Best for free
Best free family photo-sharing app — and what each one charges instead
Thirteen of the fourteen apps have a free tier — one of them a seven-day trial with a shrinking free tier behind it. None is free in every sense: each takes payment in ads, monthly caps, storage caps or reduced quality. This page says which.
In short: 1. iCloud Shared Albums · 2. Google Photos · 3. 23snaps · 4. TinyNest · 5. FamilyAlbum · 6. Keepr Circle · 7. Amazon Photos · 8. BackThen · 9. Cluster · 10. Tinybeans · 11. PhotoCircle · 12. WhatsApp · 13. Qeepsake. The reasons ↓
How this page weights the criteria
Only free tiers count. Within them: what limits the free tier (storage, monthly caps, video), ads, and photo quality. Paid tiers are noted for when the free one runs out, and ranked on their own page. Start the find tool from this weighting.
| Criterion | iCloud Shared Albums | Google Photos | 23snaps | TinyNest | FamilyAlbum | Keepr Circle | Amazon Photos | BackThen | Cluster | Tinybeans | PhotoCircle | Qeepsake | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free; doesn't use iCloud storage[1] | Free 15 GB; 100 GB $1.99/mo; 2 TB $9.99/mo[2] | Free; Premium $5.49/mo, Premium Plus $7.99/mo[3][4][5] | Free; Pro $12.99 or $79.99 in-app (periods not stated); $199.99 lifetime gift[6][7][8] | Free with ads; Premium Family $5.99/mo or $59/yr[9][10] | Free 5 GB; storage tiers from $4.99/mo (100 GB)[11][12] | 5 GB free; unlimited photos with Prime; plans from $1.99/mo[13][14] | Free 1 GB; VIP $6.49/mo (app stores) or $64.99/yr (website), 200 GB[15][16][17][18] | Free with unpublished limits; Cluster Club: Friend $4.99/mo or $49.99/yr, Family $9.99 or $99.99, Pro $19.99 or $199.99[19][20][21] | Free (20 uploads/mo, 5 GB, ads); Tinybeans+ $7.99/mo or $74.99/yr[22][23] | Free with ads; PhotoCircle+ $1.29/mo or $9.99/yr[24][25] | Free; 'No ads' in-app purchase listed[26] | 7-day trial, then Essential $4.99/mo or $47.88/yr, Premium $9.99/mo or $95.88/yr; free Lite tier of 5 photos a month[27][28][29][30] |
| Storage limit | 5,000 items per album, 200 albums[1][31] | 15 GB free, shared with Gmail and Drive[2] | Unlimited uploads free; HD storage on Premium[3][4] | Unlimited photos; videos limited until Pro[6] | Unlimited, free[10][32] | 5 GB free; 100, 250 or 500 GB tiers; uploads pause at the cap[11] | Unlimited photos (Prime); video 5 GB[33] | 1 GB free; 200 GB on VIP, uncapped for now; deletion clauses in the terms[34][16][35] | Free uploads capped at an unpublished number of posts; 10 MB per image on the web[20][36][37][38] | 5 GB free; 200 GB on Tinybeans+[39][40] | No quota stated[41] | No album — chat thread and phone storage[26] | Metered by count: 50 (Essential) or 100 (Premium) photos a month; 5 on Lite[42][27][29] |
| Ads? | No[43] | No ads in the app; the App Store label lists photos under third-party advertising[44][45] | No — 'Ad-free forever'[3][46][47] | No — 'no strangers, no ads'[6][7] | Yes, on the free version (third-party ads)[9] | No — 'No ads · No ad tracking'[12][11] | Partly — photos may be scanned for shopping suggestions[48] | No — 'Ad-free timelines forever'[49][16][17] | No — 'we will never sell ads or sell your data'; merchandise promotions by email[19][50][51] | Yes, on the free plan[52][53] | Yes — removed for the subscriber only[24][25] | Partly — Updates tab since 2025; not in chats[54][26] | Not stated for the app; the privacy policy allows 'personalized content and advertising' and an 'offer wall'[55] |
| Photos kept at full quality? | No — 2048 px, video 720p[1] | Partly Only in 'Original quality'[56] | Partly — HD storage is a Premium feature; free resolution not stated[4][57] | Not stated[6][7] | No — uploads and downloads are resized[58] | Partly — 1920-pixel copies and 720p video on every plan; originals kept for photos only from the 500 GB tier[59][60][61] | Yes — full resolution (Prime)[33] | Yes — 'Full resolution preservation'; downloads return 'your originally uploaded file'[15][16][62] | No — 'we partially compress them … The images saved are not original'[63][38] | Not stated[64] | No — 3.2 megapixels, 720p[65] | No — Standard or HD, not original[66] | Not stated[67] |
| Video limits | 15 min, delivered at up to 720p[1] | No stated length limit; 1080p in Storage saver[56] | Up to 3 min (a Premium feature per the listing); free limit not stated[68][4] | Free limit not stated; 'unlimited videos' on Pro[6] | 2 min free; 10 min on Premium[69][9] | No length limit; stored at 720p on every plan, originals not kept[70][59][71] | 5 GB allowance; no length limit stated[33] | Any length — 'HD videos of any length'[15][16] | 15 seconds, app only; longer for subscribers (length not stated)[72][73] | 5 min on Tinybeans+; free limit not stated[22][64] | 60 s free; 4 min with PhotoCircle+[65][25] | Standard or HD quality; no album limit[66] | Premium only; one minute per video, app only[74] |
| Can family look without installing an app? | Partly — Apple device, or Public Website[1] | Yes — a link[75] | Yes — the website on a computer; connections sign in[4][76] | No — relatives download the app and tap the invite link[6] | Yes — browser-version invitation[77][78] | Yes — a link; 'no app or account needed just to view'[12] | Yes — group link while link sharing is on[79] | Yes — relatives 'sign up on the web' and view in a browser[80] | Yes — in a browser, signed in[81][82] | Yes — website login[53] | Partly — web app; viewing without joining not stated[25][41] | No — needs the app[26] | Partly — a weekly recap email of up to 10 entries; the journal itself needs an account[83][74] |
1. iCloud Shared Albums — free, no ads, no quotas that matter
Doesn’t use your iCloud storage, holds 5,000 items per album across up to 200 albums, no ads, analysis on the device. What you pay: 2048-pixel photos, 720p video, and relatives who need Apple devices unless you publish a public web page. In full.
