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Thinking about using a virtual staging service to market and sell your listings? But wondering which one do you choose? 

Real estate photographers and agents use virtual staging services to make their listing photos more attractive and impressive to potential buyers.

To make your choice easier, in this article, we’ve compared two popular services, Stucco virtual staging vs PhotoUp – to see which is the better option.

Stuccco Virtual Staging vs PhotoUp

Stuccco homepage

Founded in 2015, and headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, Stucco has been offering virtual staging services since 2019.

Stucco’s virtual staging is done by a team of photo editors working with professional interior designers.

PhotoUp: The Best Real Estate Photo Editing Service

PhotoUp is a global real estate marketing company offering a full range of virtual staging services, as well as photo editing, video editing, single property websites, and more. 

The company was founded in 2012 and have virtual staging editors and designers in the Philippines, plus a dedicated customer service team in the US.

We’ve reviewed both services and examined their results. Now, we’re going to compare both companies according to the following:

  • Account creation & pricing
  • Design and style options
  • Turnaround time
  • And image quality

So let’s get started!

1. Account Creation & Pricing

Stucco requires an online account to be created to order virtual staging services. Once the account is created, the agent or photographer can upload photos and select among design options and other services.

Stuccco signup page

Their pricing, per photo, runs accordingly, depending on your plan:

  • Furniture and decor additions to empty rooms — $23.20 to $29.00
  • Remove and add items — $31.20 to $39.00
  • Interior color changes – $12.00 to $15.00
  • Exterior color changes – $31.20 to $39.00
  • Day to dusk changes – $31.20 to $39.00
  • Plus, unlimited revisions

Stucco offers discounted pricing for bulk work and can handle custom requests, for an additional cost. 

PhotoUp offers free account set-up (which was easy and fast to do).

PhotoUp virtual staging review: Create a new account

They use a credit system to make payments and offers discounts for bulk buying of credits. And their standard plans are:

  • $1.15 per credit for subscription clients
  • $1.50 per credit for on-demand, pay-as-you-go clients

PhotoUp’s virtual staging prices are as follows:

  • Single set – 20 credits/$20 per photo
  • Double set – 30 credits/$30 per photo

Sets are determined by the number of design pieces and furniture as well as how many frames a single room or space requires. 

Next, let’s look at both sites’ design and style options.

2. Design and Style Options

Stucco has a range of 7 design and style options, including:

  • Comfortable Contemporary
  • Modern
  • Scandinavian
  • Industrial/Urban
  • New Traditional
  • Sleek Contemporary
  • And Farmhouse
Stuccco virtual staging design styles

Interestingly, all of the furniture and decor pieces used in Stucco’s virtually staged images are available in popular retail stores, making it possible for homebuyers to recreate a room’s design. 

PhotoUp offers a carefully selected, professional design library featuring 11 decor style options and 18 room types.  Additionally, there are 21 design accessories to choose from. 

PhotoUp’s design styles include:

  • Mid-Century Modern
  • Scandinavian
  • Coastal
  • Farmhouse
  • American
  • Industrial
  • Hamptons
  • And several others
PhotoUp virtual staging library

So far, so good, now, let’s move on to production and turnaround time.

3. Turnaround Time

In terms of the turnaround times, both companies strive to get an agent the completed, virtually staged photos as soon as possible. 

With Stucco, virtual staging typically takes 24 hours to receive proofs for approval.  A 12-hour turnaround time is available for a slightly additional cost. 

When you order virtual home staging from PhotoUp you can expect low-resolution proofs back for your approval the next day (24 hours). Once approved, they provide high-resolution renders within just a few hours.

Finally, let’s compare image quality from both companies. 

Fast & Affordable

Virtual Staging Service

Interiors. Landscapes. Commercial. Virtually transform any space.

4. Image Quality

In terms of sample images, both Stucco and PhotoUp provide hi-res examples of their virtual staging work. 

And looking through those images, it’s clear that both companies have highly skilled and experienced teams of virtual stagers and photo editors.  

Stucco Virtual Staging
PhotoUp Virtual Staging

However, PhotoUp’s virtual staging looks more contemporary and fresh.

They also offer custom branding with an agent’s name and contact information on each image. Stucco’s website doesn’t mention whether they offer this as an option.  

Stucco Virtual Staging vs PhotoUp: Which Is Better?

Now that we’ve compared both services, let’s summarize our findings to see which one is the better option.

First, Stucco and PhotoUp offer many of the same virtual staging features and services. And both sites are easy to use and create an account with.

Additionally, both companies are nearly the same in terms of turnaround time, delivering proofs for approval within 24 hours and the final photos shortly after. 

The quality of the images is also comparable between the two companies, with each delivering extremely high-quality photos that look great. 

So, there are many similarities. However, there are two differences:

  • The range of selection of design styles 
  • And the price 

Stucco offers 7 design themes, while PhotoUp offers 11 virtual staging styles, giving you more flexibility and options. 

Also, PhotoUp is simply less expensive, charging less for the same or similar services. Yes, the prices between the two services aren’t that far apart, but why pay more for the same service?

Therefore, in terms of all things considered — we think PhotoUp is the better option.

Fast & Affordable

Virtual Staging Service

Interiors. Landscapes. Commercial. Virtually transform any space.

Get Started With PhotoUp Today

PhotoUp’s virtual staging results in stunning and realistic images that will help you sell your listings quicker, and for better prices. 

Our easy to use virtual staging services make any space or room look its best— these include:

  • Staging vacant rooms with your selection from among hundreds of design styled furnishings
  • Decor updates and replacements
  • Object removal, decluttering, and depersonalizing rooms
  • Virtual landscaping
  • Repairs and remodeling editing
  • Sky replacement and lawn greening
  • And much more!

Sign up for a free PhotoUp account, and start using virtually staged images that’ll prompt higher offers for your listings and impress your clients.

In summary, this post compared Stucco virtual staging vs PhotoUp: Which is better? And based on our review, we found PhotoUp to be your better option.

We hope this post helps in your decision-making process. If you found this post valuable, you’ll also want to check out the following, related resources:

Gregory Gronbacher

Real Estate Sales Agent / Professional Blogger

Gregory is a real estate sales agent and a state-certified instructor of real estate licensing and law. Originally from New York City, he's called Grand Rapids, Michigan home since 1995.

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