1. Directory snapshot
We actively track 23 stock media tools across 8 sub-categories.
5 Stock Media statistics & trends (2026)
This is our 2026 read on stock media: how the field is priced, where the tools cluster, and which way buying behaviour is moving.
We build these figures from our own stock media directory of 23 tools, which keeps them checkable; anything we can't measure ourselves is sourced to the external research linked below rather than estimated.
Key stock media statistics
2. Free-tier availability
1 of the 23 stock media tools here (4%) ship a genuine free plan or tier.
3. Trial availability
0 of 23 tools (0%) lean on a free trial instead of (or alongside) a free plan.
4. Entry pricing range
Entry-level paid plans across these tools span roughly $12 to $29.99 per month, with a typical (median) starting price around $29..
5. Category density
The most crowded sub-categories right now are Stock Marketplace (8), Music Subscription (5), Stock Subscription Bundle (3), Graphics Marketplace (2), Free Stock Library (2).
What the stock media tools reveal
Aggregated from our stock media tool research, these are specific, sourced facts rather than market estimates:
- Envato Elements: Library of 28M+ assets (video, photos, music, SFX, templates, graphics, fonts, 3D).
- Shutterstock: Over 860M total assets, including 468M+ photos/vectors/illustrations and ~40M video clips.
- Adobe Stock: Library advertised around 900M+ assets (includes broader Adobe inventory).
- iStock: Access to ~160M media files.
- Getty Images: Ultrapacks span 50M+ images incl. all Creative RF photos/videos and most editorial RM.
- Depositphotos: Library of 326M+ files (photos, vectors, video, editorial).
- Dreamstime: 343M+ stock photos; 1M+ free images.
- Pond5: 44M+ clips (Jan 2025); 30M+ videos and 70M+ images plus music/SFX.
- 123RF: 240M+ royalty-free assets (photos, vectors, video, audio, fonts).
- Alamy: 300M+ images, vectors and videos; ~150,000 added daily.
- Freepik: 200M+ asset library; 250M+ premium assets marketed on paid plans.
- Vecteezy: 60M+ creative assets; 20M+ monthly users.
Sources
The tool-level facts above are drawn from these independent reviews and vendor pages:
- elements.envato.com
- elements.envato.com
- photutorial.com
- shutterstock.com
- shutterstock.com
- photutorial.com
- stock.adobe.com
- helpx.adobe.com
- photutorial.com
- istockphoto.com
- photutorial.com
- stockphotosecrets.com
- gettyimages.com
- gettyimages.com
- photutorial.com
- depositphotos.com
- stockphotosecrets.com
- findstack.com
- dreamstime.com
- dreamstime.com
- photutorial.com
- pond5.com
- en.wikipedia.org
- photutorial.com
- 123rf.com
- stockphotosecrets.com
- photutorial.com
- alamy.com
- alamy.com
- stockphotosecrets.com
- photutorial.com
- flowith.io
- checkthat.ai
- vecteezy.com
- capterra.com
- g2.com
Qualitative trends to watch in 2026
Consolidation and feature-bundling are the defining trends in stock media right now. A few directional patterns we're seeing, framed as trends rather than precise figures (we don't publish numbers we can't source):
- Annual-billing discounts are widening, nudging buyers toward longer commitments.
- The busiest sub-categories (Stock Marketplace (8), Music Subscription (5), Stock Subscription Bundle (3), Graphics Marketplace (2), Free Stock Library (2)) are where overlap is highest and pricing competition sharpest.
- With 8 sub-categories in play, buyers increasingly consolidate onto a few broader tools rather than stitching point solutions together.
- Trials are doing more of the selling: 0 of 23 tools here lean on a free trial rather than a permanent free plan to win buyers.