Private family photo album apps, compared
Short answer. A private family photo album app shares photos only with people you invite. Which one suits you depends on what you want to keep:
- Every photo, for free: a shared album in iCloud or Google Photos. Everyone in the album sees everything in it.
- A free app with unlimited storage: FamilyAlbum, if you don't mind ads, or TinyNest for photos without ads.
- An ad-free album app with invite-only groups: Cluster, Clann or Bunched.
- Chosen moments with notes and voice, and a choice of who sees each one: Dear Moment. It is a private family diary rather than an album.
We make Dear Moment, so we're not neutral. Every fact about another app comes from its own website, help pages or App Store listing, linked under Sources. If we got something wrong, email hello@dearmoment.app and we'll fix it.
What makes a family photo album private
Most private photo sharing apps for family say "private". These are the checks that show the difference:
- Who can see photos. Invite only, and whether you can choose who sees each photo or only each album.
- What viewers need. An app and an account, or only a link. This matters most for grandparents.
- How the company makes money. Ads, or subscriptions.
- AI training. What the privacy policy says about using your photos to train AI.
- Where data is stored. The country or region, and the provider.
- Export. Whether you can get all your photos out, and how.
Sharing and price
| App | Who can see | What viewers need | Free option | Paid (US) | Ads |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dear Moment | You choose for each moment | A private link; no app or account | Free plan: 5 moments. 14-day free trial | $39.99/year | None |
| FamilyAlbum | Family or admins; Share Groups on paid plans | App, or the browser version by invitation | Unlimited photos and videos (up to 2 minutes) | $59/year (Premium Family) | On the free plan |
| Tinybeans | All followers, unless hidden at upload | Email updates; the website needs an account | 20 uploads a month | $74.99/year | On the free plan |
| TinyNest | Everyone you invite; no per-post choice | The app | Unlimited photos; unlimited videos on the paid plan | $79.99/year | None |
| Cluster | Each group; invite only | Email updates; viewing on the web needs a login | 10 groups of up to 1,000 photos | $49.99/year (Friend), $99.99/year (Family) | None |
| Clann | Each family group; invite only | A web link and the group password; no account | 7-day free trial | $59.99/year | None |
| Bunched | Each group; invite only | App, or a web link with a PIN on the paid plan | Up to 100 uploads | $49.99/year | None |
| 23snaps | All your connections, or only your partner | Email summaries | Free app | Premium $5.49/month | None |
| iCloud Shared Albums | Everyone in the album | From version 27, a link on any device; no Apple Account | Free; counts towards iCloud storage from version 27 | iCloud+ monthly, from $0.99/month | None |
| Google Photos | Everyone with the album or link | A link; anyone with it can view and add photos | Up to 15 GB, shared with Gmail and Drive | $19.99/year (Google One 100 GB) | Photos data not used for ads, unless you connect Photos to services that support ads |
Privacy and data
| App | AI training | Where data is stored | Export |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dear Moment | Never used to train AI | EU (Frankfurt) | Everything, on request |
| FamilyAlbum | Not stated; analyses faces for album features | AWS and Google Cloud; EU and UK data can go outside Europe | Bulk download on the Pro plan |
| Tinybeans | May use machine learning on your content; training not stated | US | On Tinybeans+, up to 3 years at a time |
| TinyNest | Won't sell or license content for AI training | US company; Amazon S3, region not stated | Not stated |
| Cluster | Not stated | Not stated | An archive of each group, by email |
| Clann | Never used to train AI | Supabase and AWS; US or EU | Admins can export a group in original quality |
| Bunched | Not used to train AI | Google Firebase; UK, EEA, US or other regions | Download, method not described |
| 23snaps | Not mentioned | Amazon and Microsoft; region not stated | Export at any time |
| iCloud Shared Albums | Apple: private personal data not used to train its foundation models | Mainly the US | Not compared here |
| Google Photos | Not used to train generative AI outside Google Photos | Google servers worldwide | Not compared here |
Checked on 21 October 2026 on each app's own pages and App Store listing, listed under Sources. "Not stated" means we could not find it on the app's own pages. Prices are US App Store prices and can change.
The apps, one by one
Dear Moment
Dear Moment is a private family diary, not an album for every photo. A moment can hold up to 10 photos and 3 videos, a written note and a voice note, which is transcribed for you. Moments go on one timeline by date, and you browse by month. You choose who sees each moment, and each person you share with gets a private link that opens in a browser, with no app or account, plus an optional email digest. Only you add moments; family can view and download. It costs $5.99/month or $39.99/year after a 14-day free trial, with no ads, unlimited storage and data stored in the EU.
