Short answer
Pay a subscription for a vault that stores your photos in its cloud, because the developer pays for that storage every month and the price is honest. Do not pay a subscription for a vault that keeps everything on your phone, because there is no recurring cost to cover. In 2026 Keepsafe is $23.99 a year, LockMyPix $29.99 a year with no one-time option, Vaultaire $19.99 a year or $39.99 once, and AlterVault $24.99 once. Over five years that is roughly $120, $150, $40 and $25.
On this page
AlterVault vs Keepsafe, over the years
Keepsafe is the category's best-known subscription, so it is the one to cost against. Prices from the US App Store listing, November 2026.
AlterVault
KeepsafeWhy vault apps charge every year
Cloud storage costs the developer every month, for as long as your photos sit on their servers. Keepsafe's Premium tier includes a private cloud of up to 10,000 items, and that storage has a bill attached whether or not you open the app. A recurring price for a recurring cost is not a trick. It is the only honest way to sell a cloud product.
The trick is when the subscription outlives the reason for it. An app that stores nothing, syncs nothing and runs no servers has no monthly cost to pass on. When such an app offers only a yearly plan, the subscription is a pricing decision, not a cost. Several of the apps below do exactly that.
So the question to ask of any vault app's price page is not "how much" but "what am I renting". If the answer is server space, a subscription is fair. If the answer is nothing, you should be able to pay once.
What the years add up to
Six apps people actually compare, with the prices on their US store listings or their own sites, and the five-year cost of the cheapest path to unlimited use. Listings change; each entry is linked so you can check the day you read this.
- Keepsafe
- $9.99 a month or $23.99 a year, with no lifetime plan on the US listing. About $120 after five years, about $240 after ten. The money rents cloud storage, so the model is at least coherent.
LockMyPix- Subscription only, in periods of one, six or twelve months; the yearly plan is $29.99. About $150 after five years, for an app whose files stay on the device. This is the clearest case of a subscription with no recurring cost behind it.
Private Photo Vault- Five in-app purchases labelled Premium or Upgrade, from $6.99 to $39.99, with the billing period not shown on the listing. Expect the low numbers to be monthly or yearly and the $39.99 to be the one-time upgrade; confirm at checkout before you tap.
- Vaultaire
- iOS only. $1.99 a week, $5.99 a month, $19.99 a year, or $39.99 once. The lifetime option is the right one to take; the weekly plan is $103 a year.
Google Photos Locked Folder- Free and built into Android and the Google Photos app. No encryption of its own beyond the phone's, no decoy, and it opens with your screen lock, but the price is unbeatable for what it does.
- AlterVault
- $24.99 once, or $4.99 a month for anyone who would rather not pay up front. 10 items free with every feature. The same $24.99 after five years and after ten, because nothing you store costs us anything.
Prices are US list prices as shown on 4 November 2026. Introductory offers, regional pricing and the periodic sales these apps run will all move the numbers; the shape of the comparison does not change.
Sources: App Store: Secret Photo Vault, Keepsafe (US, in-app purchases), App Store: LockMyPix Secret Photo Vault (US, in-app purchases), App Pricing Lab: Private Photo Vault in-app purchases, March 2026, Vaultaire pricing, vaultaire.app
Free tiers, compared
- Keepsafe Basic
- Free with a photo backup to Keepsafe's cloud and an item limit. Premium adds the 10,000-item private cloud, Space Saver compression and the extra features.
- LockMyPix free
- Free with a cap on how many photos and videos can be hidden; unlimited hiding needs the subscription.
- Vaultaire free
- Up to 3 vaults, 100 photos and 10 videos in total, with cloud backup included. Unlimited vaults are the paid feature.
- Google Photos Locked Folder
- Entirely free, no item cap.
- AlterVault free
- 10 items, with the encryption, the decoy, the shake, the recovery phrase and the backup file all included. The cap is the only thing Pro removes, along with adding more vaults.
"Is photo vault free?" has a different answer for every app that uses the phrase as its name. Check the free tier's cap and which features it withholds, not the price on the icon.
Sources: App Store: Secret Photo Vault, Keepsafe (US, in-app purchases), App Store: LockMyPix Secret Photo Vault (US, in-app purchases), Vaultaire pricing, vaultaire.app
The honest risk of paying once, and how AlterVault covers it
A subscription only gets paid if you stay, which is a standing incentive to keep the app working. A one-time purchase has already been paid. The risk of the model is an app nobody maintains, with your library inside it. Three things make that survivable.
- Full-quality export, any time
- Share or save any item back out at the original resolution, from the free tier onward. Nothing is held hostage behind a renewal.
- A backup file you keep
- Your whole library writes to one encrypted file per vault, which you copy to a computer, a drive or another phone. If the app vanished from the store, your installed copy keeps working and that file is the way out.
- A real free tier
- 10 items with every feature. Test the encryption, the decoy and the backup before paying anything, and decide whether the app is worth $24.99 of your money once.
Questions
Why do photo vault apps charge a subscription?
Because most of them store your photos in the cloud, which costs the developer every month. That is a fair reason. Some charge a subscription for an app that stores nothing on any server, and that is a pricing decision. AlterVault keeps everything on your device, has no monthly cost, and lets you pay once.
How much does AlterVault cost?
Free up to 10 items with every feature. Pro lifts the cap and adds more vaults, each behind its own code, for $24.99 once or $4.99 a month.
How much does Keepsafe cost per year?
$23.99 a year or $9.99 a month on the US App Store listing as of November 2026, with no lifetime plan on the listing. Over five years that is about $120, against $24.99 once for AlterVault. Keepsafe's price pays for cloud storage of up to 10,000 items, so it is a fair price for a cloud product.
Is there a photo vault with no subscription?
Yes. AlterVault is $24.99 once. Vaultaire offers $39.99 once on iOS. Private Photo Vault lists a $39.99 upgrade. Google Photos' Locked Folder is free. Keepsafe and LockMyPix are subscription only.
Is a lifetime photo vault worth it?
It is when you can leave without the developer's help. AlterVault exports at full quality any time and writes your library to one encrypted backup file you keep. If the app vanished tomorrow, your installed copy keeps working and that file is the way out. A lifetime purchase of an app that holds your files hostage is a bet on the developer, not a saving.
What happens if I stop paying?
With AlterVault Pro Lifetime there is nothing to stop paying. If you cancel the monthly plan, nothing is deleted: everything stays encrypted on your phone, and items past the first 10 are shown locked until you renew or pay once. With a cloud vault, premium storage lapses and access to your own photos can be restricted while you are still trying to export them.
Is photo vault free?
Several apps are called Photo Vault and all of them are free to install with a paid tier. The free tiers differ in item caps and in which features they withhold. AlterVault's free tier has every feature with a 10-item cap. Google Photos' Locked Folder is free with no cap but offers no separate code, no decoy and no encryption beyond the phone's own.