How do I export all my photos from a photo vault app?

Why export matters

A vault app holds things you cannot replace. If you cannot get them out, the app holds you too. We read 836 App Store reviews of vault apps. 66 report import or export failures, and 63 describe a paywall in front of files already in the app.

One Keepsafe user had to “select one by one”, because “select all” made the app crash. Another, after 2 weeks of tries, could only “export 1 or 2 photos at a time”. 5 reviews say a format changed on the way out. One LockMyPix user wrote that it “Imports and exports Live Photos as videos”.

No app we studied offered a one-step export of the whole vault with originals, Live Photos and dates intact. York Vault does, on every plan.

Export everything

Export everything moves every item out in one action. Choose where it goes:

• Your photo library. York Vault rebuilds your albums as albums there.
• Your files. York Vault makes a tree of folders that matches your albums.

York Vault exports the originals, not smaller copies. Live Photos stay Live Photos, and each item keeps its date. If an app on the other side needs JPEG, PNG or WebP, our free image converter changes the format of a copy in your browser. If the export stops, it continues from where it stopped.

At the end, York Vault counts the items and checks each file against its original. The result shows a count, for example “12,400 of 12,400 items”. To check one copy yourself, add it and the original to our free file hash checker. It says if the 2 files are identical.

Export some items

You can also export one item or any selection, to your photo library, your files or another app. The same rules apply: originals, dates and Live Photos, no count limit, no plan needed.

When you export, York Vault removes the location and camera details from the copy by default. A switch keeps them for one export. Apple’s safety guide explains why this matters: people who get a photo “may be able to access the location metadata and learn where it was taken.” See share files safely.

Exported copies are not encrypted

An exported copy is a normal file. Anyone who can open your photo library or your files can see it, and it can sync to other services. The first time you export, York Vault tells you this once. It does not ask again every time.

An encrypted copy outside the app

To keep a copy outside York Vault that stays encrypted, export a library or an album as one .york file. Save it to your files, a USB drive or any cloud drive.

• The file opens only with your code or your 12-word recovery key.
• To restore it, import the file into York Vault. York Vault also finds a .york file that you share into it.
• The file opens in York Vault on iPhone and on Android. See move between iPhone and Android.
• It is free.

Which export to use

You want to	Use	Encrypted
Leave York Vault, or use the photos in other apps	Export everything	No
Send a few items to someone	Share or export a selection	No
Keep an extra copy on a USB drive or cloud drive	The .york file	Yes
Move to a new phone	Restore, transfer or the .york file	Yes

Your plan never touches your files

York Vault backups never expire or shrink because of a plan. The free backup lives in your own iCloud or Google Drive, so we have nothing to delete. Viewing, export and restore stay free on every plan, also after a trial ends or a plan lapses. A test before each release checks export with an expired plan. See what stays free.

How other apps handle export

App	Export	Where we read it
SPV	Free export capped at 5 items in the app’s remote settings	App package and our review study
Keepsafe	The listing says “files must be decrypted when exported”. On a downgrade, the app text says “files will be downloaded to your device before you can downgrade”.	App Store listing and app package
Private Photo Vault	Export to the camera roll, copy and ZIP. On a lapsed plan: “Cloud backup will be deleted in %@. Renew your subscription now to fix it”	App package

We read each app package in September 2026 and checked the listings on 2026-10-03. To move from one of these apps, see our Keepsafe alternative page and how to transfer a photo vault.