Sealed and Safe Lock, side by side

Disclosure. Sealed is made by Loopware LLC. This page compares the public words of both apps. We did not install Safe Lock or contact its developer, and we say where it is ahead.

What we read

Safe Lock is sold by Katerina Akhlebinina and was first released on 18 March 2017; version 3.1 came out on 17 August 2026 (store record). We read its listing, its store page, its terms of use and its privacy policy on 13 November 2026. Its website has a support form and store links, and no help pages. Prices are shown in US dollars and may vary by country.

Side by side

Where Safe Lock is ahead

• Older iPhones. It asks for iOS 12.0 (store record), five major versions before Sealed’s floor. Sealed needs iOS 17.0 or later.
• Lower prices, on the page. Its three Premium Account purchases run from $4.99 to $29.99 (store page). The store page shows no billing period, and the listing says the subscription renews automatically (listing), so check how often you would pay before you compare. Sealed Pro Monthly costs $12.99 a month, with no free trial.
• Your choice of cloud. It moves files to and from five cloud apps, not only iCloud (listing).
• A long record. It has been on the store since 2017 (store record).

Two things its pages leave open

Are the files encrypted? Safe Lock’s pages say its storage area is protected by a PIN code or fingerprint, and stop there (terms). A lock that asks for a PIN and encryption of the files behind it are two different things, and its pages only describe the first. Each file gets its own random 256-bit key, and that key is sealed with your vault key. Sealed creates each encrypted file with iOS Complete Protection, which Apple calls Class A. How Sealed protects your photos explains each layer.

What does it collect? The privacy label and the privacy policy disagree: one says nothing is collected, the other describes registration with a phone number (privacy policy). In one sentence the policy also mentions a call recording service. Ask the developer which one applies before you rely on either.

Seven lock screens and seven lock patterns

Both apps count to seven, in different ways. Safe Lock’s listing says Premium unlocks seven different patterns of locks, Touch ID and an immediate lock button (listing). In Sealed the seven are whole lock screens, each one a different object to open. Sealed has seven lock screen styles: Keypad, Vault Dial, Padlock, Rotary, Cryptex, Three Turns and Knock. Every lock screen style except the Keypad is part of Sealed Pro. You can try every one before you choose. In Settings you can try every lock screen style live before choosing one, and nothing you try there is saved or counted as a wrong attempt.

Where Sealed helps, and where it doesn’t

It helps if you want the encryption named and a backup that happens on its own. Sealed encrypts every file with AES-256-GCM before it is saved. The first time you save your recovery key, Sealed also turns on iCloud Backup, which is free.

It helps if a copy in the cloud should be unreadable to whoever runs that cloud. Files, names, notes and record fields are encrypted on your iPhone before they are uploaded, so iCloud receives only ciphertext. Sealed can’t see or recover your files.

It helps if you want to see a lock screen working before you pick it. See the seven lock screens.

It doesn’t run below iOS 17. Sealed needs iOS 17.0 or later.

It doesn’t include wrong-guess photos or a second vault on the free plan. Sealed Pro adds privacy tools including the decoy vault, a duress code, break-in photos, Dual Lock, Location Lock, Maximum Security, locked stacks and seven lock screens.

It doesn’t back up to a cloud app of your choice. Backup goes to your own iCloud account, not to a server of ours.