Artkive specializes in transforming your child's cherished artwork into keepsakes you'll treasure forever. We take care of everything: send a box filled with your little artist's creations, and we professionally photograph and edit each piece. Then turn the images into a stunning hardcover book or a framed mosaic, preserving those special moments for years to come. We can even capture other sentimental items like cards for weddings, birthdays, baby showers, holidays, and other events, as well as all types of photos.
Artkive (artkiveapp.com) has 546 customer reviews on Five Star Index, with an average rating of 4.8 out of 5.
Also known as
artkiveapp.com
Website
artkiveapp.com
Category
Professional Organizations
Location
Van Nuys, California
Listed on Five Star Index
2026
About these reviews
Replies
The company replied to 90% of reviews.
Latest
Most recent review: October 2026.
Edits
Reviews are shown as their authors wrote them. The company can reply, but cannot edit them.
Score
This company cannot pay to remove reviews or change its score.
The worst!! Such a scam. Hidden fees and the service takes forever! They make you think you can see the book before you pay for it but no... you have to pay the total cost for the book and then they show you what it looks like. Also they just make the book with no thought put into it - I had to rearrange it myself. It's not like you then get to work with someone who can help you make edits. In the end I had to pay almost $400 for a book of my child’s PreK artwork that I had to arrange. Oh and then you have to pay to have the artwork sent back or you get a countdown to when they will throw your child's original artwork away. You will regret it.
Response from ArtkiveSep 15, 2025
We’re sorry to hear you’re disappointed and appreciate the feedback. Artkive has two payments: the initial $39 box fee and a second based on the number of pieces sent and book size. This is clearly outlined at multiple stages.
Every piece is professionally photographed and edited, and customers review and approve their book before printing. While many love our designs, we offer customization for those who want to arrange their own pages.
We’re committed to transparency and quality, and we regret that your experience didn’t reflect that.
MD
Mackenzie D.
I sent in my kids’ artwork for two…
I sent in my kids’ artwork for two children, hoping to create two books based on Artkive’s promotion of $25 per book. At first, I was excited by the concept.
However, I’ve been in an ongoing dispute with Artkive since they took photos of every item I sent and then billed me nearly $600 to complete the project. The $25-per-book promo does not come close to justifying a total that high, especially for my kids’ kindergarten artwork.
I’m highly disappointed that the promotion feels misleading and that I’m not getting my original artwork back. My main request is simply to have my kids’ artwork returned.
Additionally:
They have threatened to send my items to collections, even though I never received any finished products or clear updates.
When I tried to schedule a call with a manager, no one ever called back.
The ongoing threats without resolution have been stressful and unproductive.
Current status and warning:
It seems many customers are experiencing similar issues, including delays and lack of communication.
I am still waiting for this to be resolved and hope my kids’ artwork is returned.
Final note:
Be cautious when dealing with Artkive. This process has been a painful, sentiment-heavy lesson, and I do not feel they demonstrate the work ethic or customer care that such sentimental items deserve. If you value your children’s artwork, consider alternatives or demand clear, written assurances about costs, returns, and timelines before proceeding.
Response from ArtkiveAug 29, 2025
Thank you for sharing your concerns. We understand your frustration and appreciate the opportunity to provide clarity.
Our pricing is structured in two parts: the initial payment covers the Artkive Box and shipping materials. The second payment, which occurs after professional photography and editing, is based on the number of pieces and the book(s) selected. This pricing is shared transparently during checkout, in the order form, on our pricing page via QR code, and throughout the process.
Once artwork is received, our team begins the professional digitization process. Each item is carefully photographed, edited, and prepared for your book. Every piece sent is counted and billed, even if a book is not ordered, as stated on the order form.
We do offer the option to return artwork for a $20 fee. This service is always available and no artwork is ever discarded without clear approval. If your return has not been completed, we are happy to help arrange that.
To assist you further and help resolve the matter, please reach out to [email protected]
with your order number and include "ATTN: Escalation Team" in the subject line. We are here to support you and will make sure your case is reviewed promptly.
JH
Jess H.
