Legacybox vs. The Digitize Center: Which Is Better?

Update, September 2026: the test orders, prices, and ratings in this article are from May 2022. Both companies have changed prices and services since then. For current Digitize Center pricing, see its pricing page, and check Legacybox’s website for its current offers.

We’re often asked which digitizing service is better: Legacybox or The Digitize Center. Both do the same basic job. They take old media such as VHS tapes, Hi8 and other camcorder tapes, photographs, and film reels, and digitize it so you can save it on your computer, phone, and tablet. This article explains the differences between the two and which one we think is better.

Price

Price is usually the first thing people compare. In May 2022, the two companies had similar prices, with The Digitize Center slightly ahead: a 2-item box from Legacybox cost $35.99, while a 2-item Digitize Kit from The Digitize Center cost $24.99. Shipping costs were nearly identical.

Price winner (2022): The Digitize Center

Formats offered

Both companies digitize most old media, including VHS tapes, camcorder tapes, film reels, and photographs. In 2022, The Digitize Center also digitized CDs, DVDs, newspaper clippings, and yearbooks. See everything The Digitize Center digitizes today.

Formats winner (2022): The Digitize Center

Quality

To compare quality, we placed the same order with both companies: 2 VHS tapes, 2 camcorder tapes, 25 photographs, and 1 film reel. Here’s what came back.

VHS tapes

Both companies returned the VHS tapes at the same quality. The only difference was that The Digitize Center trimmed the blank footage at the end of the video. The Legacybox file had about 38 minutes of blank video at the end. The Digitize Center also named the files to match what we’d written on the tape labels, which Legacybox did not.

Camcorder tapes

Both companies returned the camcorder tapes at the same quality.

Photographs

Here we saw a real difference. Some of the Legacybox photo scans had what looked like roller marks, which didn’t appear on The Digitize Center’s scans. The Digitize Center also offered to restore the photos.

Film reel

Both companies returned the film reel at similar quality.

Quality winner: tie

Speed

We compared how long each company took to complete the same order using its standard, free processing option. Legacybox took 16 days from receiving our media to its arrival back in our mailbox. The Digitize Center took 13 days.

Speed winner (2022): The Digitize Center

Turnaround times vary with order size and the season. The Digitize Center currently quotes two to six weeks.

Customer service and reviews

We didn’t have any support issues with either company, so we looked at their verified customer reviews instead. In May 2022, Legacybox averaged 4.84 out of 5 stars and The Digitize Center averaged 4.9 out of 5.

The most common Legacybox complaints were items that couldn’t be digitized, lost packages, and unexpected costs. The most common Digitize Center complaints were items that couldn’t be digitized and longer-than-expected turnaround.

It’s hard to judge customer service from reviews alone, so we’ll call this one a tie. We were surprised by the number of Legacybox reviews reporting lost items. The Digitize Center states that it has never lost an item or package.

Customer service winner: tie

Overall winner

Based on our 2022 comparison, we believe The Digitize Center is the better choice for digitizing home media. It came out ahead on price, formats, and speed, and tied on quality and customer service. We encourage you to read both companies’ reviews on independent sites before deciding.

For a three-way comparison that includes iMemories, see The Digitize Center vs. Legacybox vs. iMemories.