Alternative
What is a good alternative to Privault?
People look for a Privault alternative when they want a backup, Face ID or a trash they can restore from, or when the app stops getting updates. Privault's last update shipped on February 28, 2025. Its App Store text says files are removed with the app. Its reviews are mostly short praise, so the rating is not the problem.
Privault - Private Photo Vault and York Vault side by side
| Privault - Private Photo Vault | York Vault | |
|---|---|---|
| Encryption claim | “The encrypted storage can be accessed only when you enter your particular digit-passcode.” No cipher is named.source | Each item encrypted on your phone with its own key (AES-256-GCM). We hold no keys. |
| Lock types | A digit passcode on a locker-style or calculator-style keypad. Face ID and Touch ID are not listed.source | Pattern, PIN or passcode, with optional Face ID or Touch ID, or a fingerprint or face on Android. |
| Decoy or second code | A secondary passcode that opens a second folder, and an erase-all passcode.source | A cover code and an erase code, both free, with a typed confirmation and a test mode at setup. |
| Backup and restore | No cloud backup. Move data with Apple's phone-to-phone migration or download it to a computer over the Wi-Fi page.source | Free encrypted backup of every item to your own iCloud, or Google Drive on Android. Restore with your code or recovery key. |
| Export of all items | Photos one at a time from full screen with share export. Videos and audio through the Wi-Fi server.source | Export one item or everything to Photos or Files, original format, free on every plan. |
| Intruder photo | Not listed on the App Store page or in the FAQ.source | Optional photo on a wrong code and a log of attempts. Free. |
| Disguise | Calculator-style keypad as the lock screen. On English iPhones the home screen label reads “PV”.source | A working calculator front, 12 or more neutral icons and a face-down exit. All free. |
| Plans and what stays free | Free with ads and an import quota. Pro $3.49 a month, $24.99 a year or $45.99 permanent. Remove Ads $2.99 is a separate purchase (US list).source | Free, Plus, Pro and Family, no ads. Viewing, export, trash recovery and restore stay free. |
| Tracking in the privacy label | Data Used to Track You: Usage Data.source | Identifiers and usage data for ad measurement. No user content. |
Why do people look for a Privault alternative?
Privault, from Binspir Technologies, has 76,593 US ratings at 4.7. We read 50 US reviews from November 2024 to September 2026. 41 give 5 stars and 28 are one-line praise. Only 15 carry a clear theme. So the reasons to leave come mostly from what the app does not have.
No backup
Privault’s App Store page lists import and export “via iPhone camera roll or via an embedded WiFi server.” It names no cloud backup. The app’s welcome text is plain about the risk: “If the App is removed, files inside will be removed too.” If your iPhone is lost and you have no full device backup, the vault goes with it.
No Face ID, no trash
The App Store page describes a “digit-passcode” on a keypad and does not mention Face ID or Touch ID. Inside the app, deletes are final: “Caution: you cannot restore it once deleted.”
An app that stopped updating
Version 10.2 shipped on February 28, 2025, and nothing has followed in 19 months. The app still supports iOS 11.
Quotas and two purchases
The free plan has an import quota. One reviewer paid for ad removal and then hit the quota: “I purchased the ad removal now they want me to buy pro to save more than about 10 photos.” (1★, March 2025). Remove Ads ($2.99) and Pro ($3.49 a month or more) are separate purchases.
A name that gives it away
On English iPhones the home screen label is “PV”. “It’s not really private if it indicates Private.” (5★, March 2025). Another user lost the calculator look after an update: “the calculator icon changed to a Vault icon.” (3★, November 2024).
An erase code with no second step
The erase-all passcode is a strong idea, but the app’s own text warns that once you enter it, “all data will be erased immediately without a second confirmation alert.” Codes are digits only. A mistyped real code that happens to match the erase code wipes the vault, and there is no backup to restore from.
Recovery that depends on email
Two reviewers could not get back in. One says “you will never receive the password recovery email they claim to send you” (1★, July 2026). The FAQ’s reset path starts with a public help code, 911911, typed on the keypad. The reset itself still needs a verified email, so the code alone does not open the vault.
What to look for in a replacement
- An encrypted backup, so a lost phone does not mean lost files. See encrypted backup.
- Face ID or Touch ID on top of a code, with the code as the fallback. See lock options.
- A trash that keeps deleted items for at least 30 days.
- A decoy and an erase code that you cannot trigger by mistake.