2. Google Photos — free within the 15 GB you already have
No ads, originals if you choose “Original quality”, a link that opens for anyone. What you pay: the 15 GB is shared with Gmail and Drive, and Google’s systems process the library. In full.
3. 23snaps — unlimited, ad-free, with HD behind Premium
Unlimited uploads at no cost and no ads on any tier, from a company that has run the app since 2012. What you pay: HD storage and three-minute videos are Premium ($5.49 a month), the free resolution isn’t stated, support staff can access photos, and the App Store label lists usage data used to track you. In full.
4. TinyNest — unlimited photos, no ads, app only
Unlimited photo storage free and no ads, with a screenshot lock per relative. What you pay: videos are capped until Pro, the photo resolution isn’t stated, relatives need the app, and the label lists identifiers used to track you. In full.
5. FamilyAlbum — unlimited, and paid for by ads
The only unlimited free tier. What you pay: third-party ads, resized uploads and downloads, 2-minute videos, and a tracking label that lists identifiers. In full.
6. Keepr Circle — 5 GB free, no ads, nothing for relatives to install
5 GB personal plus 10 GB shared for up to three people, no credit card, no ads, and a link that opens for relatives with no app or account. What you pay: photos stored as 1920-pixel copies and video at 720p, storage tiers from $4.99 a month once 5 GB runs out, encryption at rest rather than end to end, and no iPhone app on the site when we checked. In full.
7. Amazon Photos — 5 GB free, unlimited if you already pay for Prime
Without Prime, 5 GB across photos and video. With Prime, unlimited full-resolution photos, which makes it the best “free” archive for households that pay for Prime anyway — with image recognition on by default. In full.
8. BackThen — 1 GB free, originals kept, and a 120-day clause
One gigabyte — “typically up to three months” — with every feature: originals kept, videos of any length, no ads, relatives who post. What you pay: the gigabyte runs out, bulk export is VIP-only (single downloads are free), computer vision runs on the photos, the label lists identifiers used to track you, and the terms delete free-tier content 120 days after your last login. In full.
9. Cluster — free within limits it doesn’t publish, no ads
A free tier capped by groups, members and total uploads, at numbers “set above” what people normally share but not published. No ads, and no tracking section on the label. What you pay: every photo is “partially” compressed and “not original”, videos are 15 seconds, and relatives need an account. In full.
10. Tinybeans — 20 uploads a month, 5 GB, ads
Free until the first year is over, in practice. Older memories are archived at the cap and can be exported at no cost. In full.
11. PhotoCircle — free with ads, at 3.2 megapixels
Free for personal use, ads included, every photo compressed to 3.2 megapixels and video to 60 seconds. In full.
12. WhatsApp — free, encrypted, not an album
Nothing to pay; nothing organised, everything compressed, ads in the Updates tab. In full.
13. Qeepsake — a seven-day trial, then five photos a month
Every plan starts with a 7-day trial and charges after it; cancelling drops you to “Qeepsake Lite” — one prompt a week, five photos a month, old entries still readable — which Qeepsake says it is deactivating when inactive “as we move to a paid-only system”. Free in the sense of a trial, not of a tier you could live on. In full.
Not on this list: Kin Album
No free tier and no trial — $9.99 a month from day one. Kin Album is made by the company that runs this site, which is why it’s worth saying plainly that it doesn’t qualify for this page. In full.
Sources
- iCloud Shared Albums — Apple Support: How to use Shared Albums in Photos (published 8 May 2026), checked 2026-09-12
Shared Albums let you share photos and videos with the people you choose — and they can add their own photos, videos, and comments … Turn on Public Website. Your photos publish to a website that anyone can see in an up-to-date web browser … When shared, photos are reduced to 2048 pixels on the long edge … Videos can be up to fifteen minutes in length and are delivered at up to 720p resolution … A shared album can hold up to 5000 photos and videos … Shared Albums are kept in iCloud, but they don't count against your iCloud storage limit.
