PHOTOS · 3 NOVEMBER 2026

How to hide videos on iPhone

Videos hide the same way as photos on iPhone, but they bring two extra things to think about: they are large, and they often arrive from messaging apps without you noticing.

Hide a video in the Photos app

1. Open Photos and find the video. The Videos collection under Media Types helps.
2. Select it, tap the More button (•••), and choose Hide.
3. Confirm. The video moves to the Hidden album under Utilities.

On iOS 16 and later the Hidden album needs Face ID, Touch ID, or your passcode to open. Make sure that is on: how to lock the Hidden album.

Keep a video behind its own lock

The Hidden album opens with your device passcode. To keep a video from someone who knows it, move the video into an encrypted vault:

1. In Vaultage, tap + → Import photos and videos and choose the video.
2. Wait for the import to finish. Large videos take a little longer to encrypt.
3. Play it in the vault to check it, then delete the original in Photos and empty Recently Deleted.

Vaultage stores the original video byte-for-byte, without recompressing it. While a video plays, a temporary decrypted copy exists only until the vault locks.

Record directly into the vault

If you know in advance that a video is private, record it inside the vault instead. In Vaultage, tap + → Record video. The video goes straight into the encrypted vault and never appears in your Photos library or iCloud Photos.

Watch for videos that save themselves

Messaging apps often save received videos to Photos. Turn that off at the source: stop WhatsApp saving to Photos.

FAQ

Do hidden videos take up storage?

Yes. Hiding does not change file size. Moving a video into a vault and deleting the original keeps storage roughly the same, because the vault holds the full-quality original.

Can I hide a video from my iCloud?

Not with the Hidden album; hidden videos still sync with iCloud Photos. A local-only vault keeps the video off iCloud once you delete the original.