Hiding photos

To hide photos on iPhone, use the Hidden album in Photos, which is locked with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode on iOS 16 and later. On Android, Google Photos has Locked Folder and Samsung phones have Secure Folder. These guides walk through each one step by step, checked against the makers’ own help pages, and say plainly what they don’t do: anyone who knows your passcode can open the Hidden album, and it travels with iCloud Photos like any other photo. If you want photos locked with their own key and backed up in a way you can check, the guides say where Hideroom fits, once, at the end. Start with the pillar guide below if you’re new to this, then pick the question you’re actually stuck on.

A small stack of printed photographs, a sunset over the sea on top, on an oak ledge in a lit arched niche.

In short

Your phone can hide photos for free: on iPhone they go to the Hidden album, which Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode opens; on Android, Locked Folder or Secure Folder.
Hiding takes a photo out of sight; it doesn’t give it a separate lock or its own encryption.

Start here

A printed beach photograph half slid into a cream envelope in a lit arched niche.

How to hide photos on iPhone

Hide photos on iPhone with the Hidden album, lock it with Face ID, and learn what it doesn't protect against. Checked against Apple's guides for iOS 27.

Updated 24 October 2026 · 5 min read