Im not one to ever leave a bad review…
Im not one to ever leave a bad review but this is honestly the worst company I've encountered. They get you with their "fien print" ans are not willing to work with you. I sent in my 6 year old artwork and when they charged me an addiontal over 200 dollars for a 74 page book I couldnt afford it being that my husband lost his job and we couldnt afford it. I asked if I could have my child's artwork returned to me and they said I still had to pay over 100 dollars to even get it it back because they already took pictures of her artwork. I understand but the price is outrageous and it just shows that this company has no heart and is just in it for the money. If someone is struggling that bad, especially in this economy, they should be returning children's precious art work instead of holding it ransom to make a buck. Im absolutely appalled by them and wouldn't suggest them for anyone.
There are other places that do the same "amazing" work that artkive does at half the price and they actually listen to their customers and try to help people.
So sad that someone would take something so precious from someone and hold it hostage. Outrageous.
After reading the reply from artkive they forgot to mention i did talk to them and told them I didnt have the money and I needed my daughters artwork back. They proceeded to tell me I couldnt have her artwork back because they already took digital and I needed to pay at least 110 to recieve the artwork back and then they would be sending me the digital. Even after I told them I CAN NOT afford it and just wanted my daughters artwork back.
Artkive made it right after their reply which was not correct. They sent me my artwork back and the digital pictures which I truly appreciate. It's sad that so many people have issues with them and it takes a lot for them to do anything about the situation.
Response from ArtkiveJul 31, 2025
Thank you for your feedback. We're sorry to hear you were unhappy with your experience. We do try to be as clear about the pricing as possible. We specify the payment process and link to our pricing slider in checkout, our update emails, on the order form you fill out and in multiple places on our website to help avoid surprises.
We never "hold artwork hostage" and we apologize if there was anything that gave you that impression. Return shipping is always an option, but in your case, you did not request to have the art shipped back to you at any point during the process. When you reached out with concern about the cost, we offered to reduce the cost by providing digital images only or setting up a payment plan, which you accepted. We hope that these options were helpful to you. If you have any further questions or concerns, we encourage you to reach out to us directly.
AP
Amanda P.
Super disappointed
It took them over a month to send the card box. After you pay over $100 dollars, if your cards do not fit into the tiny box that they send you, they than come back to charge you. So if you have over 100 cards I highly DON'T recommend buying this product. I used my own box to send them since they didn't fit in the tiny box they sent and received an invoice for over $170 extra of what was due. So in total $300.00 they wanted. I find this whole process to take way longer than it should have. I purchased the order in April 2025, received the empty box the 3 weeks later in May.. sent my own box back with the cards in it in May and just received an email at the end of June of the remaining balance I owe since it didn't fit in the tiny box. Appeared to be a great deal, not functional for $300 in total. I will photo copy them myself by pdf and upload them to shutterfly for the book. Appears to be a rip off.
Response from ArtkiveJul 1, 2025
Thank you for your feedback—we're sorry the experience didn’t meet your expectations. Cards by Artkive is advertised as a book of "as many cards as you can fit in the box" and we list the exact box dimensions as well as an estimate that the standard box holds around 50 cards.
In your case, since you did not to use the provided box and sent a significantly larger quantity than what could fit in the box, we did reach out to you before beginning work to request additional payment to cover the excess cards.
You chose not to move forward with the order so we returned the cards to you and refunded your order. We appreciate your input and hope this clarifies how the service works.
TR
Taj R.
I was extremely overcharged for my…
I was extremely overcharged for my purchase. There is no one available to connect to right away about this issue. I have documented emails stating how and when I'd be charged and it never happened only to get an invoice MONTHS later with a charge that was even more than my original cost, which is what I was trying to get understanding about in the first place.
I do not recommend this company and will continue to share that people should not try to use their services.
Response from ArtkiveJul 1, 2025
We apologize for any misunderstanding. To clarify, your payment plan was carried out exactly as outlined and agreed. The final "invoice" you received was a receipt reflecting the total amount paid—not an additional charge.
We’re glad our team was able to clarify this promptly for you when you reached out.
AJ
Alex J.
Worst company I've dealt with in a long…
Worst company I've dealt with in a long time, they missed the dead line of my event because it takes so long, then I didn't see the email and they started spamming with rude emails about their 2nd payment. Tried to reach out several times to ask a question they are only capable of responding when they want their money. Scheduled a call a week out and they didn't eve call. They also double scanned a picture and double charged me. Avoid this company at all cost.