- Regular updates for the current iOS.
- A home screen name and icon that do not say what the app is, and that stay the same after updates.
How to export your files from Privault
Privault’s FAQ gives these paths for iPhone:
- Photos: open a photo in full-screen mode, tap the button in the bottom left corner, and use share export. This works one photo at a time.
- Videos: the FAQ says video export “can be done through the WiFi server”, because of the all-format player.
- Audio: also through the Wi-Fi server.
For a large library, the Wi-Fi server is the practical route. Start it in the app. On a Mac or PC on the same network, open the address it shows in a browser, then download your files. The FAQ also says files under the secondary passcode “can also be exported” the same way, so open that folder too.
Then add the files to your new app from Files or Photos, count them, and delete the copies. If you exported photos to Photos, also empty Recently Deleted. Our Recently Deleted guide shows how.
Privault’s erase-all passcode deletes everything with no second confirmation. Check which codes you set before you type anything unusual on the keypad during the move.
What Privault does well
Privault has real strengths, and many users are happy with it:
- It plays almost anything. The player decodes “up to 150 media formats”, including MKV, AVI and WMV, with subtitles and AirPlay. No review in our sample complains about playback.
- A three-code model. A primary passcode, a secondary passcode for a second folder, and an erase-all passcode. The decoy and erase menus show only after the real code.
- A covert voice recorder that you start from the lock keypad.
- Many ways in: camera roll, a share extension, and a Wi-Fi server with a custom port.
- A low price and a permanent option at $45.99.
- A 3D photo browser and a full-screen viewer that users describe as easy, with folders for documents and pictures.
If you need wide video format support and do not need a backup, Privault still does its job.
What York Vault does differently
York Vault is on the App Store for iPhone and iPad and on Google Play for Android. Plus adds the Mac app, and Pro adds the web app. Here is what it does differently:
- A free encrypted backup of every item to your own iCloud, or Google Drive on Android. Restore on a new phone with your code or recovery key.
- Your choice of lock, pattern, PIN or passcode, with optional Face ID or Touch ID.
- A 30-day trash with free recovery on every plan.
- A cover code and an erase code with guards: at least 6 digits and a typed confirmation. A test mode shows what the erase code would remove, without removing it. See cover and erase codes.
- A photo on a wrong code, free.
- Neutral icons that never change after an update.
- Voice notes and Wi-Fi transfer to a computer, free, plus playback of MKV, AVI and WebM in Plus and Pro.
- No ads on any plan. York Vault measures its own ads with an attribution tool, and its privacy label says so.
See plans for Free, Plus, Pro and Family, or download York Vault on the App Store or Google Play.
Other alternatives worth checking
- Calculator Lock has a working calculator front.
- SPV has a fake passcode and a face-down switch.
- LockMyPix names AES encryption and has a backup file.
- Our guide to moving a vault to a new iPhone covers the move step by step.
Questions people ask
What if I forget my Privault passcode?
Privault's FAQ says to update to version 4.0 or later, enter 911911 on the keypad to open a help list, and tap Forget Passcode. You must set up and verify an email, then tap Forget Passcode again to get a temporary code. One 2026 reviewer says the recovery email never arrived.
How do I move Privault to a new iPhone?
Privault's FAQ says Apple's data migration during new iPhone setup copies the app's data too. For a manual move, open the app's Wi-Fi page on the old phone, download the data to a Mac or PC, then upload it in bulk to the app on the new phone through the same page.
Does Privault back up my photos?
No. Privault has no cloud backup. Its App Store page lists import and export through the camera roll or a built-in Wi-Fi server. The app warns that if it is removed, the files inside are removed too. A computer copy over Wi-Fi or a full iPhone backup is the only fallback.
Can Privault play MKV and AVI files?
Yes. Privault's player decodes up to 150 media formats, including MKV, AVI, WMV, FLV and RMVB, according to its App Store page. This is a real strength. Most vault apps rely on the formats that iOS plays. York Vault Plus and Pro also play MKV, AVI, WebM and FLAC in the app.
Sources
- App Store: Privault - Private Photo Vault (listing, ratings, privacy label, in-app purchases) · checked Oct 2, 2026
- Privault FAQ (Binspir) · checked Oct 2, 2026
- Privault privacy policy (Binspir) · checked Oct 2, 2026
- App Store customer reviews of Privault (US storefront) · checked Sep 30, 2026
