Narrative Select vs FilterPixel: Quotas, Cloud and Cost

The metering difference

FilterPixel limits how many shoots get DeepCull; Narrative limits users and personal presets, not images or projects. FilterPixel's pricing lists basic AI culling as unlimited and ties the 5,500-photo limit to DeepCull shoots (whether the limit also applies to basic culling is not stated), with DeepCull allowances by plan and extra shoots at $7.99. Narrative's pricing lists unlimited projects and images. Prices as of 8 November 2026, annual billing; FilterPixel's own pages are inconsistent on some figures (conflicting sources), so confirm at checkout.

Cost at 10, 25 and 45 weddings a year

Example (arithmetic, not a measurement): one wedding is one shoot of a hypothetical 3,000 RAW frames, under the 5,500-photo cap, and every shoot uses DeepCull. The arithmetic assumes the annual allowance can be spread across the year; the pricing page's wording that unused plan shoots reset monthly may mean otherwise, which would raise FilterPixel's cost, so read the plan terms.

Narrative's own plan arithmetic is on Narrative Select pricing.

How a FilterPixel shoot is counted

FilterPixel's pricing page, as read on 8 November 2026, says up to 5,500 photos fit in one shoot and a larger project is split into more than one (its example: a 10,000-photo project uses two). That matters for weddings with a second shooter or a long reception, where the combined frame count passes 5,500. How a two-day event is divided into projects, and whether you can choose the split: not found in sources reviewed.

Example (arithmetic, not a measurement): a hypothetical 6,000-frame wedding, so two shoots each, every shoot using DeepCull, extra shoots at $7.99, allowance spread across the year.

Past about 25 weddings of that size, Pro is the FilterPixel plan the arithmetic points to, and the gap to Narrative Standard widens with volume. Studio (140 shoots, $780) would cover 70 such weddings.

Where your files go

The two vendors describe different data paths, and neither is complete on paper.

Narrative

culling and assessment happen on your computer per its Select page. Per the same page, training a Personal AI Preset uploads edited images and edit data, and sharing previews to improve Narrative is optional and off by default; the presets page says only that training needs a connection. The privacy policy (February 2022) does not mention AI training: not found in sources reviewed. Terms: source inaccessible (404).

FilterPixel

sources conflict. Its homepage says original files never leave your computer, with a small embedded preview from each RAW uploaded and DeepCull analysed in the cloud. Its blog says it uploads compressed previews and only pulls the full file for export-quality work, which is not the same statement. The blog also says deletion after processing is the default and photos are not used for marketing; these are vendor statements. Its privacy policy and terms URLs returned 404 (source inaccessible), so no operative training or retention language was read. Offline use: not found in sources reviewed. No client-file recommendation follows from this.

If client confidentiality is a constraint, ask both vendors in writing; the pages cannot settle it. See offline and cloud AI culling.

Culling features, formats and platforms

FilterPixel's pricing page lists a basic AI cull and DeepCull (genre-aware, a score and reason per photo, analysed in the cloud from the preview embedded in each RAW, per its homepage); its homepage says Review Mode never removes an image, Survey Mode groups similar images, and custom tagging learns your stars, labels and flags. What Basic Cull checks and what Magic Number does: not found in sources reviewed beyond a homepage line about culling a large shoot while you pack. Narrative groups Scenes, ranks from Best to Undesirable with reasons, and has Mac-dependent face tools (Key People Highlighting needs Apple Silicon and macOS 14+; People Filter is Mac-only). On import, Narrative's Select page says it copies cards to a working folder and up to four backup folders; FilterPixel's ingest behaviour: not found in sources reviewed.

Neither list guarantees support for your exact body or compressed RAW variants, so check yours in the trial.

Vendor claims

Narrative publishes no accuracy figure of its own in the sources reviewed.

Each vendor's page about the other also disagrees with the other's own pages, which is a reason not to use either rival page as a fact source:

• FilterPixel's comparison page calls Narrative Select macOS-only and describes its trial as "3 Pro projects and 1,000 edit credits"; Narrative's own Select page lists macOS and Windows and a full Ultra trial with no card. Narrative's own pages should win, but confirm.
• Narrative's comparison page (published 19 October 2026) says FilterPixel runs on "lightweight, low-resolution derivatives" rather than originals and does not say where they are processed, which is consistent with, but less specific than, FilterPixel's own preview-upload statement.
• On data path, Narrative's Select page says culling is local and FilterPixel's homepage says DeepCull analyses a preview in the cloud; each vendor's own page is the better source for its own product, and a competitor's description of a rival's data path is not evidence for it.

Editing and export

FilterPixel's homepage says it sends final images to Lightroom, Capture One or Photo Mechanic and does not name the mechanism. Its own comparison page says it writes XMP sidecar files that Lightroom reads automatically, a vendor claim to verify against your catalog. Its Style DNA learns from an edited Lightroom catalog; the required image count: not found in sources reviewed. Narrative's personal presets need at least 1,500 edited images and a connection to train, and AI Preset edits need Lightroom Classic or Lightroom CC. Per the Select page it ships to Lightroom Classic on Mac and Windows, while Lightroom CC, Photoshop and Capture One shipping is Mac-only and those apps receive photos without preset edits; Narrative does not export finished JPEGs. FilterPixel retouching: not found in sources reviewed.

If your next step is Photo Mechanic, FilterPixel's homepage names it as a destination and Narrative's Select page does not; see Photo Mechanic vs AI culling for the ingest question.

Who should pick which

High shoot count, one price

Narrative, unless your galleries stay under 5,500 frames and you want per-shoot DeepCull reasoning.

Weddings over 5,500 frames (second shooter, long days)

model the shoot count first; the table above shows how fast FilterPixel's allowance is used.

Windows or Mac with Capture One or Photo Mechanic downstream

FilterPixel documents those exports on both; Narrative's Capture One shipping is Mac-only.

Genre-aware scoring with reasons

FilterPixel's DeepCull names conference, sports, concert and wedding genres on its homepage.

Offline use

Narrative allows up to 30 days after sign-in; FilterPixel's is not found in sources reviewed, and DeepCull needs a connection.

Tight entry budget

compare Narrative Standard (Lite lacks the full culling set) with FilterPixel Standard.

No official FilterPixel Black Friday 2026 offer was found; Narrative's is on its page. See the deals roundup. Related: Narrative Select review, Aftershoot vs Narrative Select, Narrative Select alternatives. Visit FilterPixel or .

Check this in your trial

1. Whether FilterPixel's free projects cover one full wedding with DeepCull, and how many shoots a 6,000-frame wedding consumes.
2. With a network monitor, what each app uploads and when.
3. How the plan counts a multi-day event as shoots, and whether an XMP sidecar appears next to each RAW after FilterPixel export.
4. Which Narrative face features work on your OS.
5. Export fidelity into your editor.
6. Whether Narrative's learning-upload option is off.

Original test pending: we would run both on one licensed wedding gallery and report minutes, keeper overlap and false rejects against a human pick, per our methodology.