- Google Photos — Google One — Plans & pricing, checked 2026-09-12
All Google accounts come with up to 15 GB of storage … Basic (100 GB) $1.99/mo … Google AI Plus (2 TB) $9.99/mo … Share storage with up to 5 others.
- 23snaps — 23snaps Help: About 23snaps, checked 2026-09-12
The app is completely free of charge to use … you can upload an unlimited amount of photos and videos to your 23snaps account … 23snaps is completely ad-free … all content remains private and is only visible to the people you choose to connect with.
- 23snaps — App Store listing: 23snaps: Private Family Album — description and App Privacy, checked 2026-09-12
Safe and Private by Design: Share photos, videos, and milestones with only approved loved ones … No annoying ads or distractions … Unlimited storage for all your HD photos and videos … Post longer videos (up to 3 minutes) … Multi-Device Access: Use the app on mobile, tablet and computer … In-App Purchases: Premium $5.49 · Premium Plus $7.99 · Premium 12 Month Gift $65.99 · Premium 1 Month Gift $9.19 … Data Used to Track You: Usage Data. Data Linked to You — Developer's Advertising or Marketing: Purchases, Location, Contact Info, Identifiers, Usage Data.
- 23snaps — Google Play listing: 23snaps: Private Family Album, checked 2026-09-12
Easily share baby photos & videos - safe, secure, no ads and no data sharing … In-app purchases $1.49 - $49.99 per item.
- TinyNest — tinynestapp.com home page and FAQ, checked 2026-09-12
Invite-only & private: Only people you invite can see your photos. No public profiles, no strangers, no ads … Unlimited storage: Never worry about running out of space … Is TinyNest free to use? TinyNest is free to download with unlimited photo storage … We also offer a Pro plan … They can join by downloading TinyNest and tapping the invite link. No account setup headaches … Your photos are never shared publicly, never used for ads, and never seen by anyone outside your family circle … Every person you invite has a "Can screenshot" permission that you can turn off … Every screenshot is logged too … TinyNest is available on both iOS (iPhone & iPad) and Android … Pro unlocks unlimited videos, unlimited memory generation, and many more features.
- TinyNest — App Store listing: TinyNest - Family Album App — description and App Privacy, checked 2026-09-12
Tiny Nest AI LLC … Share unlimited photos and videos with only the people you choose … No noisy feeds, no strangers, no ads, just a private family album … Screenshot Detection & Prevention … In-App Purchases: Family Unlimited Access $12.99 · Family Unlimited Access $79.99 · Gift Lifetime Access $199.99 … Data Used to Track You: Identifiers. Data Linked to You — App Functionality: Financial Info (Payment Info), Location (Precise Location), Identifiers (User ID).
- TinyNest — Google Play listing: TinyNest - Family Album, checked 2026-09-12
Family Photo Sharing App for Baby Photos … In-app purchases $12.99 - $79.99 per item.
- FamilyAlbum — FamilyAlbum Premium — plans page, checked 2026-09-12
One $2.99 USD/month · Family $5.99 USD/month, $59 USD/year · Family Pro $10.99 USD/month, $109 USD/year … No Third-Party Ads — [Premium] … Some of the best memories last longer than 2 minutes. With a FamilyAlbum Premium plan, upload videos up to 10 minutes long … Max Resolution: Premium Family Pro 1920 x 1080, Premium Family 1280 x 720.
- FamilyAlbum — Help: What's the difference between FamilyAlbum Premium and the free version?, checked 2026-09-12
The free version of FamilyAlbum includes unlimited storage and uploads. (Videos must be shorter than 2 minutes in length) … When one member subscribes an album to a family plan, all members of that album get access to Premium features.
- Keepr Circle — Keepr Circle — Pricing, checked 2026-09-12
Start free. Your whole family joins free — you only pay for the storage you share. Free Vault 5 GB storage · Photo Vault $4.99/month 100 GB storage · Pro Vault $7.99/month 250 GB storage · Life Archive $12.99/month 500 GB storage, print-ready file archival · Annual: 2 months free … New uploads simply pause until you free up some space or choose a larger plan … Private by design · Encrypted in transit and at rest · No ads, no AI training on your photos.
- Keepr Circle — keeprcircle.com home page, checked 2026-09-12
Private by default · No ads · No ad tracking · Never used to train AI … They open the photos straight away. They can make a free account later if they want to add their own … No download needed to view … Per-circle controls for who views, adds and downloads … Comments, reactions and full-length videos, on every plan … 5 GB personal, plus 10 GB shared for up to three people. No credit card … Take everything with you: Download your photos whenever you want, and delete the account in one click … Encrypted in transit and at rest · One-click account deletion with a 30-day grace period … Keepr is paid for by subscriptions, which is the whole of it … No app for your family. One for you, if you want it.
- Amazon Photos — Amazon Help: What is Amazon Photos?, checked 2026-09-12
5 GB of free storage for all Amazon customers. Unlimited full-resolution photo storage, plus 5 GB of video storage, for Amazon Prime members … Image recognition for people, places, and things … Prints, photo books, and digital greeting cards.
