sigil. vs Secret Photo Vault

Short answer: choose Secret Photo Vault if you want a simple, long-running photo locker with a cheap one-time upgrade, an iPad version, Face ID convenience and a way to reset a forgotten password. Choose sigil. if you want the photos encrypted with a key that only your sign unlocks, no biometric shortcut, and a decoy vault for the moment someone makes you open the app.

A note on names, because they collide: this page is about "Secret Photo Vault Lock Photos" on the App Store. It is not Keepsafe (whose listing also uses "Secret Photo Vault") and not SPV. If you meant those, see sigil. vs Keepsafe or sigil. vs SPV.

sigil.

Secret Photo Vault

Price

Free · Pro €39.99 once or €19.99/yrFree download; Pro Version $6.99 (US App Store)

Lifetime option

€39.99 once, no subscriptionPro Version is a one-time $6.99 in-app purchase

Free tier

100 photos and documents + 10 videos per vault, 1 vault + decoy vaultFree download; Pro Version unlocks more

Account required

No account at allNo account; data stored only on the device (vendor-stated)

Encryption

256-bit encryption; key unlocked by your pattern (Argon2id, bound to the secure chip)—

Zero-knowledge

Yes — no server, we never see anything—

Multiple vaults

Up to 7 vaults with Pro, one pattern each; the app never lists themSeveral password-locked users/categories

Decoy vault

Free: a decoy pattern opens a decoy vault with harmless photos and erases nothingDecoy accounts show a separate decoy database

Disguised icon

Neutral utility icons that don't say vault.—

Private camera

Photos never touch the Camera RollAdd photos from the camera, continuous shooting

EXIF / location removal

Location/EXIF stripped on import and export—

Cloud sync

No — local-first, no cloud backup yetNo cloud; Wi-Fi and USB transfer to a computer

Unlock

Only the pattern you draw — no Face ID or Touch ID, by designPassword, dot (pattern) lock, Touch ID, Face ID

Break-in alerts

No intruder photos; optional self-destruct after too many wrong patterns—

Platforms

iPhone onlyiPhone, iPad

sigil. compared with Secret Photo Vault

Feature	sigil.	Secret Photo Vault
Price	Free · Pro €39.99 once or €19.99/yr	Free download; Pro Version $6.99 (US App Store)
Lifetime option	€39.99 once, no subscription	Pro Version is a one-time $6.99 in-app purchase
Free tier	100 photos and documents + 10 videos per vault, 1 vault + decoy vault	Free download; Pro Version unlocks more
Account required	No account at all	No account; data stored only on the device (vendor-stated)
Encryption	256-bit encryption; key unlocked by your pattern (Argon2id, bound to the secure chip)	—
Zero-knowledge	Yes — no server, we never see anything	—
Multiple vaults	Up to 7 vaults with Pro, one pattern each; the app never lists them	Several password-locked users/categories
Decoy vault	Free: a decoy pattern opens a decoy vault with harmless photos and erases nothing	Decoy accounts show a separate decoy database
Disguised icon	Neutral utility icons that don't say vault.	—
Private camera	Photos never touch the Camera Roll	Add photos from the camera, continuous shooting
EXIF / location removal	Location/EXIF stripped on import and export	—
Cloud sync	No — local-first, no cloud backup yet	No cloud; Wi-Fi and USB transfer to a computer
Unlock	Only the pattern you draw — no Face ID or Touch ID, by design	Password, dot (pattern) lock, Touch ID, Face ID
Break-in alerts	No intruder photos; optional self-destruct after too many wrong patterns	—
Platforms	iPhone only	iPhone, iPad

Security model

Secret Photo Vault's listing describes how you get in: Password, dot (pattern) lock, Touch ID, Face ID. What it does not describe is encryption. The listing doesn't say whether the photos are encrypted at rest or how, so we can't tell you either way. The lock may sit in front of encrypted files or in front of ordinary ones; the listing simply doesn't say.

