7 wedding guest photo apps compared (2026)
By Andrew Tjong · Published 16 September 2026 · Verified against live vendor pages, August 2026
The short answer: every serious wedding guest camera now lets guests join by QR code with no app install. The real differences are pricing transparency, whether full-resolution download costs extra or expires, and whether photos stay sealed until a reveal. Kept, Lense, Scene, and GuestPix publish prices; POV and Once make you dig for yours.
We compared seven options couples actually shortlist: Kept, POV, Lense, Once, GuestPix, Scene, and Apple's free iCloud Shared Albums. Every claim below was checked against each vendor's live website or App Store listing in August 2026. Where a vendor's public pages don't state a number or policy, we write "not stated publicly" rather than guessing.
The master table
| App | Published price | Guest join method | Android | Full-res keep / export policy | Reveal mechanic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kept | Yes: free up to 8 guests, €89.99 (about $97) one-time, unlimited guests | QR opens the camera in the browser, no app, no account | Yes (guests shoot in any browser; host app is iOS) | Full-quality download free on every tier, forever | Sealed box until opening day, everyone sees it together |
| POV | Partially: “free for events under 10 people,” paid tiers to $89.99 revealed via calculator / in-app | QR, no install (App Clip on iOS, web on Android) | Yes | Download offered; export cost and resolution not stated publicly | Delayed reveal, host picks the moment |
| Lense | Yes: free up to 7 guests, then €5.99 (25 guests) to €99.99 (500); +€11.99 unlimited captures, +€9.99 video | QR opens the camera in the browser, no app | Yes | Download free in writing; 12-month storage window from event date; resolution not stated publicly | Optional delayed reveal (real-time modes too) |
| Once | No: participant tiers listed (free up to 5, then 10 to 200+) with no amounts | QR or link, no install | Yes | Download mentioned in FAQ; cost and resolution not stated publicly | Photos hidden until the “film develops,” recap video after |
| GuestPix | Mostly: one-time packages, roughly $49 to $177 by tier; exact figures load in-page by currency | QR or link to a web gallery, no app, no registration | Yes | Full-resolution zip download included; gallery hosted 12 months from event (24 for the bundle) | None advertised: it's a live shared gallery |
| Scene | Yes: free up to 5 guests, then $2.99 (10) to $99.99 (unlimited), one-time | QR, guests shoot in the mobile browser, no download | Yes (and the host app is on Android too) | Bulk ZIP download of the full gallery at reveal; resolution not stated publicly | Locked until host-set reveal time |
| iCloud Shared Albums | Free | Invite via iCloud; contributing needs an Apple device | View-only via public web link; Android guests cannot upload | Photos reduced to 2048px on the long edge, video capped at 720p | None: live album |
The verdicts, one by one
Kept (that's us, so weigh accordingly). One public price, unlimited guests at €89.99 one-time, free full product up to 8 guests, and the promise in writing that full-quality downloads are free forever. The sealed box until opening day is the whole ritual, not an optional mode. Honest caveat: the host app is iOS only, so Android couples should look at Scene or GuestPix to run the event.
POV is the category's most established name, and the guest experience (App Clip on iOS, web on Android, the NFC POV Block) is genuinely slick. It beats Kept on the free tier (events under 10 people vs 8 guests) and on extras like photobooks. But your exact price hides in a calculator, and its public pages don't say what exporting costs or at what resolution. Full Kept vs POV comparison.
Lense is the transparency runner-up: full price list published, downloads free in writing, and a money-back guarantee if fewer than 50 photos get taken. For a known headcount of 25 to 100 guests it's cheaper than Kept (€5.99 to €39.99). Trade-offs: captures cap at 25 per guest unless you pay €11.99 more, video is another €9.99, and storage runs 12 months.
Once has the most lovingly crafted disposable-film aesthetic of the group, plus a recap video after the event, and guests join by QR with nothing to install. If the vibe is what you're buying, it delivers better than anyone, and that's where it beats Kept. But it publishes no prices at all, and its download cost and resolution are not stated publicly. Full Kept vs Once comparison.
GuestPix is the pick if you don't want a reveal: it's a live gallery with unlimited guests, unlimited uploads, and a full-resolution zip download included, all web-based so any host phone works. For big guest lists on a budget, its entry package (about $49) undercuts Kept. It's simply a different product: photos appear as they're taken, so there's no sealed-box moment.
Scene is the value play for the disposable-camera ritual: $2.99 covers 10 guests and even unlimited guests cost $99.99 one-time, with a proper locked-until-reveal mechanic. It also beats Kept for Android couples, since its host app runs on both iOS and Android. Photo resolution policy is not stated publicly, and hosts must use the native app; there's no web event creation.
iCloud Shared Albums costs nothing and is already on every iPhone, which is why it's the default, and for a small all-Apple group it beats Kept on price by definition. But Apple's own support pages state photos are reduced to 2048 pixels on the long edge and video to 720p, and Android guests get view-only access via a public web link; they cannot add photos. For wedding photos you'll want to print someday, that resolution cut is the dealbreaker.
How we verified
Every claim in this piece was checked in August 2026 against each vendor's live public pages: lense.app and its pricing page plus its App Store listing, pov.camera, once.film and its pricing page, guestpix.com's pricing pages, scenedisposable.com's pricing page, and Apple's Shared Albums support documents (support.apple.com/en-us/108916 and 108314). Where a vendor's public pages don't state a price, resolution, or export policy, we say "not stated publicly" instead of guessing. Prices are one-time fees unless noted, shown in the currency the vendor publishes. If you spot something that has changed, email hello@kept.pictures and we'll correct it.
Kept is on the App Store
Download the free host app, create your event, and print the QR code. Your guests need nothing but their phone. The free tier is the full product for events up to 8 guests, so try it on your rehearsal dinner first.
Free on iPhone. Guests join from any phone's browser, iPhone or Android.