Ente PhotosCompare
sigil. vs Ente Photos
Ente Photos vs sigil.: end-to-end encrypted cloud backup compared with a local, account-free iPhone vault. Which one you need, and when to use both.
Short answer: choose Ente Photos if you want an end-to-end encrypted replacement for iCloud Photos — backup and access across devices, with a provider that says it cannot read your files. Choose sigil. if you want a hidden, sign-locked vault on your iPhone for a small number of sensitive photos, with no account and nothing in any cloud. Many people will be best served by both.
These products overlap less than it seems. Ente is a photo library. sigil. is a vault.
- Price
- Free · Pro €39.99 once or €19.99/yrente.com (USD): 50 GB $2.49/mo, 200 GB $4.99/mo, 1 TB $9.99/mo, 2 TB $19.99/mo
- Lifetime option
- €39.99 once, no subscriptionNo lifetime plan listed; monthly or yearly
- Free tier
- 100 photos and documents + 10 videos per vault, 1 vault + decoy vault10 GB free, end-to-end encrypted
- Account required
- No account at allYes: email and password
- Encryption
- 256-bit encryption; key unlocked by your pattern (Argon2id, bound to the secure chip)XChaCha20-Poly1305 for files, Argon2id key derivation (vendor-stated)
- Zero-knowledge
- Yes — no server, we never see anythingEnd-to-end encrypted; only you can access your data (vendor-stated)
- Multiple vaults
- Up to 7 vaults with Pro, one pattern each; the app never lists them—
- Decoy vault
- Free: a decoy pattern opens a decoy vault with harmless photos and erases nothing—
- Disguised icon
- Neutral utility icons that don't say vault.—
- Private camera
- Photos never touch the Camera Roll—
- EXIF / location removal
- Location/EXIF stripped on import and export—
- Cloud sync
- No — local-first, no cloud backup yetEncrypted cloud backup, stored in 3 locations
- Unlock
- Only the pattern you draw — no Face ID or Touch ID, by design—
- Break-in alerts
- No intruder photos; optional self-destruct after too many wrong patterns—
- Platforms
- iPhone onlyiOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux, web
| Feature | sigil. | Ente Photos |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free · Pro €39.99 once or €19.99/yr | ente.com (USD): 50 GB $2.49/mo, 200 GB $4.99/mo, 1 TB $9.99/mo, 2 TB $19.99/mo |
| Lifetime option | €39.99 once, no subscription | No lifetime plan listed; monthly or yearly |
| Free tier | 100 photos and documents + 10 videos per vault, 1 vault + decoy vault | 10 GB free, end-to-end encrypted |
| Account required | No account at all | Yes: email and password |
| Encryption | 256-bit encryption; key unlocked by your pattern (Argon2id, bound to the secure chip) | XChaCha20-Poly1305 for files, Argon2id key derivation (vendor-stated) |
| Zero-knowledge | Yes — no server, we never see anything | End-to-end encrypted; only you can access your data (vendor-stated) |
| Multiple vaults | Up to 7 vaults with Pro, one pattern each; the app never lists them | — |
| Decoy vault | Free: a decoy pattern opens a decoy vault with harmless photos and erases nothing | — |
| Disguised icon | Neutral utility icons that don't say vault. | — |
| Private camera | Photos never touch the Camera Roll | — |
| EXIF / location removal | Location/EXIF stripped on import and export | — |
| Cloud sync | No — local-first, no cloud backup yet | Encrypted cloud backup, stored in 3 locations |
| Unlock | Only the pattern you draw — no Face ID or Touch ID, by design | — |
| Break-in alerts | No intruder photos; optional self-destruct after too many wrong patterns | — |
| Platforms | iPhone only | iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux, web |
Security model
Ente describes its cryptography as XChaCha20-Poly1305 for files, Argon2id key derivation (vendor-stated), and its privacy model as End-to-end encrypted; only you can access your data (vendor-stated). It publishes an architecture document explaining the design, which is a good sign of seriousness.
sigil. uses 256-bit encryption, with a key unlocked by a sign you draw on a dot grid, hardened with Argon2id and bound to the phone's secure chip (pattern encryption). The important difference is not the cipher strength — both are strong — but what opens it. Ente's library opens when you are logged into the app. A sigil. vault opens only when you draw its sign, even if someone has your unlocked phone.
For background, read what is end-to-end encryption for photos.
