Flickr has announced massive changes to its account offerings, taking effect this coming January. In April, SmugMug purchased Flickr, which sparked a “months-long effort to listen to its members and understand what Flickr needed to thrive and evolve.”

One of the most requested changes will come in January 2019 — the ability to access Flickr without having a Yahoo! account.

Changes to free Flickr accounts

The most noticeable change is that, effective Jan. 8, 2019, free accounts will be limited to 1,000 photos. This is a major change, as up until this point Flickr has offered 1 TB of free storage for its users for the last few years.

Free users will still be able to have access to all of their current features. Members over the limit on Jan. 8, 2019 will no longer be able to upload photos to their accounts.

Upgrades to Flickr Pro

Those free users who have over 1,000 photos might want to consider upgrading to Flickr Pro, available for $49.99/year. Users that upgrade to Flickr Pro before Nov. 30 will also receive 30% off their first year.

In addition to unlimited storage, Flickr Pro is offering ad-free browsing, advanced stats and premier product support. Pro users will also be eligible for increased exposure in the next iteration of Flickr’s Explore feature, starting in early 2019.

A new 5K photo size is also being unveiled, as is increased video playback, allowing for uploads up to 10 minutes (coming in early 2019). Finally, Pro users will receive discounts on Adobe Creative Cloud, 50% off a custom portfolio site on SmugMug, discounts on gear from Peak Design and more starting in November.

Looking ahead

Flickr’s CEO Don MacAskill says that these updates are the first of several to be expected in the coming months. “We are committed to building the future we all want for Flickr – one where the site can keep evolving in all the areas that have made it the incredible, diverse, and beautiful place it has always been. We’re excited to define the future of photography together.”

To learn more about Flickr’s plans, click here.