Google Photos is genuinely good. The search works, the sharing is easy, and the app is polished. So when we built Bombajom Photos as an alternative, we didn't start from "Google is bad." We started from "what are you actually paying, and are you okay with it?"
This is an honest comparison. We'll cover the real dollar cost over five years, what you give up in privacy, and, yes, the situations where Google Photos is still the better choice.
The real cost of Google Photos over 5 years
Google killed free unlimited storage in 2021. Every photo now counts against your 15GB of free Google storage (shared with Gmail and Drive). Most people with a few years of photos blow past 15GB quickly.
Here's what the paid plans cost over five years:
Scenario 1: Moderate photographer (200GB plan)
You take a normal amount of photos and occasional video. The 200GB Google One plan covers you today, but you'll likely need to upgrade as your library grows.
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google One (200GB) | $30 | $30 | $30 | |||
| Google One (2TB after outgrowing 200GB) | $100 | $100 | ||||
| Google total | $290 |
That's the optimistic scenario. Google has raised prices before and likely will again.
Scenario 2: Active family (2TB from the start)
You have kids, you take lots of video, and you already know 200GB isn't enough. You start with the 2TB plan.
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google One (2TB) | $100 | $100 | $100 | $100 | $100 | $500 |
Five hundred dollars, and you still don't own anything. If you stop paying, you lose access to your full-resolution photos.
What self-storage costs instead
There are two paths: an external drive (simpler) or a NAS (more capable). Here's what each looks like over the same five years.
Path A: External drive + computer you already own
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| 2TB external USB drive | $60–$80 (one-time) |
| Bombajom Photos app | $25/year |
| 5-year total | $185–$205 |
Path B: Synology NAS (shared by the whole family)
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Synology DS223 (2-bay NAS) | ~$200 (one-time) |
| 2 x 4TB hard drives | ~$120 (one-time) |
| Bombajom Photos Family plan | $45/year |
| 5-year total | $545 |
The NAS path costs more up front, but you get 4–8TB of redundant storage that the whole family uses, with no per-person fees from Google. And after five years, you still own the hardware.
Here's the bigger picture:
| Google (2TB, 5 years) | External drive | NAS (family) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total cost | $500 | ~$200 | ~$545 |
| Storage you get | 2TB (rented) | 2TB (owned) | 4-8TB (owned, redundant) |
| After you stop paying | Lose full-res access | Photos still on drive | Photos still on NAS |
| Price increases | Likely | No | No |
| Family sharing | Costs extra | One phone per drive | Up to 12 computers |
What you give up with Google Photos
Cost is concrete. Privacy is murkier, so let's be specific about what Google actually does with your photos.
Your photos train Google's AI
Google's privacy policy allows them to use your content to "develop and improve" their services. In practice, this means your photos help train Google's image recognition, scene detection, and generative AI models. You opted into this when you accepted the terms of service, though most people don't realize it.
This isn't hypothetical. Google's AI capabilities in Pixel phones, Google Lens, and their generative image tools all benefit from the billions of photos stored in Google Photos.
Data mining shapes your profile
Google doesn't "sell your data" in the crude sense. They do something more sophisticated: they build a detailed profile of you (where you go, who you're with, what you buy, what you celebrate) and sell access to that profile to advertisers. Your photos are one input among many, but they're a rich one.
Think about what your photo library reveals: your home, your kids' school, your vacations, your health, your habits. That information has value to advertisers, and Google captures it.
Vendor lock-in is real
Try leaving Google Photos. You can use Google Takeout to download your library, but you'll get a pile of zip files with inconsistent metadata, sidecar JSON files instead of embedded EXIF data, and edited photos without their originals. It works, but it's deliberately cumbersome.
Bombajom can actually help with this even if you're not ready to fully switch. The app includes a Google Photos import feature that pulls your library directly from Google Photos into your own storage, preserving dates and organization. More on that below.
Terms can change anytime
Google has changed its Photos terms multiple times. They ended free unlimited storage. They changed how "Storage Saver" compression works. They've deprecated features. When your photos live on someone else's servers under someone else's terms, you're along for the ride.
How Bombajom works as an alternative
Bombajom Photos is a mobile app that backs up your phone's photos to storage you already own. The simplest version: plug an external drive into your computer, install Bombajom on your phone, and your photos start syncing over Wi-Fi.
For people who want more, Bombajom also works with NAS devices from Synology, QNAP, TrueNAS, and others. Same app, same setup flow. You just point it at your NAS instead of a computer.
Here's what you get:
- Automatic background sync. Photos back up as you take them, just like Google Photos.
- On-device search. The app uses AI that runs entirely on your phone to tag photos ("sunset", "birthday cake", "dog") so you can search without uploading to any server.
- Browse your full library. Even photos you've deleted from your phone are still browsable in the app, loaded from your backup.
- Encrypted local database. Your photo index is encrypted with AES-256 on your phone. No one can access it without your device.
Importing from Google Photos
If you have years of photos in Google Photos, you don't have to start from scratch. Bombajom includes a built-in Google Photos import tool:
- Connect your Google account in the Bombajom app (one-time authorization)
- The app downloads your full Google Photos library in the background
- Photos land on your own storage (external drive or NAS) with dates and album structure preserved
- Once the import is complete, you can disconnect your Google account
This usually takes a few hours to a few days depending on your library size. It runs in the background, so you don't need to babysit it.
After importing, you've got a complete local copy of everything that was in Google Photos, plus all your future photos backing up automatically. At that point, you can downgrade or cancel your Google One plan.
When Google Photos is still the better choice
We'd be dishonest if we didn't say this: Google Photos is the better option for some people. Here's when:
You share albums constantly with people outside your household. Google Photos makes shared albums effortless. Everyone has a Google account, everyone can contribute. Bombajom is great for family backup but doesn't match Google's sharing convenience with friends, extended family, or coworkers.
You rely on Google's editing tools. Magic Eraser, portrait blur, color pop: Google's editing suite is excellent and powered by their cloud AI. Bombajom focuses on backup and browsing, not editing.
You need access from any device with zero setup. Google Photos works from any browser, any phone, any computer. With Bombajom, you need the app installed and need to be on your home network (or set up remote access on your NAS).
You want truly hands-off backup with zero hardware to maintain. An external drive can fail. A NAS needs occasional updates. Google handles all of that for you. If you never want to think about storage hardware, cloud storage earns its monthly fee.
Your library is small and 15GB of free storage is enough. If you take minimal photos and haven't hit the free limit, Google Photos costs nothing and works perfectly.
The middle ground
You don't have to go all-or-nothing. Plenty of Bombajom users keep Google Photos as a secondary copy (on the free tier or a small paid plan) while using Bombajom as their primary backup on their own hardware. This gives you the best of both worlds: local control and privacy for your primary copy, plus the convenience of Google for quick sharing.
The important thing is that your photos exist on hardware you own, so you're never locked in and never dependent on someone else's pricing decisions.
Getting started
If you want to try self-storage:
- Simplest path: Plug any USB external drive into your computer, download Bombajom, and follow the setup wizard. Takes about 5 minutes.
- Family/NAS path: If you already own a Synology or other NAS, check out our Synology setup guide to get the whole family backing up.
- Migrate from Google: Install Bombajom, set up your backup destination, then use the built-in Google Photos import to bring your existing library over.
Bombajom has a 7-day free trial, no credit card required. Your photos stay on your hardware from day one.