SmugMug to Dropbox: Move Every Gallery Into Folders You Can Share

Dropbox has no SmugMug import. Get originals out per gallery with SmugMug's zip download, or copy every gallery server-side, then re-share them from Dropbox.

Introduction

Dropbox's Upload menu can import from Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive, but not from SmugMug, and SmugMug has no button that sends galleries to Dropbox. Moving a SmugMug library means either downloading originals and uploading them again, or letting a third service read SmugMug and write into Dropbox for you.

Photographers usually make this move for a practical reason: client galleries need to keep working after a SmugMug plan ends, or the archive should live where the rest of the studio's files already are. This guide covers what a SmugMug library becomes in Dropbox, how much Dropbox space to plan, SmugMug's own per-gallery zip download step by step, a server-side copy of whole folder trees with CloudsLinker, and how to replace client links before you cancel.

The Short Answer
What a SmugMug Library Becomes in Dropbox
Sizing Dropbox for a SmugMug Library
Three Ways to Move It
Method 1: SmugMug Zip Download, Then Upload to Dropbox
Method 2: Copy Galleries Server-Side With CloudsLinker
Re-Share Client Galleries From Dropbox
Before You Cancel SmugMug
Frequently Asked Questions

The Short Answer

There is no SmugMug-to-Dropbox button on either side. For a handful of galleries, download each gallery as a zip from SmugMug's Site Organizer and upload the extracted folder with Dropbox's Upload → Folder (Method 1).

For a whole library, copy the folder and gallery tree from SmugMug to Dropbox on CloudsLinker's servers with read-only access to SmugMug (Method 2). In both cases, photos that are only in SmugMug's Library need to be added to a gallery or downloaded separately.

What a SmugMug Library Becomes in Dropbox

SmugMug keeps photos in a private Library and shows them through folders and galleries on your Site. Dropbox has only folders, so the Site's tree becomes a folder tree and everything that made a gallery a web page stays behind:

In SmugMug	In Dropbox
Folder `Clients` with gallery `Miller wedding 2025`	Folder `Clients/Miller wedding 2025`
Original JPEG, HEIC or TIFF (up to 500 MB)	The same file, with its EXIF and IPTC data (capture date, camera, Lightroom keywords and copyright)
RAW file with SmugMug Source (up to 3 GB)	The RAW file as uploaded
Photo only in the Library, in no gallery	Not included until added to a gallery or downloaded from the Library
Title, caption and keywords typed into SmugMug	Not carried over — they are SmugMug fields, not part of the file
Gallery theme, cover, sort order, password, proofing and sales	Nothing equivalent; Dropbox shows a file grid and a Photos timeline
Gallery share link or custom domain	Replaced by a Dropbox share link per folder (see below)

To find Library-only photos, open SmugMug's Library, set Media Location to Only in Library, select them and choose Add to Site Gallery (an Unlisted or Private gallery is fine), or More → Download to save them directly.

SmugMug Library with two photos selected: the selection bar offers Share as Gallery, Add to Site Gallery, Manage Labels and More, whose menu lists Download, Delete and Edit Keywords

Sizing Dropbox for a SmugMug Library

SmugMug has no storage quota, so it never shows a library total. Estimate from your largest galleries — a wedding in RAW plus JPEG is easily tens of gigabytes — or copy one top-level folder at a time and watch Dropbox's usage grow.

Dropbox plan	Storage	Version history
Basic (free)	2 GB	30 days
Plus, $9.99/month billed yearly	2 TB	30 days
Standard, from $15/user/month	From 3 TB for the team	180 days
Advanced, from $24/user/month, three users minimum	From 15 TB for the team	365 days

Single files are no problem: Dropbox takes files up to 2 TB, and SmugMug's largest are 3 GB RAW files. What can fail is a very large browser upload — Dropbox warns that uploads over 375 GB in a web browser may time out (Dropbox help) — so upload gallery by gallery, or use the Dropbox desktop app, if you go the download route.

Three Ways to Move It

Route	Suits	Limits
SmugMug zip download + Dropbox Upload → Folder	A few galleries	One request per gallery; local disk for each zip; manual upload
Desktop downloader (Folio on macOS, WinMug on Windows) + Dropbox desktop app	Whole libraries, with enough local disk	The library must fit on your disk; upload over your home connection
CloudsLinker server-side copy	Whole libraries, repeat copies of new galleries	Library-only photos must be in a gallery; transfer volume on your CloudsLinker plan

The desktop downloaders are listed in SmugMug's own help center (SmugMug's list); they recreate the folder tree on your disk, and the Dropbox desktop app then uploads it from the Dropbox folder.

