I wish I could give these guys more than 5 stars. They are absolutely the most patient, kind, fun and generous team of people that I've had the pleasure of working with lately. It feels like most places have forgotten the lost art of "customer service", which to me, really just means showing deep care for your customers. Rose was absolutely AMAZING. She even danced around to their 90's playlist while setting me up with my own desk to cut photos until I got what I needed "just right". She didn't rush me or get frustrated when I asked for something 10 different ways. It was refreshing to feel like someone still really loved their work and loved helping people. Thank you Cheap Pete's! Not only is your service amazing, but the quality of everything I've done here has been outstanding. Super appreciate that people like this still exist. read more

LOVE THIS PLACE! Cherokee Moon worked with me today and was so delightful and helpful. Rose and her crew are a well oiled machine. This is why I only go to this location Love you all read more

Loved that there are affordable options with GREAT staff that help make decisions on mat and frame colors and styles. We brought in our NEW ARTWORK and the end result was fantastic. read more

Been coming here for years and way overdue for a review. I was in last week and the customer service is truly next level. Audrey helped me with the mat/frame and information to keep my print good over time. Good employees are very tough to find these days and she nailed it. read more

We LOVE Cheap Pete's! We have been loyal customers of CP and Frame-O-Rama (back in the day!) for decades. They have a great selection of custom and on the go frames and mattes. What really sets them apart is their customer service and especially AMAZING Rose in the San Mateo location. Rose is incredible - she understands what look/feel I want instantly and finds the most creative ways to achieve it. Her work is impeccable and inspiring. Rose's training and mentoring of the team at CP's sets the bar. When there are multiple clients needing her attention, she expertly flits from one to another making us each feel special and addressed while she empowers new team members on how to take next steps to help. We have multiple art pieces in our home designed by Rose. They are ART because of Rose! We smile every day looking at her work. We are forever grateful and highly recommend Cheap Pete's! They are the best for all of your framing needs! read more

Such an amazing and simple process to get a pastel framed. Audrey was so helpful in helping me pick out the perfect mat, frame, and glass to show off the art I brought in. Thank you so much, we will absolutely come back! read more

For Mother's Day I wanted to make a frame with a family picture that I liked ... walked in on a Sunday afternoon n was helped by Cherokee.. she was very attentive patient n she even photo shopped the picture to my liking ... with her expertise Cherokee recommended frame , border , and even the size of the portrait... I really appreciated her knowledge n customer service... I highly recommend if you need help with pictures n frames come n ask for Cherokee! read more

Recently, my husband and I went on a road trip where we spent the first night in an art BnB. Swept up in the vibes, we purchased an unsigned portrait of a goat character that we diligently transported in a too-small cardboard tube, bringing it into the hotel every night and packing it back up in the car every morning. Once we got home, we were really not convinced this painting had a place in our home. But sunk cost fallacy had not sunken in, so we decided to pay a visit to Cheap Pete's. We had previously only gotten ready-made frames at Cheap Pete's, but we quickly determined that the odd size (and general oddness) of the piece demanded a custom frame. Working with Rose to custom frame the piece made the difference between probably never looking at the piece again, versus creating something fun to display in the home. Rose quickly helped us determine we didn't want a mat because we wanted to display without glass. This led us to play around with using two frames instead of of just one. We ended up with a dramatic black frame over a thin gold frame. I do not believe we would have found a more suitable frame at any price point. It was a lot of fun to work with Rose: I loved her "yes, and" energy. At one point, Rose said, "I can see how some people might mistake this for a child's painting. Let's frame this so people know it's fine art." The frame definitely dignifies the piece. The custom framing was definitely not cheap given the size of the piece and the double frame, but I agree with Rose when she called it "Less Expensive than the Others Pete's." I also like to tell myself that the money I've saved with Cheap Pete's help using ready-made frames helped justify the splurge. read more

See all

They have everything you need for pictures and frames. Prices are great and the selection is huge. I needed a frame for an old picture and quickly found several options. Got a photo album too. Great place for anything pictures. read more

See all

Went few times for inquiry. Both August and Andrey are not only helpful, they are full for experience. Nail the point for recommendations and they know what they are doing. read more

Cheap Pete's Frame Factory Outlet - Nice job for framing it up. - Art Supplies Near Me - San Mateo, California