FamilyAlbum
FamilyAlbum has a free plan with unlimited photo and video storage and third-party ads. Paid plans remove the ads and add Share Groups, for sharing some photos with only some people. Relatives without the app can use the browser version by invitation. See FamilyAlbum alternatives.
Tinybeans
Tinybeans is a family photo journal with milestones and photo books. Followers see every memory unless you hide it when you upload it. The free plan has ads and allows 20 uploads a month. See Tinybeans alternatives.
TinyNest
TinyNest stores unlimited photos for free, with no ads, and sorts them by the child's age. Unlimited videos need the paid plan. Family need the TinyNest app to view.
Cluster
Cluster shares photos in invite-only groups. The free plan allows 10 groups with up to 1,000 photos each. Members get email updates, and you can download an archive of a group.
Clann
Clann shares photos in invite-only family groups. Family view from a web link with the group password, with no account. There is a 7-day free trial and no free plan. Clann says it never uses photos to train AI.
Bunched
Bunched shares photos in invite-only groups, with a role for each person: view only, or contribute. The free plan allows up to 100 uploads. Grandparent Mode, a web link with a PIN and no account, is on the paid plan.
23snaps
23snaps is a private family feed with photos, videos and status updates. Each post goes to all your connections or only to your partner. It says it is ad-free, and family can get daily or weekly email summaries.
iCloud Shared Albums and Google Photos
Both are free within your storage and good for pooling every photo from everyone in one place. Everyone in a shared album sees all of it, and anyone with a Google Photos album link can view the photos and add to the album. See Dear Moment vs iCloud Shared Albums and Dear Moment vs Google Photos.
When Dear Moment is not the right choice
- You want every photo in one shared album. Dear Moment keeps chosen moments, not your whole camera roll. Use a shared album in iCloud or Google Photos.
- You want family to add their own photos. In Dear Moment only the account owner adds moments. FamilyAlbum, iCloud and Google Photos let family add.
- You want a free plan for all your photos. Dear Moment's free plan saves five moments. FamilyAlbum and TinyNest have free plans with unlimited photos.
- You want to search your photos by text. Dear Moment has no text search.
More comparisons: Dear Moment vs Tinybeans vs FamilyAlbum vs TinyNest.
Questions
What is the most private way to share family photos?
Use an app where only invited people can see photos, the company does not sell ads against them or train AI on them, and you can choose who sees what. Check where the data is stored and how you get everything out.
Is there a free private family photo album app?
Yes. iCloud Shared Albums and Google Photos shared albums are free within your storage. FamilyAlbum has a free plan with unlimited photos and ads. TinyNest has a free plan with unlimited photos and no ads. Cluster and Bunched have limited free plans. Dear Moment and Clann have a free trial, then a subscription.
Do grandparents need an app to see a private family album?
It depends on the app. Dear Moment and Clann give family a web link with no account. FamilyAlbum has a browser version. Bunched has a web link with a PIN on its paid plan. TinyNest needs the app.
Is Dear Moment a photo album?
Not quite. Dear Moment is a private family diary: you save chosen moments, each with photos, videos, a written note or a voice note, on one timeline by date. If you want every photo from your camera roll in one shared album, a shared album in iCloud or Google Photos suits you better.
Sources
- FamilyAlbum: plans, choosing who to share with, Share Groups, browser version, bulk download, privacy policy, App Store
- Tinybeans: free vs paid, follower access, website login, export, privacy policy, App Store
- TinyNest: home page and FAQ, terms, privacy policy, App Store
- Cluster: family page and FAQ, email updates, privacy policy, App Store
- Clann: FAQ, features, privacy policy, App Store
- Bunched: home page and pricing, Grandparent Mode, privacy policy, App Store
- 23snaps: who can see a post, privacy and security, export, App Store
- Apple: Shared Albums, Shared Albums limits, iCloud+ plans, privacy policy
- Google: sharing albums, Google storage, Photos privacy and AI, privacy policy, Google One on the App Store
- Dear Moment: pricing and FAQ, privacy policy, our team
Start a private family diary. Try Dear Moment free for 14 days, then $5.99/month or $39.99/year. Cancel anytime before your trial ends and you won't be charged.