- Amazon Photos — App Store listing: Amazon Photos — App Privacy, checked 2026-09-12
Data Linked to You — Developer's Advertising or Marketing: Purchase History, Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number, User ID, Device ID, Product Interaction … In-App Purchases: 100 GB Monthly Plan $1.99 · 1 TB Monthly Plan $6.99 · 2 TB Monthly Plan $11.99.
- BackThen — BackThen FAQ — Can I try BackThen for free?, checked 2026-09-13
Start saving your little one's story today with our free starter pack - 1GB of memories (typically up to three months) safely stored, organized, and privately shared … Save photos and HD videos of any length, always preserved in their original quality … When invited to a timeline, BackThen is always free. They continue enjoying it all at no cost when a parent becomes VIP.
- BackThen — BackThen FAQ — How much does a BackThen VIP subscription cost?, checked 2026-09-13
A monthly subscription at £4.99 / $6.49 / €5.99 via your app store provider, or an annual subscription at £49.99 / $64.99 / €59.99 through our website at backthen.com … Up to 200GB family storage … Ad-free timelines forever … Full resolution preservation … never trading your data, showing advertisements within your timelines, reducing the quality of your photos or videos, or restricting the length of videos you can upload … BackThen VIP officially includes up to 200GB storage, but we currently allow unlimited uploads at no extra cost.
- BackThen — BackThen FAQ — July 2025 Price Increase, checked 2026-09-13
Starting from July 3rd, 2025, our monthly VIP subscription will increase as follows … From $4.99 to $6.49 (US) … The BackThen VIP subscription has remained unchanged since launch in April 2020 … If you choose to cancel, you’ll no longer be able to add new content or export your memories after the last day of your subscription. Friends and family will no longer be able to access your child’s story … After 60 days, your account will be closed, and all information, photos & videos deleted … the free version of BackThen with up to 1GB of free storage to try BackThen before you subscribe continues to offer the same features as before.
- BackThen — App Store listing: BackThen - Baby Book & Albums (privacy label, purchases), checked 2026-09-13
Full resolution — We never compress your images … All devices welcome — iOS, email, web & other mobile platforms … Data Used to Track You: Identifiers · Data Linked to You: Developer’s Advertising or Marketing — Identifiers (Device ID); Analytics — Usage Data; App Functionality — Contact Info (Email Address, Name), User Content (Photos or Videos), Identifiers (User ID, Device ID), Sensitive Info · Data Not Linked to You: Developer’s Advertising or Marketing — Usage Data, Advertising Data; App Functionality — Diagnostics (Crash Data) … In-App Purchases: VIP - Monthly payment $6.49 … From the team behind Lifecake — the original online childhood journal, founded in 2012.
- Cluster — Cluster support — Why is Cluster charging a subscription? (January 2023), checked 2026-09-13
Part of respecting that privacy means we will never sell ads or sell your data. Instead, we are supporting the service and our communities by selling merchandise, like photo books, and now opening up our service to subscriptions with enhanced features. We still maintain a free tier of service.
- Cluster — Cluster support — How are limits calculated and enforced?, checked 2026-09-13
Group creation limits will be enforced based on the number of groups you are currently an admin in … Upload limits will be based on how many total posts you have uploaded to any group … if one admin of a group has a Pro plan and another admin has the Family plan, the number of allowed members for the group is the larger of 100 or 1,000, so 1,000 members will be allowed within the group.
- Cluster — App Store listing: Cluster (privacy label, purchases), checked 2026-09-13
Cluster Private Photo Sharing … Developer Cluster Labs, Inc. … iPhone, iPad, Apple TV … Data Linked to You: Developer’s Advertising or Marketing — Contact Info (Email Address); Analytics — Identifiers (User ID); Product Personalization — Contact Info (Name); App Functionality — Financial Info (Payment Info), Contact Info (Physical Address, Email Address, Name, Phone Number), User Content (Photos or Videos), Identifiers (User ID) · Data Not Linked to You: Analytics — Usage Data (Product Interaction); Diagnostics — Crash Data, Performance Data … In-App Purchases: Cluster Friend $4.99 · Cluster Friend $49.99 · Cluster Family $9.99 · Cluster Pro $19.99 · Cluster Family $99.99 · Cluster Pro $199.99 … Cluster Club is a monthly or annual subscription to give admins more control over their groups … Cluster Club! Our first subscription offering since our first App Store launch almost a decade ago.
- Tinybeans — Help: How much is a Tinybeans+ subscription?, checked 2026-09-12
Tinybeans+ is available for $74.99/year or $7.99/month … Unlimited upload of photos and videos (up to 5 minutes in length each) · An ad free experience (including for followers) · 200GB of storage · Shared subscription – grant full subscription features to a follower of your journal! · The ability to export your memories.
- Tinybeans — Help: Can I use Tinybeans for free?, checked 2026-09-12
Free subscribers are able to upload up to 20 memories (photos or videos) per month – up to a total of 5GB – with an ad-supported experience.