Response from ArtkiveApr 18, 2025
We’re sorry to hear the experience didn’t meet your expectations. Our timelines are clearly outlined throughout the process, and we always offer to accommodate special deadlines when possible. When artwork arrives, we send an email to notify the customer and communicate our timeline. The email asks customers to notify us if their order is tied to a specific date. Since we didn’t receive that information from you, we weren’t able to prioritize your order accordingly.
Regarding the double-scanned image, we’ve already reached out and issued a refund for that duplicate charge for one piece—thank you for bringing it to our attention.
Payment reminders are sent after photography and editing are complete, and while automated, they are never intended to come across as rude. While our communication is designed to be clear and informative, we understand tone can sometimes be misread, and we appreciate your feedback.
CC
Cortney C.
ARTKIVE’S Deceptive Practices
In my opinion, Artkive has deceptive business practices. The first time I ordered from them I was able to customize the books that my parents eventually gifted to us. This time, I was emailed invoices that I was expected to pay without any editing. They charged me $150 for a book and $211 for digitalized artwork that I have yet to see either edit. I said I did not want to move forward, where they sent me a rude email saying I was a previous customer and should have “known” how it works. As my parents generously gifted this to us, I was not as keen to understanding that when I clicked agree to their terms, it truly implied blindly agreeing to charges and threats without seeing ANY type of draft at all! The Artkive process boasts cute imagery and “easy” click, click, checkout processes, but deceptively inserts its true costs and motives upon customers receiving endless collections threats. Their audacity and volume of “collect payment” emails, out weighs their quality of product they’re selling. Absolutely deceptive. Do not buy a box!!!
ADDED RESPONSE 3/4/25
After speaking with a representative from Artkive for 42 minutes, this representative had tried to appease my request of not wanting to move forward with any Artkive product, to that if I delete my negative reviews I can close my account with them for $100. I ended it that I would rather have my reviews up of my negative experiences than exchange funds for nothing in return. It is NOT the customer’s fault or responsibility to pay for Artkive’s business costs like photography etc and in my opinion, is still deceptive to the customer to imply responsibility of charges based on volume of artwork submitted to them. If there was a book that I received that I was unhappy with, I would understand that a cancellation of account and refund would be unreasonable to request. In this circumstance (and several others on their Better Business Bureau account) my complaint and refusal to move forward with purchasing a book/digitalized artwork is unfair to the consumer to deny them of that and incur a charge (with penalty plus collections may I add!). The representative stated to me that they were not worried about negative reviews (there are 25 complaints) on the BBB because of their lack of credibility(?), but I suggested that in fact, perhaps they should, as a responsible business. Customers like myself are unhappy for very similar reasons and it is unaddressed and penalized by the company, blaming their own customers than taking accountability of deceptive practices.
Response from ArtkiveMar 4, 2025
We’re sorry to hear this experience didn’t meet your expectations, especially as a returning customer. Because professional digitization—including lighting, photography, and editing—makes up the majority of our product cost, we do require payment before we can provide you with all of those images and create your book previews. That being said, we do not print anything until you've had a chance to review the images and are happy with the way everything looks! Our process of collecting payment before providing the digital images/book proofs has remained the same since the inception of our business. For example, your past order was paid on 8/23/2023 and the book proof was sent for your review and customization on 8/25/2023.
Our pricing and process are clearly communicated at multiple points throughout our process, including checkout, your order receipt, FAQs, the pricing page on our website, reminder emails, the order form you submitted, and your account's "My Orders" page. We also outline our cancellation policy in our FAQs and terms, as orders cannot be canceled once the digitization process has begun.
We never intend for our communication to feel rude or aggressive and apologize if it came across that way. Our goal is to ensure transparency and provide reminders to keep the process moving smoothly. We appreciate your feedback and are happy to discuss any remaining concerns—please reach out to our support team at [email protected].
KG
Kim G.
Deceptive pricing and business…
Deceptive pricing and business practices. More than double the offer I responded to. With so many alternatives go somewhere cheaper. The quality of my photos are average.