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The best family memory apps, compared honestly.

The best family memory app depends on the job. Remento or Storyworth turn one person's stories into a book, Tinybeans or FamilyAlbum share a child's photos with family, Google Photos or iCloud back up and share everyday pictures, FamilySearch Memories is free and tied to a family tree, and Ancestorii is a private, ad-free library the whole family adds to, with prints.

Ancestorii publishes this page, so we have said where each app is strongest and where ours falls short. Every price comes from the company's own website, help centre or App Store listing, checked on 17 October 2026.

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At a glance

Prices and plans, in six facts.

How we compared

How did we compare them?

We picked eight apps that families use to keep photos, voices and stories, and asked the same three questions of each one.

  1. What is it built for? A book, a baby journal, a photo backup, a family tree or a family library.
  2. What does it cost? The free option and the main paid price as of October 2026, in the currency each company quotes.
  3. Where does it fall short? Every app has a gap, ours included.
Stories into a book

Which app turns a parent's stories into a book?

Remento

Recorded stories, turned into a book that plays their voice.

Best for

A parent or grandparent who would rather talk than write.

  • $99 for the first year as of October 2026, including one hardcover book credit of up to 200 pages, then $99 a year or $12 a month.
  • Storytellers record by clicking a link on any phone, with no app or login. Each recording becomes editable text, and every chapter has a QR code that plays it.
  • Falls short: each book is for one storyteller (another costs $99), prices are in US dollars, and UK shipping is $15 for the first book.

Storyworth

Weekly questions for a year, then a hardcover book.

Best for

Giving one person a year of questions that ends in a book they can hold.

  • UK plans start at £49 as of October 2026, and the base plan includes one premium hardcover book.
  • Your storyteller gets weekly questions by text or email from a library of 500+, and can reply by email or on the website, or by phone on an upgraded plan.
  • Falls short: it is built around a year of questions that ends in a book, not an ongoing family library.

More detail in our Remento alternative and Storyworth alternative comparisons.

Children's photos

Which is best for sharing photos of children?

Tinybeans

A private photo journal that parents keep and share with family.

Best for

Parents sharing photos of their children with grandparents and close family.

  • Free accounts show ads around the journal and have a 5 GB storage limit. Tinybeans+ is $74.99 a year or $7.99 a month.
  • Apps for iPhone and Android, email updates for family without the app, and photobooks you can print.
  • Falls short: free accounts are capped at 20 photos and videos a month, and its help centre lists prices in US dollars outside Australia.

FamilyAlbum

A shared album for baby and family photos, made by MIXI.

Best for

Sharing a baby's photos and videos with grandparents, privately.

  • Its website promises uploads with no fees or storage limits, and only family members you invite can see your album.
  • Family can comment and react on every photo and video. Premium is sold in the app: the UK App Store lists Premium Family at £54.99 a year.
  • Falls short: it is designed around photos of babies and children, so it is less suited to recording older relatives' stories.

See Ancestorii vs Tinybeans.

Backing up

Which is best for backing up every photo?

Google Photos

Automatic backup for the photos and videos on your phone.

Best for

Making sure nothing on your phone is lost.

  • Turn on backup and your photos and videos save to your Google Account automatically.
  • If you need more space, 100 GB costs £1.59 a month in the UK as of October 2026.
  • Falls short: the free 15 GB is shared with Gmail and Google Drive, so a family's photos and videos can fill it quickly.

iCloud Shared Albums

Shared albums for up to 100 people, built into Apple Photos.

Best for

Families with iPhones sharing photos from a holiday or a birthday.

  • Up to 100 participants per album, including the owner. Albums created on iOS 27 or later keep photos and videos at full resolution.
  • iCloud includes 5 GB free, and 50 GB of iCloud+ costs £0.99 a month in the UK as of October 2026.
  • Falls short: new shared albums count towards the owner's iCloud storage, including everything participants add.

See Ancestorii vs Google Photos and Ancestorii vs iCloud Shared Albums.

Family history

Which is best if you are researching family history?

FamilySearch Memories

Free photos, recordings and stories, attached to a family tree.

Best for

Adding photos and stories to ancestors while you research your family tree.

  • FamilySearch is an international non-profit funded by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and its Memories app is free.
  • Add photos, documents, recordings and stories, and name the relatives in them.
  • Falls short: memories attach to people in its Family Tree, so it suits ancestors more than everyday family life.
A private family library

Which is best for a library the whole family adds to?

Ancestorii

A private family library, with books and prints you design.

Best for

Families who want everyone adding to one private place, and something printed to keep.

  • Everyone you invite adds memories, photos, video and voice notes, with no cap on family members and no ads. Only your family can see it.
  • Albums, timelines, capsules sealed until a date you choose, and Loved Ones profiles.
  • A Free plan with 1 GB for the family and no card. Premium is £3.99 a month for the whole family, with 100 GB.
  • Memory Books you lay out yourself, from £44.99 plus delivery, and canvas and acrylic prints from £99.99 plus delivery.
  • Falls short: answering family questions needs the free app, printed books have no audio, Premium is monthly only and the Free plan includes one Loved Ones profile.
Side by side

Family memory apps compared side by side.