- PhotoCircle — PhotoCircle Help: Is there a charge to use PhotoCircle?, checked 2026-09-12
The app is free for personal use (i.e. sharing with friends and family). Ads help us keep it that way … A PhotoCircle premium plan seat is required for anyone who works for or represents your organization.
- PhotoCircle — PhotoCircle Help: What is a PhotoCircle+ subscription?, checked 2026-09-12
The price is $1.29 per month or $9.99 per year … An ad-free experience for the subscriber only · Longer videos (up to 4 minutes) · Search (based on Circle name and photo captions) · Larger upload limit (up to 200 photos at a time) · Option to download all media in a Circle at once · Slideshow (available on web).
- WhatsApp — App Store listing: WhatsApp Messenger — description and App Privacy, checked 2026-09-12
Stay close to friends and family through end-to-end encrypted group chats and calls. Share messages, photos, videos and documents across mobile, tablet, and desktop … And no one, not even WhatsApp, can read or listen … In-App Purchases: No ads (1 account) $4.00 · No ads (4 accounts) $21.99 … Data Linked to You — Third-Party Advertising: Location, User ID, Product Interaction, Advertising Data.
- Qeepsake — Qeepsake — Pricing, checked 2026-09-13
Essential $4.99 / month Billed monthly … Premium $9.99 / month Billed monthly … Essential $47.88 / year $3.99 / month - billed yearly 7 DAYS FREE … Premium $95.88 / year $7.99 / month - billed yearly … Unlimited protected storage … Maximum monthly photo uploads 50 100 … Maximum spontaneous entries 200 500 … Add Family Contributors … In-app video entries.
- Qeepsake — Qeepsake help — Are memberships priced per journal?, checked 2026-09-13
All Qeepsake memberships are priced per account — not per journal … Qeepsake Essential costs $47.88 annually or $4.99 monthly, regardless of how many journals are created … Qeepsake Premium costs $95.88 annually or $9.99 monthly.
- Qeepsake — Qeepsake help — I cancelled my membership. Can I still access my account?, checked 2026-09-13
Once you’ve cancelled your paid membership, you’ll be moved to our free tier, Qeepsake Lite … Receive up to one prompt a week … Upload up to five photos per month, through the mobile app … Qeepsake has recently begun deactivating inactive free accounts as we move to a paid-only system … we will hold recently deactivated accounts for 1 year to allow for account restoration.
- Qeepsake — App Store listing: Qeepsake: Family Photo Album (privacy label, purchases), checked 2026-09-13
Only for iPhone … Developer Tinybeans USA Ltd. … Data Used to Track You: Usage Data · Data Linked to You: Developer’s Advertising or Marketing — Identifiers (User ID, Device ID); Analytics — Purchases, Contact Info, User Content, Identifiers, Usage Data; Product Personalization — Purchases, Contact Info, User Content, Identifiers, Usage Data; App Functionality — Purchases (Purchase History), Contact Info (Email Address, Name, Phone Number), User Content (Photos or Videos, Customer Support, Other User Content), Identifiers, Usage Data, Diagnostics · Data Not Linked to You: Analytics — Usage Data, Advertising Data; App Functionality — Diagnostics … In-App Purchases: Qeepsake Monthly Essential $4.99 · Qeepsake Monthly Premium $9.99 · Qeepsake Essential Free Trial $47.99 · Qeepsake Premium Free Trial $95.99.
- iCloud Shared Albums — Apple Support: Shared Album limits, checked 2026-09-12
Maximum shared albums an owner can share: 200 · Maximum subscribers per shared album: 100 · Maximum combined number of photos and videos … in any one shared album: 5000 · Maximum number of comments per photo or video: 200.
- FamilyAlbum — family-album.com home page, checked 2026-09-12
Free Unlimited Storage … Get 11 Free Prints Every Month … Ready to Go Photobooks … Only family members you invite can see your album.
- Amazon Photos — Amazon Help: How much storage do I have available?, checked 2026-09-12
Photos: free and unlimited at full resolution for Amazon Prime members. Non-Prime customers get 5 GB shared across photos and videos. Videos: count toward your storage limit for everyone, including Prime members … If you cancel Prime … You keep 5 GB of free storage.
- BackThen — BackThen FAQ — I’m close to my storage limit, what do I do?, checked 2026-09-13
When you're approaching your 1GB free storage limit, we'll send you various notifications … joining BackThen VIP allows up to 200GB* of secure storage … BackThen VIP officially includes up to 200GB storage, but we currently allow unlimited uploads at no extra cost. Future tiers will include a 2TB option and will be reasonably priced.
- BackThen — BackThen terms of service (section 13, storage), checked 2026-09-13
If you are using one of our Free Service Package, Content will be stored for a period of 120 days from the date of last logged in access to the Service, and will be deleted promptly after the expiration of such period … If you are using more storage than permitted by your storage allowance, for example as a result of your storage subscription plan expiring, we will delete your oldest content to reduce your storage use within your allowance. Once content is deleted, it cannot be recovered.
- Cluster — Cluster support — Why are you limiting the number of uploads for free accounts?, checked 2026-09-13
We offered the service completely free for almost a decade, so we have a good idea of how many photos & videos people normally share — and the limits are set above that threshold.
