Secure Folder
Good for: An account-free vault that stays on your iPhone.
What it offers: PIN and Face ID lock; free calculator icon and working calculator lock screen; decoy vault and Break-in Alerts with Premium, the optional paid upgrade
Photo Vault App for iPhone: Which Is Best?
Mehmet Ali Kısacık · Developer of Secure Folder · · Updated
A photo vault app for iPhone moves private photos out of the Photos app and locks them behind a PIN of its own. The four apps below differ mostly in where they keep your photos and whether they need an account.
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Four photo vault apps for iPhone
Keepsafe
Good for: People who want optional Private Cloud backup.
What it offers: on-device vault; optional Backup & Sync; Premium decoy vault and intruder alerts
Consider: An account is required. The free tier has ads and a 200-item cloud-backup allowance; the iPhone app has no Secret Door disguise.
Private Photo Vault
Good for: A well-established vault with local storage and an optional paid cloud backup.
What it offers: PIN or pattern lock; listed decoy password and break-in report; optional Cloud Vault
Consider: Cloud Vault needs Premium and an account.
Calculator#
Good for: A vault with a calculator-style icon.
What it offers: calculator disguise; PIN or biometric locks; optional backup to iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive or OneDrive
Consider: The free tier has ads and limits.
Apple's Hidden album is free but opens with your iPhone passcode
The Hidden album is built into Photos. Apple Support says photos you hide move there and stop showing up anywhere else in the app, including other albums and the Photos widget. With iCloud Photos on, a photo you hide is hidden on your other devices too.
Since iOS 16 the album is locked by default. It opens with Face ID, Touch ID or the iPhone passcode. So anyone who knows the passcode can open it. On iOS 18 and later, the lock setting and the Show Hidden Album switch are under Settings > Apps > Photos.
Secure Folder's vault has its own PIN, and your iPhone passcode doesn't open it. Face ID or Touch ID opens it too.
What happens to the original after import
Importing creates a vault copy. Secure Folder and Calculator# can automatically delete the originals when you import, if you choose that option. If you keep an original, it remains in Photos and in iCloud Photos if you use it.
After importing, check Photos and Recently Deleted. If an original is still in Photos, you can use Secure Folder's Delete Originals control or delete it in Photos. A deleted photo stays in Recently Deleted for up to 30 days unless you remove it there too.
Common questions
Is there a free photo vault app for iPhone?
Apple's Hidden album costs nothing and is already in Photos. Keepsafe, Private Photo Vault and Calculator# are free to download, with ads. Secure Folder is free to download and shows no ads; Premium adds the decoy vault and Break-in Alerts.
Can a photo vault app hide its own icon?
Some can. Calculator# Hide Photos Videos has a calculator-style icon. Secure Folder offers a free calculator icon and working calculator lock screen. Keepsafe's Secret Door disguise is Android only. You can also take Apple's Hidden album out of view by turning off Show Hidden Album.
Sources
- Secure Folder: Privacy Vault — App Store, September 25, 2026
- Secret Photo Vault: Keepsafe — App Store, September 25, 2026
- Keepsafe Support — How does the Keepsafe backup work?, September 25, 2026
- Keepsafe Support — What does Keepsafe Premium include?, September 25, 2026
- Keepsafe Support — What is Secret Door?, September 25, 2026
- Private Photo Vault - Pic Safe — App Store, September 25, 2026
- Private Photo Vault — Cloud Vault encrypted backups, September 25, 2026
- Private Photo Vault — FAQ, September 25, 2026
- Calculator# Hide Photos Videos — App Store, September 25, 2026
- Apple iPhone User Guide — Delete or hide photos and videos on iPhone, September 25, 2026
- Secure Folder — Hide Photos and Videos, September 25, 2026