Method 1: SmugMug Zip Download, Then Upload to Dropbox

SmugMug's owner download packs one gallery's originals into a zip. It includes photos you hid in the gallery, and RAW and sidecar files if you have SmugMug Source and are logged in (SmugMug help).

Step 1: Select the Gallery in Site Organizer

Logged in to SmugMug, open My Site → Site Organizer, open the gallery, click Select All and then the Download icon in the toolbar.

SmugMug Site Organizer with the gallery Coastline 2026 open, all six photos selected after Select All and the pointer on the toolbar's Download icon

Step 2: Download the Archive

SmugMug prepares the archive and lists it in a Download Images dialog, named after the gallery. Click the name to download the zip. Photos deleted after you made the selection are not included.

SmugMug Download Images dialog listing the archive Coastline 2026 with its creation time and the note that photos deleted after selection are not included, with a Done button

Step 3: Extract and Upload the Folder to Dropbox

Extract the zip into a folder named after the gallery. In Dropbox, open the folder that will hold your SmugMug archive — here SmugMug archive — and choose Upload → Folder, then select the gallery folder. The menu's only imports are from Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive.

Dropbox folder SmugMug archive with the Upload menu open, listing File, Folder, Import from Google Drive and Import from Microsoft OneDrive

Step 4: Repeat Per Gallery and Rebuild the Folder Tree

Each zip is one gallery, so recreate SmugMug's folders in Dropbox as you go (Clients, Portfolio and so on) and upload each gallery into the right one. Delete the zip and the local copy after checking the file count in Dropbox. This is manageable for ten galleries and slow for a few hundred.

Method 2: Copy Galleries Server-Side With CloudsLinker

CloudsLinker reads your Site's folders and galleries through SmugMug's API with read-only access and writes them into Dropbox from its own servers. Your disk and upload speed aren't involved, and the whole tree is copied in one task.

Step 1: Connect SmugMug Read-Only

Click Add Cloud and choose SmugMug. The dialog marks SmugMug as source only. Click I got it, Authorize Now SmugMug and approve on SmugMug's page. SmugMug asks for full access because private galleries and originals aren't visible otherwise; the permission level is read, and CloudsLinker's servers refuse any write to SmugMug.

CloudsLinker Connect Your SmugMug dialog with a yellow Source only notice explaining read-only access, that SmugMug cannot be a transfer target and that Move is unavailable, above the I got it, Authorize Now SmugMug button

Once connected, SmugMug opens like a drive with your Site's folders and galleries.

A SmugMug connection opened in CloudsLinker at SmugMug / Clients, listing the galleries Harbor Cafe headshots, Miller wedding 2025 and Riverside 5K 2026

Step 2: Connect Dropbox

Choose Add Cloud → Dropbox and click I got it, Authorize Now Dropbox. Approval happens on Dropbox's own consent page at www.dropbox.com; CloudsLinker never sees your Dropbox password.

CloudsLinker Connect Your Dropbox dialog with the I got it, Authorize Now Dropbox button that opens Dropbox's consent page

Step 3: Tick Galleries and a Dropbox Folder

Open Transfer. In Source, expand SmugMug and tick whole folders such as Clients, Portfolio and Travel, or individual galleries inside them. In Target, expand Dropbox, open Photos and create SmugMug archive. Copy is selected and Move is greyed out, because nothing can be deleted from SmugMug. A size or file-type filter can leave out RAW files if you only want JPEGs in Dropbox.

CloudsLinker Create transfer task page with the SmugMug folders Clients, Portfolio and Travel ticked as the source, the new folder Photos / SmugMug archive selected in Dropbox as the target, Copy checked and Move greyed out

Step 4: Run the Copy and Check Each Gallery

Click Create transfer. Task monitor shows files and bytes done and the speed, and the task continues after you close the browser. When it finishes, compare file counts for a few large galleries, including one with RAW files and one with hidden photos. Running the task again later copies only what's new; on paid plans it can run weekly or monthly.