We came to the San Mateo store today with framing needs and we left very happy with the professional, yet personable services we received from JuJu primarily; and additionally from Rose. Their patience, creativity, and attention to details resulted in art pieces that we will enjoy looking at for a long time. Thank you both again for going above and beyond to achieve optimal outcomes. Cheers! read more

I will ALWAYS go to the San Mateo Cheap Pete's! Every single employee in that store is amazing.. they go above and beyond every time I'm in there and they do the most incredible job. On my most recent visit, Rose was amazing as usual. She took the time to help me pick out the right frame and background for two different pieces of art, and went out of her way to help me save money and still get an incredible result. Every time I go in there I have a wonderful experience and am blown away by their amazing customer service, friendliness, honesty, care, and quality. Nothing but good things to say! read more

Fabulous friendly customer service. Huge shout out to Audrey who was so helpful and saved me by helping me frame a poster for my friend after a failed DIY attempt. She turned a frustrating experience around by being understanding and so sweet. Will be a return customer for sure because of this experience. read more

I've been coming here for years and they were always great. A couple of years ago I met Audrey who really gave me great advice on framing a major piece of work. I came in a couple of days ago to have one picture repaired and looking for idea on framing a mother piece of art and she knocked it out of the park as usual. Cheap Pete's has a very valuable asset with Audrey read more

The people here were extremely nice. I legit had no idea what I was doing. I did not know there was such a huge market for this kind of stuff. All of the staff was great and helpful they had great advice and I am very happy to have given them my business. Quality is great! The pictures may look weird but it's to blur some info out. They did a fantastic job! read more

Cheap Pete's Frame Factory Outlet - Art Supplies Near Me - San Mateo, California

See all

There are just some people in the world that make a huge impact and don't even know it. There is a lady named Rose that runs this place and I swear she gave me the best personal experience I've ever had. She is super knowledgeable, kind, down to earth, but also one of those people that goes above and beyond simply because she loves what she does. She made me feel like my artwork mattered more than anything, and took her time to educate me on the best ways to preserve my work. The selection here is huge, and the prices are the best in the BAY, especially because the quality is top notch. But what mattered to me most was the warm, patient service I received today. I never felt rushed, or unimportant like I've had from other places. I swear she might have saved my business today because I was on the verge of tears with the stress of it all. Thank you, the world needs more folks like you. read more

Cheap Pete's Frame Factory Outlet - Rose taking time to do a mock up with me for one of my collections. Such great service. Had such a positive impact on my day! - Art Supplies Near Me - San Mateo, California

Well Cheap Pete's San Mateo is our go to place for framing anything and everything. After our trip to Paris we went back to Cheap Pete's and had another great experience with framing with the same gal who helped us I think like the last couple times. She knows her business professional and best eye for framing our pictures every single time. Large small or she is a great person to help u get the most out of your framing. She is the very best at what she does and we are so lucky to have her help us every time! Thank u all for making our pictures last a life time. read more

What a find! I had three prints to mat and frame in a short amount of time, and I was able to do it all in one quick visit to Cheap Pete's. The array of pre-made frame sizes is amazing, and they will custom cut mats for you while you wait! Then they show you how to attach your print properly to a mat, package everything up carefully, and send you on your way. Pricing was reasonable and the speed of service first rate. I did wish I could've stayed there and put my prints in the frames, but they're not set up for that. No biggie--I was able to do a decent job assembling them at home. The only drawback to Cheap Pete's is the parking in downtown San Mateo. Overall, though, I highly recommend Cheap Pete's. read more

Cheap Pete's Frame Factory Outlet - Huge selection of frames in sizes you won't find in places like Michael's or University Art. - Art Supplies Near Me - San Mateo, California

I would give it zero stars for their custom work. The GOOD: Wide selection of frames and mats at good prices. The BAD: Customer Service is HORRID and quality of work is seriously lacking. I came in to get our kids' school photos (12x16) mounted on foam boards to put into our existing frames. I brought the frame and current mounted photo in to ensure all measurements, etc. would be correct. Easy, right. They have exactly what I'm asking for right in front of them. Work takes a couple of days, good timing. When I show up, the foam board is too large. No problem. They cut it down to fit.... except, the woman doing the cutting cut it too short AND crooked. She puts it in the frame and says see, it looks fine. It was slightly crooked, but she said I don't know what you're upset about, it's just silly, it looks just fine. At that point, she says I can give you a refund if you want. However, she refused to pay for having to have the photos reprinted to be mounted on new foam board. The second photo was also not cut right. At this point, she's rude, doesn't apologize, and keeps saying it's not a big deal because it looks fine (which it didn't). So I ask for the refund, she processes it, puts the receipt on the frame, says "there", and walks away. read more

