Secret Photo Album: How to Make One on iPhone, Mac and Android

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

The built-in secret albums

Regular albums are not secret

An album you create in Photos, Google Photos or any gallery app is only a way to sort pictures. Anyone who opens the app sees it. A secret album has to be a locked place. That is why the built-in options above use a lock and take the pictures out of your normal view.

Make a secret album on an iPhone or a Mac

On Apple devices the steps are short. Hide the photo and Apple moves it to the Hidden album.

• iPhone: open Photos, tap and hold the photo, tap Hide and confirm. Find the album later under Collections > Utilities > Hidden, then tap View Album.
• Mac: in Photos, select the photos and choose Image > Hide Photo. Find the album with View > Show Hidden Photo Album, then click Hidden under Utilities.

The full walk-through, with unhide and troubleshooting, is in the Hidden album guide. On a Mac you can also read hide photos on Mac.

Make a secret album on Android with Locked Folder

1. Open the photo

   Open Google Photos and select the photo or video you want to hide.

2. Move it

   Tap Add to, then Move to Locked Folder, and confirm. The first time, Google asks you to set the folder up. It needs Android 6 or later and a device screen lock.

3. Decide on backup

   During setup you can turn on backup for Locked Folder. Google warns that items you do not back up exist only on that device.

4. Open it later

   In the Google Photos app, go to Collections > Locked.

Google says its password is your screen lock and you cannot set a different one. Items stay out of the Photos grid, memories, search and albums, and other apps on the device cannot access them.

While an item is in Locked Folder, Google says you cannot add it to albums, edit it or share it. Items in Trash must be restored before you can move them. If you do not turn on backup, items are deleted if you factory reset the phone, clear the app data or delete the Photos app.

What a secret album does not protect

• Anyone who knows your unlock. Google says anyone who knows your screen lock can open Locked Folder. Apple unlocks the Hidden album with your Face ID, Touch ID, passcode or Mac login password.
• Copies. Google says related items stay where they are, including copies, edited versions and photos shared by others.
• Sync. Apple says that with iCloud Photos, hiding a photo on one device hides it on the others.
• Sharing. Google says you must move an item out of Locked Folder before you share it.

Keep the album off screen

A secret album does not help if it is on screen during a call. Close Photos before you share your screen. The Zoom screen sharing scenario lists steps that keep private pictures off a shared screen.

Secret photo apps: what to test

Search results for a secret photo app, a secret photo vault or a private photo album app list many options. This site does not rank them. A name does not tell you whether an app encrypts your files, so test it yourself:

1. Read the app's own privacy page. Does it name the encryption method?
2. Add a dummy photo, lock it, then try to find it in your gallery, search and file manager.
3. Forget the PIN on a test vault. Learn what recovery exists before you store anything real.
4. Turn off the disguise icon. A calculator icon hides the app, not the pictures.

Related reading: what is a vault app, calculator vault apps and apps to hide pictures and videos by situation. For a Mac, the photo vault guide lists options.

Where Hidden Folder fits