Lightroom Classic
How to Install a Lightroom Classic Plugin, Step by Step
A Lightroom Classic plugin is a folder you keep in one place and point Lightroom at. Here is the whole install, using the ClientGallery plugin as the worked example.
Updated 18 September 2026
This guide walks through installing one plugin, start to finish.
The example is the ClientGallery plugin for Lightroom Classic, which publishes proofs to a client gallery and brings the client's picks back into your catalog.
Every step below comes from our own setup page and from the plugin's source code. We describe what our plugin needs, not how every plugin on the market behaves. If you are installing a different plugin, follow its developer's instructions where they differ.
The whole job takes about five minutes and is done once per computer.
Before you start
Check three things first.
- You are on Lightroom Classic. The plugin works in Lightroom Classic, not in the cloud Lightroom app. If you only use the cloud app, read the two-way Lightroom workflow guide for what that means for picks.
- You have a clientgallery.io account. A free account works. It holds one gallery and 5 GB of proofs.
- You can reach your studio page. The login for the plugin is a studio key, and it lives at clientgallery.io/studio, at the bottom of the page.
The plugin itself costs nothing to download, and the download link needs no login.
The five steps at a glance
Here is the full install in one table. Each step is explained below it.
| Step | What you do | What you should see |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Download and unzip | Download the ZIP from the Lightroom page and double-click it | A folder whose name ends in .lrplugin |
| 2. Give it a permanent home | Move that folder out of Downloads, for example into Documents | The folder sits somewhere you will not tidy away |
| 3. Add it to Lightroom Classic | Open Lightroom Classic's plug-in manager, add the folder | ClientGallery appears in the plugin list |
| 4. Restart once | Quit Lightroom completely and reopen it | ClientGallery is offered as an export destination |
| 5. Paste your studio key | Paste the key in the Studio key field, press Check | Signed in as your studio name |
Step 1: download and unzip
Open the Lightroom plugin page and click the download button.
You get a ZIP file.
Double-click it to unzip it.
Inside is a folder whose name ends in .lrplugin. That folder is the plugin. There is no installer to run and nothing to copy into Lightroom's own application files.
Step 2: move the folder somewhere permanent
This is the step that breaks things later if you skip it.
Lightroom does not take a copy of the plugin. It points at the folder where you added it from.
So if the folder moves after you add it, the plugin stops working. That happens most often when a Downloads folder gets cleaned out.
Move the .lrplugin folder somewhere you will leave it alone, such as Documents, before you add it.
If you keep several plugins, one dedicated folder for all of them makes this easy to remember.
Step 3: add it to Lightroom Classic
Open Lightroom Classic.
Open its plug-in manager, choose to add a plugin, and select the .lrplugin folder from its permanent home.
The plugin appears in the list under the name ClientGallery. That is the name it registers inside Lightroom, and it is the name to look for from here on.
Our setup page spells out the exact clicks with the menu names as they appear on screen.
Step 4: restart Lightroom once
Quit Lightroom Classic completely, then open it again.
Our setup page asks for this restart because the plugin may not show up as an export destination until Lightroom has been reopened once after the install.
You only do this once. After that, the plugin loads every time Lightroom starts.
Step 5: paste your studio key
The plugin has no username and password. It signs in with a studio key.
- Go to clientgallery.io/studio and scroll to the bottom of the page. Copy your studio key.
- In Lightroom Classic, select any photo and open the Export dialog.
- Switch the export destination at the top of the dialog to ClientGallery.
- A ClientGallery section appears at the top. Paste the key into the Studio key field.
- Press Check.
Check asks clientgallery.io whether the key is real, so a typo shows up now rather than halfway through an upload.
Once the key checks out, the plugin remembers it. The Import ClientGallery Picks command reads the same saved key, so it is already filled in the first time you pull picks back.
What the status line under the key field tells you:
| Status after Check | What it means |
|---|---|
| Paste your studio key. | The field is empty. Paste the key and press Check again |
| That key was not recognised. | The key is wrong or has been replaced. Copy it again from your studio page |
| Signed in as your studio name | You are connected, and the account can create a new gallery: either it is on the paid plan, or it is a free account with no gallery yet |
| Signed in as your studio name, with a note that this is a free account with 1 gallery | You are connected on a free account that already holds its one gallery. Exporting again to the same gallery name adds to that gallery |
What you get once it is installed
The plugin adds three things to Lightroom Classic.
| Where | Name shown | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Export dialog | ClientGallery | Sends a selection to a gallery. You set the gallery name, a light or dark look for the client, and an optional password |
| Publish service | ClientGallery | Keeps a gallery as a collection in Lightroom and pushes new and edited photos when you publish |
| Menu command | Import ClientGallery Picks | Brings the client's picks back as star ratings, a Pick flag on loves, colour labels and a collection |
The plugin sets the render for you. Proofs always go out as sRGB JPEGs sized for fast viewing, and location metadata is removed. Lightroom's own file naming, file settings, image sizing and sharpening panels are hidden for this destination, because the plugin does not use them.