I live down the block and have come into Cheap Pete's before... its always been a great experience but yesterday was on a whole other level. My brother has a milestone birthday coming up and I had a really special piece of artwork created for him. I knew CP would be the best place to print and frame it based on quality, but its truly the AMAZING employees that made this a great experience for me and I can't thank them enough. Eli patiently worked with me during a day when the Wi-Fi was down and still provided great suggestions and help to kick off this project. I went in the following day and met Cherokee who was friendly and efficient helping me finalize my purchase and make sure my info was in the system. And perhaps the biggest THANK YOU I have goes out to August. This incredibly caring person went above and beyond to not only suggest sizes and frames that would look great, but actually took extra time as a favor to me to frame and wrap it so I can gift it to my brother. It looks SO good I wanted to cry, and I cant wait to give it to my bro this weekend! This extra time that August took to help me was such a kind hearted gift and I cannot express my gratitude enough - especially because this artwork has such special meaning to me and my brother. I have always had the best experiences going into CP with your incredible, attentive and friendly staff, and this was no exception. THANK YOU August and thank you everyone for being amazing. I always refer friends and family over to CP because you guys are EPIC. read more

Excellent customer service and options. I had some old prints my wife got 25 years ago in college. We got new prints and had them framed and they look amazing. Lots of framing options, and some excellent cheap ones. We also had a couple concert posters framed and they also turned out excellent. read more

See all

Rose and all her colleagues are fantastic. They have such an array of frames to suit many different types of prints or cloth for framing. Can't recommend them enough - always great service and efficient! Thank you all read more

The last time we came in and interacted with Rose was prior to the pandemic so when we stopped by on Saturday to get more artwork framed we were surprised she remembered us. She even remembered the artwork we brought in two years ago. Ella helped us mat and frame 4 pieces with a bit of Rose's help. We purchased our frames and went home. Today we got to work framing them. One of the mats wasn't cut right so we brought it in. Ella happily cut us a new one and we are pleased. Both of these women are talented and super friendly. Thank you both. But especially to Rose. She's an absolute gem. Blue says "hi and see ya soon." read more

Cheap Pete's Frame Factory Outlet - Art Supplies Near Me - San Mateo, California

This place is always great! The ladies are so helpful and fun to work with when framing. Rose is especially helpful and gives good guidance to make your art shine! read more

My wife and I have had a few prints mounted here this month. I would definitely recommend this place. But first, the name of this place makes me laugh a little. They do have very inexpensive standard frames you can use. But the other options always look a lot better, so I have never used the "cheap" option. Why does the frame alway seem to cost 10x the price of the print (okay, I exaggerate a little!)? I mean, the thing you are featuring is 1/10 the price of the thing that you are mounting it on--that ratio just seems messed up. But I digress... We went in with open minds to get advice on framing three Van Gogh prints we had purchased to add some color to our walls. I wanted to avoid the plain black frames (and I yawn as a write this part--how boring!). One lady who worked there helped us and two co-workers freely offered their opinions, and we ended up selecting some really nice frames that we would not have picked on our own. We got some great advice which was the main thing we needed. The end result looks great. Plus, as an extra nice bonus, all of the people working there are really nice and with their good senses of humor made the process pretty damn fun. As one other reviewer mentioned, they have great energy here. I really liked that. read more

This is the most amazing place to go for custom framing. My teenage son bought an antique map that he wanted to have framed. The manager worked with him, didn't talk down to him, and listened to his vision. She recommended the perfect frame and mat. The end result was beautiful and a very high-quality product. He is so happy with the results. Their prices are very reasonable, and the customer service is outstanding. read more

My husband and I stopped by for a few frames, and the service we received from Rose was outstanding. She helped us with the layout, custom matting on the spot, and gave excellent advice on what would look best for our photos. We couldn't be happier! It's so refreshing to receive such great service from someone who genuinely enjoys helping customers. read more