- Cluster — Cluster support — I’m a long time Cluster user, but I don’t want to subscribe. Will my groups change?, checked 2026-09-13
We currently do not plan to delete groups or memberships for those who choose not to subscribe. But, if you are above the free tier limit, you may not be able to add more groups, members or content until you upgrade your membership.
- Cluster — Cluster support — Is there a limit to what can be uploaded into a group album? (2017), checked 2026-09-13
There is no limit to the number of photos or video posts that can be added. On the web, individual image uploads can only be 10MB per image, but uploads via the app are not limited at all. Video uploads are limited to 15 seconds … Video uploads are only an option through the app, and is not an upload option via the web … When uploading photos, we partially compress them to make the experience on your end better.
- Tinybeans — Help: What happens when I reach the 5GB storage limit on the free plan?, checked 2026-09-12
You'll still have access to everything you've uploaded, but you won't be able to add new photos or videos unless you upgrade. Your most recent memories will remain visible, and older ones will be safely archived.
- Tinybeans — Help: Do you have a storage limit?, checked 2026-09-12
Tinybeans allows for 5GB of storage for free journals without a paid subscription … Our Tinybeans+ subscription unlocks expanded storage of 200GB.
- PhotoCircle — App Store listing: PhotoCircle — description and App Privacy, checked 2026-09-12
Privacy First: Only invited members can access your albums and contribute content. Video Clips: Share video clips up to 1 minute long … Data Used to Track You: Contact Info, Identifiers, Usage Data … In-App Purchases: PhotoCircle Pro Monthly $1.29 · PhotoCircle Pro Yearly $9.99.
- Qeepsake — Qeepsake — Features, checked 2026-09-13
Capture your family’s experiences, emotions, and memories by responding to curated text prompts sent on your schedule … Premium Members can add Family Contributors, who will receive their own questions and can text their own entries … Keep family and friends in the loop by adding them as recipients to weekly recap emails … Premium Members can upload 100 photos per month, while Essential Members can upload 50 photos per month.
- iCloud Shared Albums — Apple: Photos & Privacy, checked 2026-09-12
Photos uses on-device machine learning to deliver a personalized experience … Photos additionally uses on-device analysis to recognize the faces of people in photos … Apple does not access your photos or videos, and does not use them for research and development.
- Google Photos — Google Photos Help: How Google Photos protects your privacy, checked 2026-09-12
We don't sell your personal information to anyone or use the content you store in Photos for ads purposes.
- Google Photos — App Store listing: Google Photos — App Privacy, checked 2026-09-12
Data Linked to You — Third-Party Advertising: User Content (Photos or Videos), Identifiers (User ID) … In-App Purchases: 100 GB $1.99 · 200 GB $2.99 · Google AI Plus (2 TB) $9.99.
- 23snaps — 23snaps.com home page, checked 2026-09-12
Ad-free forever … share those moments, milestones, and adventures with a trusted circle of loved ones … especially for the grandparents.
- 23snaps — 23snaps Help: Privacy & Security, checked 2026-09-12
The posts you make to 23snaps are only ever visible to those you choose to share them with … The only staff who can access photo content are those who require access temporarily in order to perform their specific duties; primarily answering support requests … All of the content added to 23snaps is uploaded to our secure storage provided by Amazon and Microsoft … All communication is over secured connections … your data, and that of the people you invite to use 23snaps, is private and will not be exposed to advertising networks.
- Amazon Photos — Amazon Help: Learn more about image recognition in Amazon Photos, checked 2026-09-12
We use image recognition technology to analyze and apply tags to your photos and videos … We may also scan your photos to show shopping recommendations based on the content of your images … Amazon will collect, store, and use records of individual faces to enable these and similar features … You may enable or disable the tagging features any time through your account settings.
- BackThen — BackThen FAQ — Are you going to put adverts everywhere?, checked 2026-09-13
No. We don’t believe in displaying your private and precious memories alongside a piece of advertising - it takes away from how special the experience can be. For this reason, while BackThen is free for the first 1Gb, which should allow you to grow a sizeable timeline, there is a small subscription fee beyond that.
- Cluster — Cluster — The Private Family Album, checked 2026-09-13
Grandparents, siblings, cousins — create a single family album where everyone can post and see every photo and video. No social media accounts needed … No algorithms, no ads, no data mining … Control who can upload photos. Set permissions so only the right people can post.
- Cluster — Cluster terms of use (updated August 2022), checked 2026-09-13
You own all your content (uploaded photos, videos and comments) … We will not sell your personal data … Cluster is not a backup service and you agree that you will not rely on the Service for the purposes of Content backup or storage … While we will not share your information with third parties, we will contact you and your group members directly via email and other means with promotions for merchandise we offer to support Cluster Services … When you sign up for a monthly or annual Cluster Club subscription tier.
- Tinybeans — Help: What's the difference between free Tinybeans and Tinybeans+?, checked 2026-09-12
Free Tinybeans allows you to upload a maximum of 20 photos and videos per month and includes ads around your family's journal. Additionally, free Tinybeans journals are subject to 5GB storage limit.
