Comparison

Visual Locker vs Private Photo Vault

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Visual Locker

Read full description

Keep your personal photos and videos in a private vault on iPhone and iPad. Choose the items you want to add and organize them into folders. Photos and videos stay in the app's private storage with Apple's file protection, and your vault catalog is encrypted. Each device keeps its own independent vault. Visual Locker does not sync your media between Apple devices or store your vault on a Visual Locker server. Create a separate six-digit vault passcode or choose a password. You can then add Face ID or Touch ID for convenient access on supported devices. Your device passcode cannot open a vault protected by a separate vault credential directly. Alternatively, choose device unlock using the biometric method or passcode configured on your device. With Visual Locker, you can: • Import selected photos and videos privately • Organize personal moments into folders • Search, sort and filter your private library with Pro • View photos and play videos using familiar controls • Save items back to Photos whenever you choose • Choose whether your vault is included in Apple device backup • Choose a vault passcode, password or device unlock at no extra cost Free includes private storage, all access choices, up to 25 items and three folders. A one-time Pro purchase unlocks unlimited items and folders, private on-device search and filters. No subscription. Already purchased Visual Locker Pro on another Apple device? Restore Purchases. IMPORTANT: We cannot recover a forgotten vault passcode or password. And if you delete the app (or lose your phone) you will likely lose anything stored in the vault. Keep another copy of important photos and videos.

About

Private Photo Vault

Features
Read full description

A private photo vault on your iPhone that checks each photo it saves. Dearkept copies the photos you choose into an encrypted library that only you can open. Every photo is checked after it is saved. Choose a backup folder, such as iCloud Drive, and keep your 12 recovery words to restore on your next iPhone. No account, no server of ours, no tracking. Free for your first 100 photos. HOW IT WORKS • Each photo is read back and compared with the original before Dearkept calls it verified. Run a full check any time. • Once a copy is checked, Dearkept offers to remove the original from iPhone Photos. You decide. • Turn on Back Up Automatically and Dearkept backs up your changes while it is open, into an encrypted backup in a folder you choose, such as iCloud Drive, and checks it. • Your Vault Code is yours alone, so not even Dearkept can reset it. Your checked backup and 12 recovery words restore the photos it holds on your next iPhone. • Export to Photos or Files any time, one photo or your whole Library. Never paywalled or watermarked. • Trash waits 30 days, then deletes for good while Dearkept is open and unlocked. • The camera in Dearkept saves to Dearkept only. • Nothing leaves your iPhone unless you send it yourself: an export, a backup, or the share sheet. No analytics, no ads. DEARKEPT PRO Unlimited photos, and a decoy vault that opens with its own code and shows everyday photos. The decoy deletes nothing and does not hide the app. A yearly or monthly subscription, or a one-time Lifetime purchase. Subscriptions renew until you cancel them in Settings. The free 100 photos count Library, Trash and photos waiting for attention. Export, backup and restore stay free on every plan. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://dearkept.com/privacy/

Screenshots

Visual Locker4 screens
Private Photo Vault4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is device support: Visual Locker at 3 against Private Photo Vault's 1. On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Ā· Rating Ā· Positive reviews Ā· Number of ratings Ā· Update frequency Ā· Ads Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Monetization Ā· Best chart rank Ā· Devices Ā· Requires iOS

CostPrice Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Ads Ā· Monetization

Both are free to download. Visual Locker sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Private Photo Vault sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Visual Locker ships an update every 10 days, Private Photo Vault every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference Ā· 5 level
Visual Locker versus Private Photo Vault: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVisual LockerPrivate Photo Vault
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 10 days — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Vision Pro — betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size20 MB21 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperHANDLR VENTURES LTDSharath Kumar

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Visual Locker

One-time1
  • Visual Locker Pro$14.99
3 purchases

Private Photo Vault

Subscriptions2
  • Dearkept Pro Monthly$3.991 Month
  • Dearkept Pro Annual7 Days trial$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Dearkept Pro Lifetime$49.99

Questions

Is Visual Locker free?
Visual Locker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Private Photo Vault free?
Private Photo Vault is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Visual Locker or Private Photo Vault have ads?
Neither Visual Locker nor Private Photo Vault shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Visual Locker or Private Photo Vault?
Visual Locker ships an update every 10 days, and Private Photo Vault every 3 weeks. Most recently, Visual Locker was updated on October 31, 2026 and Private Photo Vault on October 24, 2026.

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