CloudsLinker Task monitor with a running copy from SmugMug Clients to Dropbox Photos / SmugMug archive at 38 percent, 1,851 of 4,872 files and 25.01 GB of 65.82 GB done at 31 MB/s

Re-Share Client Galleries From Dropbox

Every link you've sent to a client points at SmugMug and stops working with the account. For galleries that are still in use:

In Dropbox, hover over the gallery's folder and click Share, then create a link that anyone with the link can view.
Send the new link to the client, and update the links on your website and in email templates.
For galleries that relied on SmugMug passwords, proofing or print sales, decide what replaces them before cancelling — Dropbox share links are plain folder links unless your plan adds link controls.
Use Dropbox's File requests if clients used to upload their own picks or files to SmugMug.

Before You Cancel SmugMug

Library check. Media Location → Only in Library should be empty, or those photos saved separately.
Counts. File counts match for your biggest galleries, including RAW and video galleries.
Spot checks. Open a RAW file and a full-size JPEG in Dropbox and compare their size with SmugMug.
Non-photo data. Export client lists and order history you need; captions typed into SmugMug aren't in the files.
Links. Live client links replaced with Dropbox links.
Access. Disconnect CloudsLinker in Dropbox (Settings → Apps) and in SmugMug's account settings, then cancel the subscription.

Frequently Asked Questions

No. Dropbox's Upload menu lists File, Folder, Import from Google Drive and Import from Microsoft OneDrive — there is no SmugMug option, and SmugMug has no export to Dropbox either. You either download from SmugMug and upload to Dropbox, or use a service that reads SmugMug's API and writes to Dropbox, such as CloudsLinker.

Yes, as far as SmugMug holds them. SmugMug keeps what you upload: photos up to 500 MB and 4 gigapixels, and with a SmugMug Source subscription RAW files up to 3 GB. Its zip download includes RAW and sidecar files for Source subscribers who are logged in. CloudsLinker fetches each image's original file through SmugMug's API, so embedded EXIF and IPTC data arrive unchanged.

Yes. Dropbox accepts files up to 2 TB, far above SmugMug's 3 GB RAW limit. Only browser uploads are a concern: Dropbox warns that uploads over 375 GB in a web browser may time out, which matters if you upload one huge extracted folder at once rather than gallery by gallery.

Photos that sit only in SmugMug's Library, in no gallery, aren't visible to tools that read SmugMug through its API. In the Library set Media Location to Only in Library, select those photos and choose Add to Site Gallery (an Unlisted or Private gallery is fine), or download them with More → Download. They are then included in the next copy.

Yes. Run the same transfer again: with the default conflict setting, a file already in Dropbox under the same name is only copied again if its size differs or the SmugMug copy is newer, so mostly new photos are transferred. On paid CloudsLinker plans the transfer can also run on a schedule, weekly or monthly. SmugMug itself is never changed — CloudsLinker's access to it is read-only and Move is unavailable.

They stop working when the SmugMug account closes: links point at SmugMug, and proofing, passwords and print sales are SmugMug features. After the copy, create a Dropbox share link for each gallery folder clients still need and send the new links before cancelling.

As much as the SmugMug library, because files are copied unchanged. SmugMug shows no storage total, so estimate from your largest galleries or copy folder by folder and watch Dropbox's usage. Dropbox Plus has 2 TB for $9.99 a month billed yearly; team plans start at 3 TB (Standard, $15 per user) and 15 TB (Advanced, $24 per user, three users minimum).

In Dropbox, open Settings → Apps and disconnect CloudsLinker. On SmugMug, remove the CloudsLinker authorization in your account settings. Deleting the SmugMug and Dropbox connections in CloudsLinker stops any scheduled transfers.

Conclusion

For a few galleries, SmugMug's zip download and Dropbox's Upload → Folder are all you need. For a library of client folders built up over years, CloudsLinker copies the folder and gallery tree from SmugMug into Dropbox on its own servers with read-only access to SmugMug, and a second run picks up galleries added since. Either way, add Library-only photos to a gallery first, check file counts per gallery, create Dropbox share links for the galleries clients still use, and only then cancel SmugMug.

Related: SmugMug connection notes, SmugMug to Google Drive, Dropbox and Google Takeout to Dropbox.

Start Your Free Trial at CloudsLinker