A shared library no one else can open.
Google Photos keeps your pictures — and so can Google, which scans your library and holds the keys. Pair is built for two and end-to-end encrypted: your shared photos are readable only by the two of you, alongside private messages, albums and notes.
Encryption & privacy, side by side.
Built for two. No scanning, no tracking, no Google Photos.
| Feature | Pair | Google Photos |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Exactly two people, privately | General storage for one account |
| End-to-end encryption | Yes — sealed on your device | No — Google can access your photos |
| Who can read your photos | Only the two of you | Google, for search & features |
| Shared by default | Yes — one library for two | No — sharing is per-album |
| Content scanning / AI | None — nothing to scan | Photos scanned for search & faces |
| Private message thread | Yes | No |
| Shared notes | Yes | No |
| Locked private albums | Encrypted & shared for two | On-device only, not shared |
| Ads & account tracking | None, ever | Part of your Google account |
Questions, answered.
No. Google Photos encrypts your photos in transit and at rest, but Google holds the keys and can access your library — it scans content for search, face grouping and product features. Pair is end-to-end encrypted: photos are sealed on your device with a key only you and your partner hold, so no one else, including us, can ever see them.
Google Photos is general storage tied to one account, with sharing bolted on per album. Pair is built for two from the ground up: one shared, encrypted library you both add to by default, plus a private message thread, shared notes and locked albums. It's a couple's private world, not a storage drive with sharing on top.
Yes. Google analyses your photos to power search, group faces and drive features across your account. Pair scans nothing — your library is encrypted end-to-end, so there's nothing for us to read, and no content is ever used to train AI.
Google Photos has a 'Locked Folder', but it lives only on that one device and isn't shared. In Pair, locked albums are encrypted, shared between the two of you, and hidden from the main library behind their own gate — a genuinely private vault for two.
Pair is free to start. Create your pair, invite your partner with a code, and you have a shared encrypted library in under a minute.