There is also a reset path: Optional security Q&A to reset the password. That is friendly if you forget your password. It also means a correct answer to a question can stand in for the password.

sigil. is built the other way round. You draw a sign on a 5×5 dot grid. That sign goes through Argon2id and is bound to the phone's secure chip, and the result unlocks the 256-bit key that decrypts the vault. A wrong sign is not checked against a stored answer; it just unlocks nothing. There is no Face ID or Touch ID in sigil., on purpose: someone can hold your phone up to your face, while a sign has to come from you. Details in pattern encryption, and the trade-offs between unlock methods in pattern lock vs PIN vs password.

Both apps use a dot grid, but for different jobs. In Secret Photo Vault it is one of several ways to open the lock. In sigil. the sign is the only way in, and it is what the key is derived from.

Privacy

On accounts, the two apps agree: Secret Photo Vault says No account; data stored only on the device (vendor-stated), and sigil. has no account, no sign-up and no server. Secret Photo Vault's App Store privacy label: Data Not Collected. sigil. sends no usage statistics; we don't know who you are or what is in your vaults.

Where they differ is getting files off the phone. Secret Photo Vault: No cloud; Wi-Fi and USB transfer to a computer. sigil. has no cloud backup yet and no computer transfer; it is local-first, and any export comes with a warning that the file leaves the vault unencrypted.

Features

Decoy vault. Secret Photo Vault offers Decoy accounts show a separate decoy database. sigil. has a free decoy vault, opened by its own decoy pattern, while your other vaults stay hidden. There is also an optional self-destruct, free and off by default.

Multiple vaults. Secret Photo Vault: Several password-locked users/categories. In sigil. each sign opens its own vault and there is no list of vaults anywhere, so nothing in the app shows how many exist (multiple hidden vaults).

Camera. Secret Photo Vault: Add photos from the camera, continuous shooting. sigil.'s private camera writes straight into the encrypted vault, so the photo never touches the Camera Roll.

Disguised icon. The Secret Photo Vault listing doesn't mention one. sigil. can show a neutral icon that doesn't say sigil. (disguised icon).

Metadata. sigil. strips EXIF and location data on import and export. We did not find this documented for Secret Photo Vault. You can check any file with the photo metadata viewer.

Break-in alerts. sigil. does not take intruder photos. Instead, repeated wrong signs get growing waits, and self-destruct can erase the vaults if you turn it on.

Price

Secret Photo Vault on the US App Store: Free download; Pro Version $6.99 (US App Store). The upgrade model: Pro Version is a one-time $6.99 in-app purchase.

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.

Where Secret Photo Vault is better

• Price. Its one-time Pro upgrade costs less than sigil.'s lifetime plan.
• iPad. It runs on iPhone, iPad. sigil. is iPhone-only today.
• Getting files to a computer. Wi-Fi and USB transfer give you a simple way to keep a copy elsewhere. sigil. has no cloud or computer backup yet; read how to securely back up private photos.
• Password reset. A security question can get you back in. In sigil., a lost sign plus a lost recovery phrase means the data is gone, by design.
• Biometrics. If convenience matters more to you than resisting a forced unlock, Face ID is quicker than drawing a sign.
• Track record. It has been on the App Store for many years, with 27K ratings on the US App Store. sigil. is new.

How to switch from Secret Photo Vault to sigil.

1. In Secret Photo Vault, open each album or user, select the items and export them to your iPhone's Photos library.
2. Install sigil., draw a sign and write the recovery phrase on paper.
3. Import the exported items into your vault. sigil. strips location and EXIF data on import.
4. Open a few items in sigil. to confirm they are there and readable.
5. Delete the exported copies from Photos, then empty Recently Deleted (how to delete Recently Deleted photos).
6. When you are sure everything moved, delete the items from Secret Photo Vault, including any decoy accounts you no longer need.

Verdict

Secret Photo Vault is a cheap, familiar locker with decoy accounts, an iPad version, Face ID and a reset question. Its listing describes the lock, not encryption. sigil. puts the weight on the key: a sign only you know, hardened and tied to the phone's chip, no biometric shortcut, and a decoy vault for when someone insists. If you want your photos protected even when the phone is unlocked in someone else's hands, sigil. fits better. If you want the lowest price and an easy reset, Secret Photo Vault is the simpler choice.

For more options, see the best private photo vault apps for iPhone or sigil. vs Privault.