The publish service keeps its own settings. If you set it up, paste the studio key there as well and press Check.
For the next step, read how to publish a gallery from Lightroom Classic.
Free account or paid plan: what changes in the plugin
The install is identical on both. Only the limits differ.
| Question | Free account | Paid plan |
|---|---|---|
| Price | 0 $ | 10 $ a month, or 100 $ a year |
| Plugin download | Free | Free |
| Galleries | 1. Exporting again to the same name adds to it | Unlimited under fair use |
| Storage | 5 GB of proofs | Fair-use ceiling of 250 GB of proofs |
| Photos per gallery | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| Import ClientGallery Picks | Works | Works |
On a free account, exporting under a second gallery name stops with a message. It says a free account holds one gallery, and offers two ways on: go unlimited for 10 $ a month, or export into the existing gallery by using its name.
If something goes wrong
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| ClientGallery is not offered as an export destination | Lightroom has not been restarted since the install | Quit Lightroom completely and reopen it |
| You see a list of folders, not destinations | You are in the lower location menu of the Export dialog | Use the destination menu at the very top of the dialog |
| The plugin worked, then stopped | The .lrplugin folder was moved or deleted | Put the folder back, or add it again from its new permanent home |
| No plugin at all | You are in the cloud Lightroom app | Use Lightroom Classic, or upload from the browser |
| Export stops with a message to paste your studio key first | No key was pasted for this export or publish service | Paste the key and press Check |
| That key was not recognised | A typo, or the key was regenerated | Copy the current key from the bottom of your studio page |
Two computers, and keeping the key safe
The install is per computer. The key is per account.
If you work on a laptop and a desktop, install the plugin on each and paste the same studio key on each.
There are no separate logins for assistants. One account has one studio key, and a two-person studio shares it.
Treat the key like a password. If a computer leaves your hands, regenerate the key on your studio dashboard. The old key stops working, and every computer you still use needs the new one pasted in.
Sources
This page describes only the ClientGallery plugin's own install and sign-in. It quotes no Adobe documentation. Every figure and message on it traces to the product facts below.
- clientgallery.io Lightroom setup page (download, unzip, permanent folder, add, restart once, studio key, key regeneration, Classic only), checked 18 September 2026, https://clientgallery.io/lightroom
- clientgallery.io product facts, checked in code 18 September 2026: plugin name ClientGallery and the Import ClientGallery Picks command; the Studio key field, Check button and its status messages; the saved key shared with the pick import; export fields (gallery name, light or dark, optional password); forced sRGB JPEG render with location metadata removed; free account of 1 gallery and 5 GB; 1,000 photos per gallery; 250 GB of proofs per paid account; 10 $ a month or 100 $ a year; pick import available on free accounts.
Frequently asked
How do I install a Lightroom Classic plugin?
For the ClientGallery plugin: download and unzip it, move the folder ending in .lrplugin somewhere permanent, add that folder through Lightroom Classic's plug-in manager, restart Lightroom once, then paste your studio key and press Check.
Why does the plugin folder have to stay in one place?
Lightroom points at the folder you added rather than keeping its own copy. If the folder moves or is deleted later, the plugin stops working. Keep it somewhere like Documents, not Downloads.
What name does the plugin show inside Lightroom?
ClientGallery. That is the name in the plugin list and as an export destination. The command for pulling picks back is called Import ClientGallery Picks.
Where do I find my studio key?
At clientgallery.io/studio, at the bottom of the page. Paste it into the Studio key field in the ClientGallery section of the Export dialog and press Check. The plugin remembers it after that.
Does the plugin work in the cloud Lightroom app?
No. It works in Lightroom Classic, not the cloud Lightroom app. Without Classic, upload photos from the browser instead.
Is the plugin free?
Yes. The download is free and a free account can use it, with one gallery and 5 GB of proofs. Exporting again to the same gallery name adds to that gallery. Unlimited galleries are 10 $ a month or 100 $ a year.
Can I use the plugin on two computers?
Yes. Install it on each computer and paste the same studio key. The key belongs to the account, and there are no separate logins for assistants.
Your client galleries, under your name
Unlimited galleries, your branding, one-click Pixieset import, and a Lightroom plugin, all on a flat 10 $/month with everything included. Your first gallery is free.
Get the Lightroom plugin