- Tinybeans — Help: How do I remove ads from my Tinybeans?, checked 2026-09-12
Our Tinybeans+ subscription removes ads for you and your followers when viewing your journal in the app or website … You will still see our in-house articles in the Home feed.
- WhatsApp — Meta Newsroom: Helping you find more channels and businesses on WhatsApp (16 Jun 2025), checked 2026-09-12
You'll be able to find a new business and easily start a conversation with them about a product or service they're promoting in Status … Your personal messages, calls and statuses remain end-to-end encrypted, meaning no one can see or hear them.
- Qeepsake — Qeepsake privacy policy (Tinybeans USA Ltd), checked 2026-09-13
The Service is provided to you by Tinybeans USA Ltd … We may process your information to develop and display personalized content and advertising tailored to your interests, location, and more … We do not sell or share your personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising purposes … Our application(s) may display a third-party hosted “offer wall.” … The Qeepsake website uses 256-bit SSL encryption … all Tinybeans staff members who have access to journal information have passed a criminal background check and sex-offender registry check … If you delete your account or request deletion, we will remove your personal information from our active systems within a reasonable timeframe, typically within 30 days.
- Google Photos — Google Photos Help: Choose the upload size for photos & videos, checked 2026-09-12
If a photo is larger than 16 MP, it'll be resized to 16 MP … Videos higher than 1080p will be resized to high-definition 1080p … Photos that you will upload in Storage saver may be compressed into a different image format, like a .jpg.
- 23snaps — 23snaps Help: Posting Photos, checked 2026-09-12
Covers posting photos individually or in groups and notification preferences; says nothing about resolution or compression.
- FamilyAlbum — Help: Do you resize uploads?, checked 2026-09-12
Currently, photos and videos uploaded to FamilyAlbum are slightly resized … Please note that the photos and videos downloaded from FamilyAlbum and placed on FamilyAlbum DVDs are the resized versions.
- Keepr Circle — Keepr Circle Help: Photo and video quality, checked 2026-09-13
Keepr stores photos optimised for browsing — up to 1920 pixels on the long edge — and video at 720p, on every plan. On plans of 500 GB and above, the untouched original file your camera produced is kept alongside the browsable copy, for photos rather than videos … Videos are converted to 720p, on every plan … Video originals aren't kept on any plan.
- Keepr Circle — Keepr Circle Help: Print-ready originals (last reviewed 17 Aug 2026), checked 2026-09-13
On Keepr plans of 500 GB and above, the untouched original file your camera produced can be stored alongside the browsable copy … You choose which photos keep an original … Photos, not videos … Video is stored at 720p on every plan and the original video file isn't retained.
- Keepr Circle — Keepr Circle — FamilyAlbum vs Tinybeans comparison page (last checked 25 Jul 2026), checked 2026-09-12
What Keepr does differently: Original quality, always — No compression on any plan. The photo you upload is the photo you get back — ready for large prints or archiving … No upload limits … Zero ads, ever … No app install needed … 5 GB free to start.
- BackThen — BackThen FAQ — Can I download items without subscribing?, checked 2026-09-13
Absolutely - the export tool is a VIP-only feature, but you can still get your original content back individually … tap the Download option and you'll get your originally uploaded file back.
- Cluster — Cluster support — Are photos saved in their original high resolution format?, checked 2026-09-13
During the upload process we partially compress them to make the experience on your end better. The images saved are not original, but they are still considered high resolution.
- Tinybeans — Help: What's included in the Tinybeans+ subscription?, checked 2026-09-12
Unlimited monthly uploads · 200GB storage for your journal (50,000+ photos/videos) · High-quality videos up to 5 minutes · Ad-free experience on your journal.
- PhotoCircle — PhotoCircle Help: What resolution are the photos and videos?, checked 2026-09-12
Our standard resolution is 3.2 megapixels … 720p … 60 seconds per clip … Higher resolution (12 megapixels) and longer videos (up to 4 minutes at 1080p) are available with most PhotoCircle Premium Plans … PhotoCircle+ is NOT a premium plan. It does not include high resolution photos or videos.
- WhatsApp — WhatsApp Help Center: About HD photos and videos, checked 2026-09-12
You can share special moments with friends and family in high definition by changing the quality setting … Tap and select Standard quality or HD quality … To set HD quality as the default: Settings > Storage and data > Media upload quality … You can't upgrade the quality of an existing photo you've sent, but you can send it again in HD quality.
- Qeepsake — Qeepsake help — How do I save photos to Qeepsake?, checked 2026-09-13
There are three ways to save photos to your Qeepsake journal: Text a photo to Qeepsake … Share photos from your phone’s camera roll into the mobile app … Note that Qeepsake supports the following image file types: PNG (image.png) JPEG (image.jpg or image.jpeg).
- 23snaps — 23snaps Help: Posting Videos, checked 2026-09-12
23snaps allows you to post videos that are up to three minutes in length … high-definition video uploads.
- FamilyAlbum — Help: What restrictions are there on uploading photos and videos?, checked 2026-09-12
There's no limit to the amount you can upload for free, and videos can be up to 2 minutes long. (Maximum video length is increased to 10 minutes with FamilyAlbum Premium.) … Uploading via computer is a Premium feature.
