass memorials for gravestones.
Wall art prints come on 6 mm toughened, ultra-clear glass with no green tinge in the edge. Four stock sizes run from 600 x 400 mm (23.6 x 15.7 inches) to 1200 x 800 mm (47 x 31.5 inches), and past that you type your own dimensions into the site and it quotes you on the spot. You also pick the mounting system: a concealed batten, pin mounts, spring clips, acrylic keyhole mounts or an acrylic stand.
Two upgrades are worth knowing about. A metallic finish prints your image onto pearl-based media before it goes onto the glass, which deepens the colour and leaves a hint of silver showing through. And their designers will enlarge and optimise your file at no extra cost, which matters at these sizes.
This probably isn’t the choice if you’re looking for a picture of your graduation for your grandparents, and the standard wall prints are specified for indoor use, so you have to ask before ordering anything for a wet area or outdoors. But if you’re looking for something quite off-the-wall (or on-the-wall), then it is worth a look. Prints on Glass are based in Sydney and ship worldwide.
7. Cameo Glass Prints
Cameo is another specialist glass print producer, working out of Lexington, Kentucky. As well as curved and flat prints, they make glass trays, coasters, paperweights, tree ornaments, and cutting boards.
Curved glass prints are self-supporting. They can be viewed from both sides and come in seven sizes: 5 x 7, 6 x 8, 7 x 10, 8 x 10, 6 x 11, 7 x 13 and 10 x 14 inches (12.5 x 17 cm to 25.5 x 36 cm). These are only available in landscape format, and there is no portrait option at checkout.
The flat glass prints are available in three rectangular formats (landscape or portrait) and one square. Sizes are 5 x 7, 6 x 8, 7 x 7 and 8 x 10 inches (12.5 x 17 cm to 20.5 x 25.5 cm). Cameo’s printing process is translucent, so you can view the prints from both sides and stand them against a light source. They come with a small metal peg on the bottom edge to support the glass print.
Cameo is the pick if the translucency is the point and you want a shape other than a rectangle. It is not the pick for a wall, because nothing in the glass print range hangs. Orders ship from Lexington within two to three business days, and they’re worth looking at if you are interested in some of the other glass print products they make.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Glass Photo Prints Fragile?
Yes, and you should plan for it. These are toughened or laminated panels rather than window glass. Prints on Glass uses 6 mm toughened stock and Beyondprint laminates its 7 mm panels, which stops a break becoming dangerous but doesn’t stop a break. Fracture rounds its edges and covers its prints with a lifetime warranty, and Shutterfly and MyPhoto both run satisfaction guarantees that cover a damaged arrival. Fix a large panel to something solid rather than plasterboard alone.
Do Glass Prints Fade?
Less than paper does. Fracture cures its ink with ultraviolet light as it is laid down, so the pigment is locked before the print leaves the machine. Beyondprint bonds its panels in a paper-free process, so there is no paper layer to yellow behind the image. Glass itself doesn’t degrade under UV, which is the main argument for glass over both acrylic and a framed paper print.
Can You Hang A Glass Print Outside?
Only Beyondprint sells one rated for it. Its glass prints are hermetically sealed and specified for damp rooms and outdoor walls. Prints on Glass builds external signage, but lists its standard wall art prints as indoor products, so you need to ask them before ordering one for a patio or a bathroom. Everything else here is an indoor product.
What Resolution Do You Need For A Glass Print?
Send the original file, not a copy that has been through a messaging app or pulled back off social media. Beyondprint says exactly that in its own FAQ, and it applies to every service on this page. A file that makes a good 8 x 10 on paper will make a good 8 x 10 on glass, but glass is less forgiving of softness because there is no paper texture to hide behind.
Do You Need A Frame For A Glass Print?
No. Every service here sells frameless prints, and that is the main visual difference between glass and a framed paper print. Fracture backs its prints with foamcore and puts the screw and wall tape in the box. Beyondprint fits hanging plates or an aluminium cleat. MyPhoto’s AirGlass sticks straight to the wall. Shutterfly, Snapfish and Cameo supply a stand or a metal post instead, because those are tabletop products. Fracture does sell frames separately if you want one.
Conclusion
The world of choosing a glass print for your photos can be quite confusing. What you choose depends on where you live, how big you want to go, and whether you want the light in front of the glass or behind it.
For most people in the US, Fracture is the safe first stop. Glass is all it makes, its prints hang the day they arrive, and the lifetime warranty means a breakage isn’t the end of the picture.
If you want a photo wall you can rearrange, MyPhoto is the answer instead. It’s great to be able to make a display without drilling holes. Or to be able to change your mind.
In Europe, Beyondprint has an impressive selection of sizes and offers custom glass pictures. This makes them an attractive proposition. Especially as they are weatherproof and can be used outdoors.
If you want to emphasize the glassiness of your prints and have the light come through them, then Shutterfly and Cameo Glass Prints are the two to compare. Shutterfly if you want a curved shape and design templates off the shelf, Cameo if you want the square format or the larger curved sizes.
Finally, if you want something truly out of the ordinary, like a splashback, or a statement wall artwork, then Prints on Glass fit the bill. It’s not a cheap option, but the possibilities are almost endless. They’re one of the few options for large glass photo prints.
Whichever you choose, upload the biggest original file you have rather than a shared copy. Glass shows detail more sharply than paper does, and it shows softness just as clearly.
