Comparison
Sealed and HiddenVault, side by side
Both keep photos and logins behind a passcode with a cloud backup, but they differ in what they tell you. Sealed encrypts every file with AES-256-GCM before it is saved. If you forget your passcode, your recovery key lets you set a new one. HiddenVault’s pages name no cipher and do not say what happens after a forgotten passcode, and its store page lists data used to track you. Sealed has no ads and no tracking. HiddenVault fills saved passwords into other apps and offers a 30-day trial.
On this page
Disclosure. Sealed is made by Loopware LLC. We did not install HiddenVault. This page reads its public pages next to our own facts, and gives its strengths their own section.
The app we compared
HiddenVault is sold by Kyle Allen and was first released on 19 August 2020; version 3.43 came out on 17 June 2026 (store record). It keeps photos, videos and passwords, and has a browser. We read its listing, store page, home page, a how-to guide on its blog and its privacy policy on 13 November 2026. Prices on this page are US prices. Prices are shown in US dollars and may vary by country.
Side by side
| Sealed (facts checked 13 Nov 2026) | HiddenVault (source, read 13 Nov 2026) |
|---|---|
| Where photos live. Your files never leave your iPhone unless you turn on iCloud backup or export them yourself. | On your phone, in Apple’s built-in Folders, and the listing says the maker does not store or access your data. Listing. |
| Encryption. Sealed encrypts every file with AES-256-GCM before it is saved. Each file gets its own random 256-bit key, and that key is sealed with your vault key. | The listing speaks of a zero-knowledge architecture, and the home page makes a broad encryption claim. Neither, nor the policy, names a cipher or says where keys are kept. Listing and home page. |
| Backup. Backup goes to your own iCloud account, not to a server of ours. Files, names, notes and record fields are encrypted on your iPhone before they are uploaded, so iCloud receives only ciphertext. Encrypted iCloud backup is free. | iCloud backup and restore are listed among the paid plans’ features. The blog guide says the app backs up to your iCloud automatically. Home page and guide. |
| Forgotten passcode. If you forget your passcode, your recovery key lets you set a new one. Without the recovery key the passcode can’t be reset, not by you and not by us, and the reset screen says so. | Not described. The home page lists PIN-code protection, and none of its pages say what happens if you forget it. Home page. |
| Passwords. Records keep logins, 2FA codes, credit cards, bank accounts, IDs and passports, Wi-Fi networks, recovery codes, license keys, contacts and custom fields. In a record, sensitive fields such as a document number stay masked until you tap Reveal Values and confirm with Face ID or your device passcode, and they mask themselves again after 30 seconds. | Unlimited passwords on Premium, with AutoFill into apps and websites. Listing and home page. |
| Wrong guesses. Break-in alerts take a short burst of front-camera photos after wrong passcodes, and note where it happened. Break-in alerts are part of Sealed Pro. | Break-In Alerts take a picture of whoever enters a wrong passcode. Guide. |
| A second vault. A decoy vault opens with a second passcode, and it is part of Sealed Pro. | A decoy vault. Guide. |
| Tracking. Sealed has no ads and no tracking. Sealed contains no analytics or tracking SDKs, and it collects no data. | The privacy label lists usage data used to track you, and usage data and coarse location for third-party advertising. Store page. |
| The privacy policy. Sealed has no account, so there is nothing to sign up for. | Dated 2020, it describes an account with a username, password, email, phone number and sex, device identifiers such as MAC address and IMEI, and other companies’ cookies on HiddenVault. Privacy policy. |
| Trials and prices. Sealed Pro Yearly costs $39.99 a year, and new subscribers get a 7-day free trial. Sealed Pro Monthly costs $12.99 a month, with no free trial. Sealed Pro Lifetime costs $79.99, paid once, with no subscription and nothing to renew. | The listing says $34.99 a year, $7.99 a month or $2.99 a week, each after a 30-day trial. The store page lists ten purchases, among them Premium Annual at $44.99 and an Annual Discount at $19.99. The home page offers a 1-week trial on the weekly plan. Listing, store page and home page. |
| Devices. Sealed runs on iPhone and iPad. Sealed needs iOS 17.0 or later. | iPhone and iPod touch with iOS 14.0 or later; no iPad. Store page. |
Where HiddenVault is ahead
- Password AutoFill. It fills saved passwords into apps and websites (listing). In Sealed you open the login record and copy the password. The fields of a record have a copy button, and what you copy stays off your other devices and clears from the clipboard after 45 seconds.
- A longer trial. The listing gives 30 days on every plan (listing). The free trial on Sealed Pro Yearly lasts 7 days.
- Older iPhones. It asks for iOS 14.0 (store record). Sealed needs iOS 17.0 or later.
Read the policy that covers the app
A privacy policy should describe the app you install. HiddenVault’s listing says it does not store or access your data, while its policy, last updated in 2020, describes accounts, phone numbers and cookies on “HiddenVault” (listing, privacy policy). The two do not match. That does not prove the app collects those things. It means the policy can’t tell you what the app collects, so ask the maker before you trust it with passwords.
That is one of our questions to ask any photo vault, and the table of vault privacy labels shows what other developers declare.
Where Sealed helps, and where it doesn’t
It helps if you want the cipher named and the backup sealed before it is uploaded. Sealed encrypts every file with AES-256-GCM before it is saved. Files, names, notes and record fields are encrypted on your iPhone before they are uploaded, so iCloud receives only ciphertext.
It helps if a forgotten passcode needs a written way back. On the lock screen, Forgot passcode? asks for your recovery key, and once the key checks out you choose a new passcode. Read what to do when you forget a vault password.
It helps if you keep cards, IDs and 2FA codes as well as logins. Records keep logins, 2FA codes, credit cards, bank accounts, IDs and passports, Wi-Fi networks, recovery codes, license keys, contacts and custom fields. See records in Sealed.
It doesn’t offer a 30-day trial. The free trial on Sealed Pro Yearly lasts 7 days.
It doesn’t test HiddenVault. We read its pages and store record only. Sealed is made by Loopware LLC.
Sources
What this page says about Sealed was checked against the app on .
- Apple store record for HiddenVault (id 1519673105), US storefront — the listing text, seller, release dates, languages and minimum iOS, read 13 Nov 2026
- HiddenVault on the US App Store — the store page (this address opens it), read 13 Nov 2026 for the in-app purchases, the privacy label and the supported devices
- HiddenVault, home page — features, plans, iCloud backup and the PIN, read 13 Nov 2026
- HiddenVault blog, how-to guide for iPhone — iCloud backup and break-in alerts. The page shows "updated September 1, 2025". Read 13 Nov 2026
- HiddenVault, privacy policy — accounts, device identifiers, cookies and ads. The page shows "Last Updated November 1st, 2020". Read 13 Nov 2026
- Sealed on the App Store — the listing for the app this page is about
Get Sealed
Sealed is free to download, and Sealed Pro is an optional in-app purchase.
Sealed: Private Photo Vault
Sealed is free to download, and Sealed Pro is an optional in-app purchase.