| Hidden album | Encrypted vault | |
|---|---|---|
| Hidden from the main library | Yes | Yes |
| Locked behind Face ID | Yes (iOS 16+) | Pattern, optional Face ID |
| Encrypted with a key only you hold | No | Yes |
| Readable by someone with your passcode | Yes | No |
| In iCloud Photos as normal photos | Yes | No, encrypted backup only |
| Survives losing the phone | Via iCloud Photos | Via encrypted backup plus recovery phrase |
| Cost | Free | Free tier, paid for unlimited |
The Hidden album is a curtain. A vault is a safe. If what you need is to keep a few photos out of the grid when you hand someone your phone, the curtain is enough. If the photos must stay unreadable even to someone who knows your passcode, or if they must survive a lost phone without sitting in iCloud Photos, you need the safe.
One thing a vault adds that is easy to miss: deniability. In Vaultpod every pattern opens its own vault and there is no list, so nobody can tell how many vaults exist, or whether any does.