Privacy: account and server
Ente needs an account: Yes: email and password. Your data is stored on Ente's servers, encrypted so that the provider cannot read it: Encrypted cloud backup, stored in 3 locations. Your account (and its email address) necessarily exists on their side.
sigil. has no account and no server. There is nothing on any server to see, not even the fact that you use a vault.
Features
What Ente does that sigil. does not: encrypted backup of your whole library and access from your other devices (see the platforms row). These are the reasons people choose Ente, and sigil. does neither.
What sigil. does that Ente is not designed for:
- Hidden vaults. Each sign opens its own vault and there is no list (multiple hidden vaults).
- Decoy vault. Its own decoy pattern opens a harmless vault if someone forces you to open the app; the real vaults stay hidden (decoy vault).
- Disguised icon. A neutral utility icon that doesn't say vault (disguised icon).
- Private camera. Photos go straight into the encrypted vault, never the Camera Roll (private camera).
- Metadata stripping on import and export.
Price
Ente on its website: ente.com (USD): 50 GB $2.49/mo, 200 GB $4.99/mo, 1 TB $9.99/mo, 2 TB $19.99/mo. Free plan: 10 GB free, end-to-end encrypted. Lifetime: No lifetime plan listed; monthly or yearly.
sigil. is free with every feature included (decoy vault, self-destruct, disguised icon): 100 photos and documents plus 10 videos per vault, one vault plus the decoy vault. Pro lifts the photo and video limits and gives you up to 7 vaults, each opened by its own pattern: €39.99 once, lifetime, no subscription, or €19.99 per year. No free trial and no monthly plan. Over the free limit nothing is locked; you just can't add more. See pricing.
The two are priced for different jobs: Ente charges for cloud storage; sigil. gives every feature for free, charges only for unlimited space on your phone, and stores nothing.
Where Ente is better
- Backup. If your phone is lost or broken, your Ente library survives. sigil. vaults do not, unless you back them up yourself — see how to securely back up private photos.
- Platforms. iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux, web. sigil. is iPhone-only.
- Whole library. Ente is built to hold your entire photo library; sigil. is for the small private set.
- Open design. Ente publishes detailed architecture documentation.
Using both, or moving items into sigil.
A practical split:
- Keep your general library in Ente (with iCloud Photos turned off if you want Apple out of the picture — see how to stop photos syncing to iCloud).
- Install sigil., draw a sign, and write down the 12-word recovery phrase.
- For the handful of truly sensitive photos, save them from Ente to the device, import them into sigil. (EXIF and location are stripped), and delete them from Ente and from Photos' Recently Deleted.
- Take future sensitive photos with sigil.'s camera so they never enter your library at all.
Which one should you choose?
- You want to stop using iCloud Photos or Google Photos but still have a backup: Ente.
- You share your phone, or someone knows your passcode, and a few photos must stay out of sight: sigil.
- You worry about losing the phone more than about someone looking at it: Ente, because a local-only vault cannot help there.
- You worry about being asked to unlock the phone: sigil., because its vaults need a separate sign, and the decoy pattern opens a harmless vault while the others stay hidden.
- Both apply: use both, and keep the overlap small. The fewer copies of a sensitive photo exist, the fewer places it can leak from.
How we checked
Every fact about Ente on this page comes from Ente's website, architecture page and App Store listing, checked on October 30, 2026, and is shown with its source in the table. Where the vendor does not say something — for example, how files are encrypted — we leave the cell empty instead of guessing. Prices differ between regions and change often, so confirm the current price on the purchase screen before you pay. If you spot something out of date, tell us and we will correct it.
Verdict
Ente answers "how do I back up my photos without a provider reading them?" sigil. answers "how do I keep a few photos hidden, even from someone holding my unlocked phone?" If you only pick one, pick based on that question. If you can, use both.
Frequently asked questions
Is Ente Photos a photo vault?
Ente is an end-to-end encrypted photo backup and library, a private alternative to iCloud Photos or Google Photos. sigil. is a vault for a small set of sensitive photos on your iPhone. They solve different problems.
Can I use Ente and sigil. together?
Yes, and it is a sensible setup: Ente for your whole library with encrypted backup, sigil. for the few items that should be hidden on the phone and opened only with a separate sign.
Does sigil. back up to the cloud like Ente?
No. sigil. has no cloud backup yet. It is local-first, so keep your own backup of anything you cannot lose.
Do I need an account for sigil.?
No. There is no sign-up, no email and no server.
App names and icons belong to their owners; used only to identify the products compared.