- Keepr Circle — Keepr Circle Help: Adding photos and videos, checked 2026-09-13
There's no cap on how many you can add at once and no limit on how long a video can be — a longer video simply uses more of your storage … A five-second clip and a forty-minute school concert are both fine; the long one simply uses more of your storage … Photos are optimised for browsing at up to 1920px, video at 720p.
- Keepr Circle — Keepr Circle Help: Limits at a glance (last reviewed 29 Jul 2026), checked 2026-09-13
Keepr has no limit on video length, no cap on how many photos you can upload at once, and no limit on albums, circles or photos per album — storage is the only real ceiling.
- Cluster — Cluster support — How do I add video to a group album?, checked 2026-09-13
Currently the video upload feature is only available via the app (i.e. not via the web) … Video uploads have a time limit of 15 seconds, which you will be asked to trim after uploading (if the file you selected is too long).
- Cluster — Cluster support — If I sign up for a subscription, will all the members of my groups receive the subscription benefits?, checked 2026-09-13
Subscriptions follow the account holder, not the group, but members of the group will see some of the benefits. For instance, non-subscribers will be able to view longer videos uploaded by subscribers but those non-subscribers will not be able to post longer videos themselves unless they subscribe.
- Qeepsake — Qeepsake help — Can I add videos to my Qeepsake journal?, checked 2026-09-13
Qeepsake Video is available only to our Premium Members and their contributors … videos uploads are not supported via SMS and must be saved through the Qeepsake app … You can upload unlimited videos that are a minute or less. If a selected video is longer than that, a video trimming feature will open automatically … animated GIFs of your video will be included.
- Google Photos — Google Photos Help: Share photos & videos, checked 2026-09-13
You can share photos, videos, albums, and highlight videos with any of your contacts, even if they don't use the Google Photos app … Important: When you share an album, anyone with access to the album can view the photos and add to the album … Important: When you share a link to your photos, anyone with the link can view them.
- 23snaps — 23snaps Help: Getting Started with 23snaps, checked 2026-09-12
Provide your email address and set a password to register … Enter the email addresses of the people you want to connect with. Once they accept the invitation, they'll be able to see your posts and stay updated.
- FamilyAlbum — Help: What's the difference between the app version and browser version?, checked 2026-09-12
If you invite family to the browser version, they will be able to view and comment on your album without downloading the app … Browser-version invitations contain a unique link that the invitee can easily open to access your album.
- FamilyAlbum — Help: What's the difference between Album Admins and Album Members?, checked 2026-09-12
Upload photos and videos — Album Admin ✔ · Album Member (App) △ Must be enabled by an Album Admin · Album Member (Browser) × … Download photos and videos — △ May be disabled by an Album Admin.
- Amazon Photos — Amazon Help: Manage access to shared groups in Amazon Photos, checked 2026-09-12
To only allow people you invited to the group to view photos in the group, switch off Link sharing … When link sharing is switched off, only you and people you invite can access photos in a group.
- BackThen — BackThen FAQ — I have family that don’t have mobile devices - can they use BackThen?, checked 2026-09-13
When you invite your family to your BackThen timeline, they can follow their invite mail on any computer or web browser and sign up on the web … The web experience is not designed for managing your timelines, so those options remain the app only, but your family can see all your new moments, like and comment on them as normal, even if they don't have mobile devices.
- Cluster — Cluster support — Can I view my photos and posts on the web?, checked 2026-09-13
All of your posts are viewable on the web, but you must be logged into your account.
- Cluster — Cluster support — Is what I post public?, checked 2026-09-13
Everything you post is only accessible to members who were explicitly added to the each individual group album and/or people who joined with the invitation link. (In previous versions of the app, you could make group albums “public” which would enable people with the URL to view the group album on the web. This functionality is no longer supported).
- Qeepsake — Qeepsake help — What are Qeepsake Recap emails?, checked 2026-09-13
Qeepsake can send you a weekly email (on Mondays) with the 10 most recent entries saved from the previous week … Friends and family can also receive these emails— you ultimately have control over who receives them … Your recipient will need to accept the email invitation they receive in order to receive weekly recap emails.
Questions people ask
Is there a free family photo app with no ads?
Yes: iCloud Shared Albums (free with an Apple Account, no ads, photos reduced to 2048 pixels) Google Photos shared albums (free within 15 GB, no ads, Google processes the library), 23snaps (unlimited uploads, no ads, HD storage only on Premium), TinyNest (unlimited photos, no ads, videos capped until Pro, app only) Keepr Circle (5 GB free, no ads, no app needed to view), BackThen (1 GB free, no ads, originals kept) and Cluster (free within unpublished limits, no ads, compressed photos). FamilyAlbum, Tinybeans and PhotoCircle show ads on their free tiers.
Is FamilyAlbum free forever?
FamilyAlbum’s help centre says the free version ‘includes unlimited storage and uploads’, with 2-minute videos, and the company funds it with third-party ads and print products. Uploads are resized.
Does Kin Album have a free version?
No. Kin Album is $9.99 a month with no free tier and no free trial.