Hearthkeep, Google Photos and iCloud Photos
Google Photos and iCloud Photos are good at keeping one person’s phone backed up. Hearthkeep keeps one family’s archive: everyone’s photos, the tree, and the stories behind them.
Side by side
| Google Photos and iCloud Photos | Hearthkeep | |
|---|---|---|
| Built around | Google Photos and iCloud PhotosEach person’s own library. Shared albums, and on iCloud a shared library, pass photos between people. | HearthkeepOne archive for one family, which everyone adds to. |
| Where photos are kept | Google Photos and iCloud PhotosOn the company’s servers. | HearthkeepOn your own computer with Hearthkeep Home, or on ours with Hearthkeep Cloud. |
| Faces | Google Photos and iCloud PhotosFound and grouped in each person’s library. | HearthkeepFound once and named for the whole family. |
| Family tree, key dates, stories, recipes | Google Photos and iCloud PhotosNot part of the app. | HearthkeepKept beside the photos. |
| From your phone | Google Photos and iCloud PhotosCan back up the camera roll on its own. | HearthkeepPick photos in the Hearthkeep app or share them from your camera roll. |
| Leaving | Google Photos and iCloud PhotosGoogle Takeout, or a download from iCloud. | HearthkeepYour whole archive is one file and one folder, and both open without us. |
| Cost | Google Photos and iCloud PhotosSome storage free, then a monthly plan for more. | HearthkeepComing soon |
The tree beside the photos
Open anyone on the tree and their page has their photos, their stories and their key dates.
The Archivist
An AI helper that answers questions about your archive and shows the sources it used.
Using them together
Keep your phone’s photo app. Add the photos that belong to the family to Hearthkeep.
- Share from your phonePick photos in the app, or share them from your camera roll.
- From your computerDrag files onto the page, or pick them.
- Scans and recordings tooOld prints, documents and voice recordings.
Questions
Can Hearthkeep import my Google Photos or iCloud library?
There is no import from either today. Photos you download from them can be dragged onto the page from a computer.
Do I have to stop using Google Photos or iCloud?
No. Keep your phone’s photo app, and add the photos that belong to the family to Hearthkeep.
Can Hearthkeep see our photos?
On your own computer, Hearthkeep sends us only a daily license check, plus an optional, opt-in only usage report for improving the app. Never your names, photos or anything you add. On Hearthkeep Cloud we can see what you store, because finding faces and searching need it. We never sell it, never give it to anyone, never show ads, and never train AI on it.
Exactly what the license check sendsStart your family’s archive.
Leave your address and we’ll tell you when Hearthkeep opens.
Join the waitlistTry the demoA confirm email now, one email when it opens, nothing else. Leave with one click.