Best Digital Asset Management Software
Digital asset management (DAM) software stores, organizes, and distributes rich media files in a central location. Rich media files can include photos, creative files, video, audio, presentations, documents, and more. Businesses large and small invest in DAM software for various purposes, often to manage marketing content. DAM software helps businesses get more value from their digital assets by storing them in a centralized digital library, providing employees, clients, contractors, and other key stakeholders controlled access to digital assets.
DAM systems are often implemented by marketing and operations teams across various industries for help in defining and managing their online brands. They can also be used by product teams who require up-to-date assets when building products or by sales teams who need to leverage brand assets when creating presentations. Externally, DAM systems provide PR firms, partners, distributors, retailers, franchisees, or agencies with controlled access to digital assets for on-brand content creation.
These products can also be used to reduce the duplication of an organization’s assets, maintain up-to-date collections, and control security of assets with role-based permissions. Some businesses assign specific individuals as DAM administrators or “librarians" to oversee these assets, build and enforce the taxonomy, tags, and metadata used to organize them, and ensure they follow established brand-specific guidelines. Many modern DAMs include rules-based automation and machine learning to ease administrative overhead.
The value of a DAM system is amplified when it is integrated with other tools in the business. DAM systems are often at the core of creative processes. They connect creative, collaboration, and project management tools to streamline the creation process. They can also connect web content management software, enterprise content management (ECM) software, and marketing automation software to streamline the customer experience process.
While the foundational DAM functionality revolves around storing, organizing, and distributing a company’s digital assets, some products provide advanced organization and search capabilities. Select products utilize AI to autotag assets, provide suggested tags, and automatically organize assets that are uploaded to the DAM based on how similar assets are already organized or based on metadata.
To qualify for inclusion in the Digital Asset Management category, a product must:
Featured Digital Asset Management Software At A Glance
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Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
This description is provided by the seller.
Pros and Cons are compiled from review feedback and grouped into themes to provide an easy-to-understand summary of user reviews.
Learn More About Digital Asset Management Software
Digital Asset Management software buying insights at a glance
Digital Asset Management (DAM) software delivers the most value when organizations use it to operationalize content, rather than simply storing files. As content volumes grow and teams become more distributed, relying on shared drives or loosely governed libraries often creates version confusion, brand risk, and execution delays. A dedicated DAM platform allows organizations to centralize assets, standardize metadata and workflows, and enforce governance across the entire content lifecycle, from creation to distribution.
Based on review data, organizations most commonly adopt digital asset management tools to improve asset discoverability, maintain brand consistency, and reduce rework across creative, marketing, and product teams. Core use cases frequently include centralized asset libraries, structured tagging and metadata management, permission-based access controls, and approval workflows. Buyers consistently highlight benefits such as faster retrieval, clearer ownership of assets, and better coordination between teams producing and publishing content.
As organizations scale their content operations, DAM leaders are placing an increasing emphasis on governance and usability. Reviewers note that strong outcomes result from striking a balance between flexibility and control: advanced features such as tagging, permissions, and automation are important, but ease of use ultimately determines adoption. DAM platforms deliver the most impact when tightly integrated with creative tools, CMS, and PIM systems, ensuring that only approved, up-to-date assets flow into downstream channels and campaigns.
Digital asset management software is typically offered through subscription-based pricing, with costs shaped by user count, storage limits, and access to advanced features such as workflow automation or analytics. Smaller teams often feel pricing pressure early, particularly around storage and add-ons, while larger organizations justify higher investment when DAM tools materially reduce content rework, protect brand integrity, and support high-volume, multi-channel content operations.
Top 5 FAQs from software buyers:
- What features should I prioritize when evaluating the best digital asset management software?
- How do digital asset management systems integrate with CMS, PIM, and creative tools?
- What kind of ROI can companies expect from digital asset management tools?
- What are the key differences between leading DAM software platforms?
- How long does it typically take to implement a digital asset management system?
G2’s top-rated Digital Asset Management software, based on 10,000+ verified reviews, includes Bynder, Canto, Air, and Adobe. (Source 2)
What are the top-reviewed Digital Asset Management on G2?
- Number of Reviews: 1,618
- Satisfaction: 99
- Market Score: 81
- G2 score: 90
- Number of Reviews: 1,334
- Satisfaction: 73
- Market Score: 79
- G2 score: 76
- Number of Reviews: 875
- Satisfaction: 99
- Market Score: 83
- G2 score: 91
- Number of Reviews: 758
- Satisfaction: 100
- Market Score: 60
- G2 score: 80
- Number of Reviews: 171
- Satisfaction: 53
- Market Score: 99
- G2 score: 76
Satisfaction reflects user-reported ratings across various factors, including ease of use, feature fit, and quality of support. (Source 2)
Market Presence scores are calculated based on review volume, third-party signals, and overall market visibility. (Source 2)
G2 Score is a weighted composite of Satisfaction and Market Presence. (Source 2)
Learn how G2 scores products. (Source 1).
