How to Create a Shared Photo Album on iPhone and Android

To create a shared photo album on iPhone, use Shared Albums in the Photos app. If most of the group uses Android, or a mix of devices, a Google Photos shared album is the usual choice. If you want an album that only the people you invite by email can add to, where everyone's photos and videos stay as originals and don't expire, create a shared album on Roceet in the browser. The steps for all three are below, with what each one keeps.

Which shared album fits

• Everyone in the group uses an iPhone, iPad or Mac: Apple Shared Albums, built into Photos.
• The group uses Android or a mix of devices, and everyone has a Google Account: a Google Photos shared album.
• You want to choose exactly who can add, keep the originals, and not use anyone's iCloud or Google storage: a Roceet shared album, opened in any browser.

Shared photo albums compared

Apple and Google facts below come from their own support pages and were last checked on October 18, 2026. Apple changed Shared Albums in iOS 27, so the limits depend on the software version an album was created in. Open the linked page if the exact number matters.

How to create a shared photo album on iPhone

These are Apple's steps for Shared Albums in iOS 27. First turn the feature on:

1. Open Settings, tap your name, then tap iCloud.
2. Under Saved to iCloud, tap Photos. In iOS 27, make sure iCloud Photos is turned on.
3. Scroll down, tap Shared Albums and turn it on.

Then create the album:

1. Open the Photos app and tap Collections.
2. Scroll down to Shared Albums, tap Shared Albums, then tap the Add button.
3. Name the album and choose the photos to start it with.
4. Tap Sharing Options to choose whether you invite and approve participants, or share the album with a link.
5. To make it a temporary album, turn on Make Album Temporary. Temporary shared albums expire after 30 days and don't use your iCloud storage.
6. Tap Done.

On iOS 26, the flow is similar: in Collections, tap Shared Albums, tap Add, name the album, choose photos, then choose people from your contacts or type an email address or iMessage phone number and tap Create. Albums created there keep the older limits in the table above.

How to create a shared album in Google Photos

Google's steps for a new shared album on a phone:

1. Open Google Photos and sign in to your Google Account.
2. At the bottom, tap Photos, then touch and hold the photos or videos you want.
3. Tap Create, then Album, and enter an album title.
4. Tap Done, and when the album is ready, tap Share.
5. Select who to share it with. For people who aren't in your contacts, create a link to share.

Two settings are worth checking. With a link, anyone with the link can view the photos and add to the album. If you only want people to look, turn off Collaborate in the album's sharing settings.

How to add someone to a shared photo album

• iPhone (iOS 27): open the album, tap the Manage Shared Album button, then under Participants tap Invite Participants and pick a contact, or copy the album link.
• Google Photos: open the album, tap Share, and select who to share your album with, or send the album link.
• Roceet: open the album, tap Share, and add email addresses under Invite people, up to 20 at a time. Only the album owner can invite or remove people.

How to create a shared photo album on Roceet

A Roceet album lives in the browser, so the same steps work on an iPhone, an Android phone or a computer.

1. Sign in and open Albums. If you're new, you can start on the Free plan.
2. Tap New album. Give it a title and, if you like, a description.
3. Choose who can view: Only members, or Anyone with the link. Anyone with the link can view and download, but only members can add.
4. Tap Share and invite people by email, up to 20 addresses at a time. Each person gets an email, and signs in with a one-time code sent to that address.
5. Add photos and videos, or write a note. Members do the same from their own devices, and can react, comment and give each item a name.

What to know before you start:

• Full quality: photos and videos upload as they are. Anyone who can view the album can download the original.
• No expiry: unlike Roceet transfers, album media stays until someone deletes it. Deleting the album deletes its files right away.
• Storage: what you add counts toward your own storage, 2 GB on Free and 1 TB per seat on Ultimate. Members' uploads count toward their storage, not yours.
• Photos and videos only: other file types can't go in an album. Notes are text.
• No QR code: people are invited by email and sign in before they can add. If you want guests at an event to upload without signing in, see how to collect photos from wedding guests for the other options.

If everyone has an iPhone and you're happy with the album sitting in the owner's iCloud, Apple Shared Albums are already on their phones. If your group lives in Google Photos, use a Google shared album. Choose Roceet when you want only invited people to add, the originals kept, and each person's uploads counted against their own storage. To send a finished set to one person instead, see how to send large photo files.