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Where Is the Utilities Album on iPhone? Find It Fast

By Vineet KarhailLast reviewed Tested on iOS 274 min read

A thin line drawing of a stack of photo tiles with the lowest ones behind a small padlock, joined by a dotted line to a keyhole.

The Utilities section is at the bottom of the Collections tab in the Photos app. It is where Photos keeps Hidden, Recently Deleted and other housekeeping collections, and the first two are locked by default. For a look at what that lock does and does not protect, see how Sigil is secured.

How do you find the Utilities album?

Apple's pages describe the same route for each collection under Utilities. You scroll down in Collections until the Utilities heading appears.

Steps

  1. Open the Photos app.
  2. Tap Collections.
  3. Scroll down to Utilities.
  4. Tap the collection you want, for example Hidden or Recently Deleted.
  5. For Hidden and Recently Deleted, tap View Album, then unlock your iPhone.

If you cannot see Utilities or one collection in it, read the next two sections.

What is in the Utilities section?

Apple's pages name these collections under Utilities.

Duplicates. Starting with iOS 16, Photos detects duplicate photos and videos and places them here. The collection only appears once your iPhone has indexed your library and found duplicates. Apple says that if you do not see it, your iPhone has not identified any. The detection needs the iPhone to be locked and connected to power, and can take up to a few days. When you merge a set, Photos keeps one photo with the highest quality, and the other copies go to Recently Deleted.

Hidden. Photos you hide are moved here, and Apple says you cannot view them anywhere else. To hide a photo, open it, tap the More button, then tap Hide.

Recently Deleted. Deleted photos and videos stay here for 30 days. You can recover them or delete them for good during that time. After 30 days they are removed from your iPhone, iCloud and other devices on your Apple Account.

Apple's iPhone guide also mentions a Recovered collection for items that do not show up in Recently Deleted. It does not say where that collection sits, and this article does not guess. Apple's pages I checked do not describe an Imports collection on iPhone, so I left it out.

Is the Utilities album locked?

Hidden and Recently Deleted are locked by default. You open them with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode.

You can change this in Settings. Tap Apps, tap Photos, and turn off Use Face ID, Use Touch ID or Use Passcode. Apple says that changes the default from locked to unlocked.

You can also remove Hidden from the Photos app altogether. In Settings, tap Apps, tap Photos, and turn off Show Hidden Album. Apple calls this an extra layer of privacy on top of the lock.

If you use iCloud Photos, Apple says photos you delete or hide are deleted or hidden on all your devices. If you turn that sync off, see how to turn off iCloud Photos.

How private is the Hidden album, really?

It stops casual browsing. Someone who picks up your phone sees no hidden photos in your library, and with Show Hidden Album off, they see no Hidden collection either.

The limit is the unlock method. Apple's lock accepts Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode. A person who knows your passcode can open Hidden and Recently Deleted the same way you do. So can anyone who can unlock the phone another way.

The photos are also still in the Photos app, on the same device, under the same passcode as everything else. There is no separate secret for them.

Do you need something stronger?

If you want photos that do not open with your phone passcode, you need a separate lock. Sigil is built for that. It is an encrypted vault for iPhone that opens with a pattern you draw, and each pattern opens its own vault. The pattern alone opens nothing: the key also needs a secret from the Secure Enclave that cannot leave the phone.

When you import from Photos, Sigil can delete the originals. iOS then keeps them in Recently Deleted for 30 days, so you need to empty that collection. Sigil tells you this during import.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why can I not see the Utilities album on my iPhone?

Open Photos, tap Collections and scroll all the way down. Utilities is below your other collections. A single collection such as Duplicates only appears if your iPhone found duplicates.

Is the Hidden album locked by default?

Yes. Apple says Hidden and Recently Deleted are locked by default and open with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode.

How do I stop the Hidden album from showing in Photos?

In Settings, tap Apps, tap Photos, and turn off Show Hidden Album. You can still hide photos, but the collection no longer appears in the Photos app.

Can someone with my passcode see my hidden photos?

Yes. The lock opens with your passcode, so anyone who knows it can unlock the Hidden collection on your iPhone.

References

Most vault apps are a PIN screen over normal files. Sigil's keys can't leave your iPhone.

Read how the key is built and where it stops working.

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