What I Often See in Digital Asset Management
Feedback Pros: What Users Consistently Appreciate
- Highly configurable platform supported by a collaborative and responsive team
- “What I like best about Bynder is its flexibility and the way it can be tailored to support our specific workflows and organizational needs. The platform is intuitive, scalable, and provides a centralized, reliable source of truth for our assets, which is critical given the volume and variety of content we manage. Equally important is the level of partnership and support from the Bynder team. Their responsiveness, patience, and willingness to collaborate—especially when challenges arose—made the onboarding process productive and reassuring. That combination of a strong product and a supportive team is what stands out most to me.” - Odaris I., Bynder Review
- Intuitive asset organization with seamless version control and easy team sharing
- “Grouping of documents into collections and ease of tagging and sharing with teammates. Easy to use and upload new documents. It is customizable to your business needs. I use it multiple times a week to store the most current version of new content. It easily allows you to replace old files with new ones, just by giving them the same name. Very easy to implement.” - Christine H., Brandfolder Review
- Fast access to assets, supported by strong search, AI tagging, and dependable customer support
- “The best thing about canto is how quickly you are able to view assets once you've uploaded them. The search works really well, and there's loads of time saving features like AI tagging and creating upload links so that our photographers can upload directly into the system. It's been very straight-forward to implement and it's naturally integrated in our workflow. We use Canto most days and its reliable and does a great job of helping us find the right images so we can focus on design. On a few occasions where we've needed additional support, the customer support has been excellent and you feel valued as a customer.” - Peter B., Canto Review
Cons: Where Many Platforms Fall Short
- The structured organization model limits direct file drops and does not allow version-level deletion
- “The only area of Canto that I find slightly inconvenient is the need to create albums within folders, rather than being able to drop files directly into a folder. That said, I understand this structure supports better organization, so I wouldn't necessarily change it. Another thing that would be helpful is when you delete files if you are able to just delete a version versus the whole item.” - Nikeeta E, Canto Review
- The visual, tag-based setup suits creative teams but can be limiting for technical files and scale
- “Air is super useful, but it’s not perfect. If you're used to traditional folders and file systems, switching to Air’s more visual, tag-based setup can take some getting used to. It’s great for creative teams, but if you're dealing with a lot of non-visual or super technical files, it might feel a bit limiting. Also, while it’s great for organizing and collaborating, it doesn’t totally replace full-on project management tools—especially for bigger teams with more complex workflows. And since it's cloud-based, a slow internet connection can definitely slow you down. Plus, if you're working with a ton of large files, storage costs can start to creep up.” - Jeffrey C, Air Review
- High cost and complexity create barriers to adoption and performance
- “My main concerns are the high cost and the steep learning curve, both of which demand a considerable investment in licensing, hosting, and specialized training. Additionally, I find the workflows to be quite complex, and there is the possibility of encountering performance issues.” - Jannatul H, Adobe Review
My Expert Takeaway on Digital Asset Management Software
Digital Asset Management delivers the strongest results when organizations treat DAM as an operating system for content, not just a shared repository. High-performing teams establish clear ownership over asset governance, metadata quality, and lifecycle workflows early in the rollout, which reduces version sprawl and improves trust in approved assets across teams. Ratings suggest that once DAM is configured correctly, it reliably meets core requirements and is well-supported; however, ease of setup consistently trails other scores, reflecting the upfront effort required to design taxonomy, permissions, and workflows.
Organizations with above-average satisfaction tend to invest early in foundational DAM capabilities such as metadata discipline, defined approval paths, and role-based access. Reviews show that outcomes are strongest when DAM owners are responsible not only for the tool, but also for the operational processes that govern how assets are created, updated, and distributed. This model is particularly prevalent in marketing-led, brand-driven, and content-heavy industries, where scale and consistency are crucial.
Across the category, overall ratings remain strong when adoption extends beyond creative teams to include marketing, product, and regional stakeholders. Ease of use emerges as a key differentiator for long-term success, even when advanced workflows and automation are available. For teams evaluating digital asset management systems, the data suggests that disciplined governance and broad organizational adoption are the primary drivers of value, enabling content operations to scale without sacrificing speed, brand control, or execution consistency.
Digital Asset Management Software FAQs
What are digital asset management systems?
Digital asset management systems are platforms that store and organize rich media (images, video, design files, presentations) in a centralized library. They typically include metadata/tagging, permissions, version history, and sharing controls so teams can find the right asset quickly and use approved content consistently. Many also add workflows for review and approval, as well as integrations with creative tools and publishing systems.
What is the best DAM software?
The “best” DAM software depends heavily on your specific use case, whether that’s brand governance, creative collaboration, product content management, or large-scale asset distribution. For example, Bynder and Aprimo are often evaluated for structured governance and enterprise workflows, while Canto and Air tend to resonate with teams prioritizing ease of use and creative collaboration. When shortlisting, focus on search quality, metadata flexibility, permissions, versioning, and integrations that you actively use (such as creative suites, CMS, and PIM). Verified reviews are especially useful for pressure-testing setup complexity and ongoing admin effort, which often separate otherwise similar platforms.
What is a DAM tool used for?
A DAM tool is used to manage the full lifecycle of digital content, from upload and organization to approval, distribution, and retirement. Teams use it to prevent duplication, stop outdated assets from circulating, enforce brand rules, and make self-serve access easy for sales, marketing, partners, and regional teams. The best implementations also standardize metadata and automate workflows so retrieval and reuse become fast and reliable.
What is the difference between CMS and DAM?
A CMS (content management system) is primarily for creating, managing, and publishing web content (pages, posts, site components). A DAM focuses on storing and governing the underlying media assets (images, video, design files) with metadata, rights, versioning, and approvals. Many teams integrate the two: the DAM is the system of record for approved assets, while the CMS pulls those assets into web experiences.
