Chatbooks is a print company that's been around since 2014. Unlike some other sites in our review that offer prints of all kinds, Chatbooks is a site that specializes in photo books. The company promises a "family feel" because it was a family owned and operated company when it got started. Now, it's a much larger company that has over 150 employees, but promises to keep that "individualized" feel if you need help with your photo books at any time. As a bonus, Chatbooks provides free shipping on all standard shipping orders and eco-friendly packaging for all shipments.

Only 10 books, but they have custom options

Chatbooks has plenty of photo book options to choose from. You can find classic photo book designs, yearbooks, designer cover photo books, and layflat styles. There are also options for seasonal photo books or "monthly" books that let you keep track of precious moments as they happen throughout the year. Technically speaking, though, there are only 10 items to choose from. These are all customizable with multiple sizes on each listing and different cover colors to choose from. However, it does seem to still be a smaller overall selection than we've seen at other photo book stores (especially considering that Chatbooks specializes in photo books).

Disappointingly limited design tool

Chatbooks allows you to upload photos from your computer, your phone, or from Google Photos, so you can access all of your favorites from Instagram or just those that you've filed away for fun photo book purposes. However, design options are a little limited with this design software. Chatbooks doesn't let you move photos around or add additional text boxes to the pages. You can either have full photo pages (or collage pages) where you directly upload the photos to the page, or full pages of text. However, the photos are hard to select for specific "placeholder" spaces. The only helpful feature we could find was the global "rearrange" options, where you can change around the photo book pages. But there aren't any ways that we could find to edit text fonts or colors, so what you see is what you get.

Pricing from $15 to $80 per book

Chatbooks' pricing isn't too costly compared to other photo book stores in our review. The least costly photo book starts at $15 for the Classic style This option is for the 6x6 size with a softcover finish. The most costly photo book option at Chatbooks is the layflat style, which is $80 without any customizations. This price requires a minimum of 20 pages of photos, but the cost can go up if you add additional pages to your design during editing.

Lifetime refund guarantee

Chatbooks has a decent return policy, promising returns and exchanges for new and unopened products, slightly used products, or those that are defective because of Chatbooks' error. Chatbooks also offers a lifetime return policy. The company says that if you're not happy with your photo book for any reason (they specify that this includes prints, ships, feels, and even smells), Chatbooks promises to make it right. There are no return costs, and the policy applies to the U.S., UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Increasing complaints are a red flag

Chatbooks has a concerning "F" rating from the Better Business Bureau. It reports that Chatbooks has failed to respond to complaints as the primary reason for the rating. On the other hand, Chatbooks' reputation on Trustpilot is much better than its BBB score. Currently, this company holds a 4.2-star average rating out of 5 with over 2,000 total ratings to back up the score. 70% of all ratings on Trustpilot have earned a full 5 stars, too. However, the recent reviews over the last few months show an increase in negative feedback. One customer said that the company is a "good idea," but the service has been "worsening" over time. We had to go back 7 months from the date of our review to find a single review with 5 stars. The rest were 1- or 3-star ratings. The complaints include long delivery times, issues with limitations in the design tool, and more.

A falling reputation isn't competitive

Chatbooks initially seemed like a solid choice with its lower-than-average costs for photo books and a lifetime refund policy, but the reviews show a completely different story. With an "F" rating from the BBB and increasingly upset feedback from customers, this may not be your first (or second, or third) choice for photo books. The limited inventory, too, is a bit of a downside. Regrettably, with its falling reputation, Chatbooks earns one of the lowest scores in our review.

On the Chatbooks website