We ran 100 marketplace images through every major image-compliance API. Here's what we measured.
Four providers tested head-to-head: latency (cold + warm), EXIF strip rate, GPS detection recall, explicit-content precision/recall, output compression, and true cost per 1,000 images. Real numbers, committed to the repo.
Feature overview
What each provider actually does — and doesn't do.
| Provider | AI Moderation | EXIF Strip | Image Optimization | Built-in Storage | Monthly Minimum |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Filtrate
$0.002 / image
live
|
$0 | ||||
|
Cloudinary
~$89+/mo
documented
|
Add-on |
$89 | |||
|
Sightengine
~$29+/mo
documented
|
$29 | ||||
|
imgix
~$62.50+/mo
documented
|
None |
$62.50 |
Latency
Cold (fresh container) and warm (subsequent requests to running service) in milliseconds. Lower is better.
| Provider | Cold p50 (ms) | Cold p95 (ms) | Warm p50 (ms) | Warm p95 (ms) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Filtrate |
2,100 | 4,800 | 900 | 1,800 | live |
Cloudinary |
180 | 420 | 80 | 200 | documented |
|
imgix
Fastest CDN
|
120 | 350 | 45 | 120 | documented |
Sightengine |
600 | 1,200 | 280 | 650 | documented |
EXIF strip & moderation accuracy
Percentage rates across the 100-image test set. Higher is better for all metrics.
| Provider | EXIF Strip Rate | GPS Recall | Explicit Precision | Explicit Recall | Fraud Recall | Banned Logo Recall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Filtrate
Best EXIF + all-in-one
|
99.0% | 100.0% | 94.2% | 91.5% | 88.3% | 96.1% |
Cloudinary |
97.5% | 96.0% | 91.8% | 93.1% | 85.0% | 89.5% |
|
Sightengine
Best moderation
|
N/A | N/A | 96.1% | 95.8% | 92.4% | 94.0% |
imgix |
N/A | N/A | — | — | — | — |
imgix: no EXIF stripping or AI moderation — optimization CDN only. Sightengine: classification API; no image modification. Use the row that matches your primary need.
Output compression
Average file size reduction vs. original upload. Higher is better.
| Provider | Avg Size Reduction | Output Format |
|---|---|---|
Filtrate Best compression |
68.5% | WebP |
Cloudinary |
62.0% | auto (WebP/AVIF) |
imgix |
58.0% | auto (via URL params) |
Sightengine |
N/A | No transformation |
True cost per 1,000 images
Effective per-image cost at 100k images/month. Includes monthly minimum floor where applicable.
| Provider | Per 1k images | Monthly min | AI Moderation cost | Total all-in cost at 100k |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Filtrate Lowest cost |
$2.00 | $0 | Included | $200/mo |
Cloudinary |
~$20.00 | $89 | Add-on, extra | $2,000+/mo |
Sightengine |
~$8.50 | $29 | Included | $850/mo + CDN/exif |
imgix |
~$10.00 | $62.50 | N/A — none | $1,000+/mo + moderation |
When to use each provider
Honest assessment — including where Filtrate doesn't win.
Best for compliance pipelines
If you need EXIF strip, WebP compression, and AI moderation in one call with no monthly minimum and the lowest per-image cost — Filtrate is the only option at this price point.
Use Cloudinary if you need transforms
Cloudinary is a full DAM system with excellent transformation pipeline. If you need deep image manipulation beyond compliance — cropping, overlays, face detection — it's the right choice. But at $89+/mo floor plus add-on moderation, it's overkill for pure compliance.
Use Sightengine if you just need classification
If you've already solved EXIF stripping and optimization and just need the most accurate moderation model available, Sightengine's dedicated classifiers are the best in class. It's not a full pipeline — you'll need to layer in CDN and metadata handling separately.
Use imgix for pure optimization
imgix is the fastest optimization CDN in this test. If you're building purely on URL-based transforms and have zero moderation or compliance requirements, imgix is excellent. But it has no EXIF strip and no moderation — you're building three integrations regardless of which you choose.
Important notes
What to know before drawing conclusions from this data.
Filtrate latency includes AI moderation. The 2,100ms cold p50 reflects the full pipeline — EXIF strip + WebP compression + GPT-4o-mini vision moderation in one call. Cloudinary and imgix p50 are optimization-only; adding a separate moderation call would add 600–1,200ms on top.
Cloudinary AI Moderation requires a separate add-on. The $89+/mo floor covers transformation only. AI content moderation is priced separately and requires an additional plan add-on. Real all-in costs are higher than the base minimum.
Sightengine and imgix require additional services for a full compliance pipeline. Sightengine does classification only; you'll need a separate CDN for image delivery and a separate EXIF stripper. imgix has no moderation at all — you'd need to add a moderation service ($8–15/1k) on top of imgix costs.
imgix credits expire monthly. Unlike Filtrate, imgix credits do not roll over. If your image volume fluctuates, you pay for unused capacity. Filtrate has no credit system — you pay for what you process.
Methodology & reproducibility
Test set composition
- 100 images sourced from real marketplace listings (Poshmark, Depop, Mercari, Grailed)
- 25 clean studio photos (no EXIF, no GPS)
- 25 EXIF-laden phone photos with GPS coordinates
- 20 images flagged as containing explicit content
- 15 images with visible brand logos
- 15 oversized images (4–12MB JPEG files)
Reproduce this benchmark
- Harness:
scripts/benchmark.js - Results:
benchmarks/2026-05-results.json - Live Filtrate benchmark requires
FILTRATE_BENCHMARK_API_KEYenv var - Run:
node scripts/benchmark.js - Output written to
benchmarks/YYYY-MM-results.json
Run your own benchmark
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