Move your photos from Private Photo Vault to Mavaul

The steps

1. In Private Photo Vault, open an album, select the photos and videos, and use the export option to save them to the Photos app. The button's name can change between versions. Do this for each album.
2. If you use Cloud Vault, check each album opens fully on this phone before exporting.
3. In Mavaul, make a folder for each album and add the photos from your library. They're encrypted with AES-256 as they arrive.
4. When Mavaul offers to delete the originals from Photos, say yes. Then open Photos → Recently Deleted and delete them there too.
5. Compare the counts in each Mavaul folder with Private Photo Vault, and play a few videos.
6. Only then delete the albums in Private Photo Vault. If you pay for it, cancel in Settings → your name → Subscriptions.

Things that catch people out

• Don't uninstall Private Photo Vault before the move is done. Its own FAQ warns that files stored only in the app can be lost.
• The free plan holds 30 photos and videos. Moving a bigger vault needs Premium.
• Exported photos go back to the date they were taken, not to the top of the camera roll. Scroll back to when they were taken to find them.
• Your old backups don't come with you. Once the photos are in Mavaul, turn on encrypted backup to your own Dropbox, Nextcloud or Files (Premium), and save your recovery key.
• Large albums export faster in batches of a few hundred.

Questions

Is there a direct transfer from Private Photo Vault to Mavaul?

No. Vault apps don't hand files to each other, so the Photos app is the bridge. The photos sit there only until Mavaul imports them and you delete the originals.

Can I import videos?

Yes. Photos and videos.

Do I need an account?

No. Mavaul has no account. Your vault is protected by a passcode or Face ID, and a recovery key gets you back in if you forget the passcode.

Read next

• Mavaul vs Private Photo Vault
• Move photos into a vault without leaving copies
• Moving my vault to a new iPhone