Adobe is a popular enterprise DAM solution. But if you're a growing business without a digital asset management (DAM) solution in place, consider ImageKit. Built for fast-growing marketing and creative teams for businesses of any size, ImageKit offers all the features of an enterprise-grade DAM solution but with shorter implementation times and a more user-friendly experience.

4 reasons why ImageKit is a better Adobe Experience Manager DAM alternative

Take a look at how ImageKit DAM works

ImageKit vs Adobe Experience DAM: Comparison overview

ImageKit offers a DAM with enterprise-grade features, a simple interface, and affordable pricing.

Here's a quick table to skim through ImageKit's offerings vs Adobe AEM's.

How does ImageKit DAM compare to Adobe Experience Manager DAM?

Media collections

With ImageKit, you can group your files and folders however you like, without being tied to a rigid folder structure. When you update a master file, the latest version is automatically synced across all your virtual collections, so your team always has access to the most up-to-date files without any duplicates.

AEM DAM provides various types of collections, like smart and nested collections, which help manage complex use cases. But there’s a concern around security. Assets are automatically added to collections based on preset queries, and it’s not always clear how permissions are handled. This could result in assets being shared with users who shouldn’t have access, creating potential security risks.

Custom metadata

ImageKit DAM offers flexible custom metadata fields that can be easily tailored to fit the needs of both small and large teams. Whether you’re a small business or an enterprise, ImageKit’s custom metadata ensures assets are organized, easy to find, and aligned with your workflows. It’s simple to configure, yet powerful enough to scale with your growing needs.

AEM DAM can be difficult to set up and learn, which can lead to complexity if not managed carefully. Custom metadata organization, for instance, might require technical help when configuring metadata schemas.

Tagging

Both AEM DAM and ImageKit offer advanced tagging features, including AI-powered automatic tagging. With these tools, you can automatically generate tags based on the media’s content, making your files much easier to search and cutting down on manual effort.

Search and AI-driven search

Both solutions offer solid search functionality.

With ImageKit, you can quickly find assets thanks to flexible search options, including searching by name, tags, keywords, and visual similarity. The platform also features search autocomplete and an advanced search mode to help you combine multiple parameters for precise results.

Adobe Sensei powers its search, using AI to enhance accuracy and relevance, especially in large libraries. ImageKit also leverages AI, allowing you to search using natural language or image input to locate visually similar assets easily and improve your search experience.

Access controls

Both Adobe Experience Manager DAM and ImageKit DAM offer robust, role-based access controls with comprehensive Access Control Lists (ACL) capabilities. You can set permissions at both the user and group levels, allowing for more than just view, comment, or edit rights.

Sharing capabilities

Both platforms support asset sharing with individuals and teams. With ImageKit DAM, you can easily share assets both inside and outside your organization using shareable links. You also have the option to set permissions and expiration dates for added control.

Activity logs

Both platforms offer strong audit logging features, but ImageKit stands out with its granular filtering and asset-level history. You can easily filter logs by action type, specific assets, or time frames, helping you quickly find the information you need.

AEM provides programmatic access through an API and repository-level configuration, allowing you to retrieve and manipulate logs programmatically for integration or custom reporting.

Integration with other tools

AEM DAM offers extensive integration options within Adobe's ecosystem and with third-party tools like Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics. Its highly customizable integrations are ideal for complex enterprise setups.

ImageKit takes a different approach. Rather than relying on native integrations, it offers flexibility by allowing you to use it with any tool of your choice. With the DAM desktop app and embeddable media library, you can use ImageKit directly with your internal CMS or tools like Photoshop, Illustrator, and Shopify—no need to switch between applications or browser tabs.

Commenting and versioning

Both solutions offer advanced commenting and versioning features with robust version control. You can revert to previous versions, compare changes, and maintain detailed version histories. Time-stamped is also available, especially beneficial for collaboration on video assets.

Usability and learning curve

ImageKit DAM is designed for simplicity. It offers a low learning curve, making it accessible to users of all technical levels. Perfect for small to medium-sized businesses, it allows for quick setup and easy adoption.

AEM DAM, on the other hand, is a powerful platform. Its extensive features and customization options come with a steeper learning curve. This complexity often requires training and dedicated resources, making it better suited for large enterprises.

ImageKit vs Adobe Experience Manager DAM: Pricing comparison

Adobe Experience Manager DAM solution, has two pricing tiers: departmental and enterprise. But there’s a catch – pricing details aren’t publicly available. You’ll need to talk to a salesperson to get the numbers, which can make it hard to know if it’s within your budget.

If you’re already using Adobe products, adding AEM Assets to your setup is straightforward. However, if you’re not on AEM yet, getting started can be a big investment. AEM Assets is a comprehensive and complex system, and setting it up often requires specialized expertise. This can make it a challenging and costly option for small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs), who might find the high costs and the need for ongoing support to be significant hurdles.

ImageKit is much more accessible. It offers a forever free plan with essential features, 3 user seats, and 25GB of storage. Perfect for SMBs. If you need more, paid plans start at just $89 per month with no setup fees. The clear pricing and free plan make ImageKit a great option for smaller businesses looking for a simple, affordable DAM solution.

ImageKit vs Adobe Experience Manager DAM: Media processing capabilities

AEM's media processing features are limited to enterprise plans. But with ImageKit, you get these tools even in the forever free plan. While AEM has strong image transformation capabilities, ImageKit offers over 50 real-time transformations via simple URL parameters.

ImageKit’s built-in media optimization ensures your assets are delivered in the best formats and smallest sizes, without losing visual quality. With its extensive real-time transformations and better compression ratio, adapting and scaling your media for different use cases is effortless and efficient.

ImageKit vs Adobe Experience Manager DAM: Image editing

Adobe Experience Manager DAM integrates seamlessly with Adobe’s creative tools, offering advanced features like precision editing, layers, and detailed color correction. This makes it a strong option for those needing extensive editing capabilities.

ImageKit stands out with its user-friendly in-platform editing, featuring a browser-based editor and AI-powered background removal tool for quick, efficient fixes. While it’s not as advanced as Photoshop, it’s perfect for users looking to make simple edits easily and reliably.

ImageKit vs Adobe Experience Manager DAM: AI and GenAI Capabilities

Both platforms use generative AI to improve the user experience, but they meet different needs.

Adobe Experience Manager DAM’s GenAI is built to handle a wide variety of content creation and management.

On the other hand, ImageKit focuses on making image generation, transformation, and enhancement fast and easy for use on websites and apps. It’s especially useful for e-commerce and digital media, helping you create and update images at scale directly from the image’s URL without expensive reshoots or endless stock photo searches. The Genfill feature automatically adapts images to fit different formats, making sure they always look good. For e-commerce, tools like Remove BG, Retouch, and Upscale let you create high-quality product images just by adding a few parameters to the image’s URL.