First time coming into the store and I will not be returning. I wanted to get some art framed today and have heard that Cheap Pete's is the place to go in the area. It was very busy today (I assume because of the holidays) and it seems like the manager could not handle it. I am not exaggerating when I say she was yelling at customers and her employees. She kept saying they had to all take lunches and basically kicking customers out of the store! I planned to return after their lunches, but they were closed for about an hour. I believe the managers name is Rose. Her other employees seemed visibly uncomfortable and were perfectly polite when greeting incoming customers. I'm not sure if this was a one time thing, but it was very unprofessional and rude. This is NOT how a business should be run at all if they want returning customers. read more

I came to Cheap Pete's with a large poster that I wanted to display somehow, but didn't have a clear idea of what I should do. Rose was super helpful and guided me towards having the poster dry mounted with a frame on the back for hanging. It was my first time having a poster mounted in this way, so I wasn't sure what to expect, but the result looks fantastic: the mount and the poster are edge to edge perfect and all of the mounting materials are of good quality. I loved it so much I returned to have a second poster mounted. During pick up and drop off the rest of the staff were all super helpful and friendly. I got good vibes from the place all around and will definitely return for future framing needs. Thanks! read more

Best place in San Mateo for frames and matting. Great selection to choose from and expert advice. Be sure to ask for Rose, she is the best. Terry read more

CP frames did an amazing job framing my grandfather's WWII service papers. They helped me pick the right frame, boarder, and orientation. They delivered earlier than expected and the work was superb! I'd highly recommend them. Great job!! read more

Beautiful, well-lit store with plenty of options. Friendly staff who are happy to help me frame or make suggestions.

Cheap Pete's needs a little asterisk next to their name because while they do have some cheap frames ranging from $2-20, they definitely have some very very expensive frames as well. Every time I have come in here, whether I need some simple silver $2 frames or I need something more complicated, the staff is always friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable about all things frames. It feels like physical frame shops are getting fewer and further between on the Peninsula, so grateful that they are part of the Downtown San Mateo community! read more

Very helpful & knowledgeable staff. Great customer service & would be happy to come back for future framing services!

Megan was FANTASTIC great customer service I brought in 2 8x10 pictures painting of my 2 dogs 13yrs and 15yrs old Mocha (Bichon) and Milo(Yorkie)They are on there last leg my poor babies, One of the frames broke and I needed two frames Megan went above and beyond customer service, she has a big heart for dogs I told her about my dogs and you can tell she was very empathetic and listened to my needs she spent time with me suggesting stuff , I was very happy of the outcome of my two 8x10 pictures, Thanks Megan you do great work for the Company I hope the realize what a great worker you are and value you as an employee Thanks again. Sincerely, Sherrie Lee read more

OMG I found my favorite framing place in San Mateo ! and maybe the world . Rose and the whole staff are a smooth working machine that brings new meaning to value and service in this day and age ! Kudos- Hats off to the staff read more

If you want great customer service and custom framing from professionals, without the high expense, this is the frame place for you! I have the sweetest guy help me his name was Connor. Not only did he help me find the perfect frame for my picture, he placed my picture inside the frame and made sure it was done correctly at no extra charge! Customer service thank you Connor! read more

Customer service was wonderful - we were greeted as soon as we walked in and got the help we needed. This is so lame to add to a review but I loved their hand sanitizer. It wasn't slimy nor did it smell bad like most places nowadays so shout out to cheap petes for smell good sani. We had some wonky frame sizes and found exactly what we needed. read more

Every time I have gone into Cheap Pete's I am greeted by a cheerful, competent and knowledgeable sales person. Today I came in with hopes of framing a tea towel for my 92 year old mentors birthday. The initial sales person was great and offered a few different ideas. However her colleague overhead and made additional suggestions that brought the project cost in for less than half. This is always my experience. Great staff good prices ! Just wonderful creative young people! read more

I recently purchased some digital artwork from Etsy, and I needed some design consultation before mounting it on a 16x48 size canvas, for my guest bedroom. Well, I decided to give cheap Pete's a try, and I had an excellent experience. I worked with, Janet Barker, she is an talented artist herself, and only works there just a few days a week. I was so lucky that she was there the day I went in. She was so knowledgeable on their computer software, and having an incredibly artistic eye, was able to compose my image, quickly and perfectly........WOW !!! Rose Armstrong, the store manager was also most helpful too...... "Bottom Line"......you can't go wrong using Cheap Pete's in San Mateo. read more