Hide Photos on Mac: Photos Hidden Album vs a Vault App

Steps use macOS 14 and later names. Menu wording can differ slightly between versions.

Hide photos with the Photos app

1. Select the photos

   In Photos, click Library in the sidebar and select the pictures. You can pick several at once. Apple's menu item reads "Hide [number] Photos".

2. Hide them

   Choose Image > Hide Photos, then click Hide. Apple also lists Control-click > Hide Photo and the ⌘L shortcut. Apple says the photos disappear from view and are not deleted.

3. See them again

   Choose View > Show Hidden Photo Album. Then open Hidden under Utilities. If you do not see it, hold the pointer over Utilities and click the disclosure arrow. If the album is locked, click View Album and unlock it with Touch ID or your password.

4. Put one back

   Open the Hidden album, Control-click the photo and choose Unhide Photo. Apple also lists Image > Unhide Photo.

5. Hide the album itself

   Choose View > Hide Hidden Photo Album to remove it from the sidebar. Apple says the album is off by default on Mac. This only removes the entry. It is not a lock.

If it does not work

• You cannot find the Hidden album. Choose View > Show Hidden Photo Album, then look under Utilities. The list may be collapsed.
• It asks for Touch ID or your password. That is the default lock. Apple says you can change it in Photos settings. Its page does not give the steps, so look in Photos > Settings.
• A photo still shows in the library. Apple says hidden photos do not appear elsewhere in Photos. The picture you see may be a duplicate, so hide that one too.
• It shows on your iPhone. Apple says that with iCloud Photos on, photos you hide on one device are hidden on your others too. Check that iCloud Photos is on for both.

What hiding does and does not do

• It removes the picture from the main grid, Memories and most suggestions.
• The Hidden album is locked by default, so a quick look by someone at your Mac does not show it.
• The photo is still in your Photos library, which usually syncs through iCloud Photos to your other devices.
• Anyone who knows your Mac login password or has your fingerprint on the Mac can unlock the album.
• Hiding is not deleting. If you delete a photo, Apple says it stays in Recently Deleted for 30 days.

Hide photos from people who use your Mac

1. Give each person their own macOS account in System Settings > Users & Groups.
2. Use a Photos library that belongs to your account only.
3. Lock the screen with ⌃⌘Q when you step away.
4. If someone has your password, move the pictures into an encrypted vault instead.

Read the shared family Mac scenario for how accounts work in practice.

Keep photos out of iCloud with a second library

Hiding keeps a photo in the library that uploads to iCloud. A second Photos library does not upload by default. Apple says only the System Photo Library uploads to iCloud. Apple's steps:

1. Quit Photos.
2. Hold Option and click the Photos icon in the Applications folder or the Dock.
3. In the Choose Library dialog click Create New, then enter a name and choose where to store it.
4. Import the pictures into the new library, then delete the originals from your main library.

Do not make the new library the System Photo Library. Apple warns that switching libraries turns off iCloud Photos and Shared Albums, and that once content uploads, merged libraries cannot be unmerged. To go back to your main library, quit Photos, hold Option, choose it and click Choose Library. Apple does not describe a second library as encrypted. For that, keep it on an encrypted image as in the private photo vault guide. The iCloud scenario covers the wider problem.

Hide photos before you share a screen

Photos on screen during a call is a common accident. Close Photos before you present. To blur one area of a picture before sending it, use the free blur and pixelate tool, which runs in your browser. Strip location data from a picture with the photo metadata remover. The screen sharing scenario has a checklist.

What about hide photo apps?

Many "hide photos" apps on iPhone use a PIN and sometimes a calculator disguise. Some encrypt the files and some only hide them. The checklist in the photo vault app guide shows how to tell. For other devices read how to hide photos. For videos see how to hide videos. For Apple's album in detail see the Hidden album guide.

Move photos into Hidden Folder