AppFree optionPaid planBest for
AncestoriiYes: 1 GB for the family, no cardPremium £3.99 a month per familyA private library the whole family adds to, with prints
StoryworthNoFrom £49 (UK)One person's stories in a book after a year
RementoNo$99 first year with one book, then $99 a year or $12 a monthRecorded stories turned into a book with QR codes
Tinybeans20 uploads a month and 5 GB, with adsTinybeans+ $74.99 a year or $7.99 a monthSharing children's photos with family
FamilyAlbumYes, with no storage limitsPremium Family £54.99 a year (UK App Store)Sharing baby photos and videos privately
FamilySearch MemoriesYes, freeNone: it is freePhotos and stories attached to a family tree
Google Photos15 GB, shared with Gmail and Drive100 GB for £1.59 a monthBacking up every photo automatically
iCloud Shared Albums5 GB of iCloud storage50 GB for £0.99 a monthSharing albums with up to 100 people

Checked on 17 October 2026. Remento and Tinybeans quote prices in US dollars.

Where Ancestorii helps

How does Ancestorii help?

Ancestorii is built for one job: keeping a whole family's photos, stories and voices in one private place that everyone adds to. A memory can hold up to 10 photos, a video and a voice note, and when two relatives remember the same moment differently, both versions sit side by side as tabs.

It is not the cheapest place to store thousands of photos: Google Photos and iCloud are built for that, and Ancestorii's Free plan has 1 GB. Nor does it transcribe recordings or print QR codes, as Remento does. What it adds is the story around each photo, kept private.

When you want something to hold, Memory Books are A4 landscape hardcovers of 24, 36 or 48 pages, from £44.99 plus delivery, laid out page by page from your family's library.

Questions

Family memory app questions.

What is the best app for preserving family memories?

It depends on the job. Remento suits a storyteller who would rather talk, and Storyworth sends weekly questions for a book. Tinybeans and FamilyAlbum share children's photos, Google Photos and iCloud back up pictures, and FamilySearch Memories links memories to a family tree. For a private library the whole family adds to, with voice notes and printed books, Ancestorii is built for that.

Which family memory app is free?

FamilySearch Memories is free, and FamilyAlbum says it has no fees or storage limits. Ancestorii has a Free plan with 1 GB of family storage and no card, Tinybeans is free for 20 photos and videos a month with ads, Google gives up to 15 GB shared with Gmail and Drive, and iCloud includes 5 GB. Storyworth and Remento are paid services that include a printed book.

What's the best app for recording a grandparent's stories?

If they would rather talk than write, Remento lets them record by clicking a link on any phone, for up to 30 minutes a story, and turns each recording into text for a book. Storyworth lets them reply by email or on its website, or by phone on an upgraded plan. In Ancestorii you can send them one of 46 ready-made questions to answer in the free app, and keep voice notes in your family's private library.

Which app is best for sharing baby photos privately?

Tinybeans and FamilyAlbum are both built for it. FamilyAlbum says only the family members you invite can see your album, and Tinybeans is free for 20 uploads a month with ads, or $74.99 a year for Tinybeans+. Ancestorii is private too, and suits families who also want grandparents' stories in the same place.

Can I print a book from these apps?

Yes, from several. Storyworth and Remento include one hardcover book in their price, Tinybeans and FamilyAlbum offer photobooks, and Ancestorii prints A4 landscape Memory Books you lay out page by page, from £44.99 plus delivery. We did not compare printing for Google Photos, iCloud or FamilySearch Memories.

Sources

  1. Storyworth · Storyworth UK homepage: plans, weekly questions and books (accessed October 2026)
  2. Remento · Remento’s Pricing Guide (accessed October 2026)
  3. Remento · Remento homepage: recording, Speech-to-Story and QR codes (accessed October 2026)
  4. Remento · Where does Remento ship books (internationally)? (30 June 2026)
  5. Tinybeans · How much is a Tinybeans+ subscription? (29 July 2026)
  6. Tinybeans · What’s the difference between free Tinybeans and Tinybeans+? (28 July 2026)
  7. Tinybeans · Tinybeans homepage (accessed October 2026)
  8. FamilyAlbum (MIXI, Inc.) · FamilyAlbum homepage (accessed October 2026)
  9. Apple App Store (UK) · FamilyAlbum: Share Baby Photos (accessed October 2026)
  10. FamilySearch · Why is FamilySearch free? (accessed October 2026)
  11. Apple App Store · FamilySearch Memories (accessed October 2026)
  12. Google · How your Google storage works (accessed October 2026)
  13. Google · Google One plans (UK prices) (accessed October 2026)
  14. Google · Back up photos and videos (Google Photos Help) (accessed October 2026)
  15. Apple · iCloud+ plans and pricing (29 September 2026)
  16. Apple · Shared Albums limits (21 September 2026)

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