To share an album on iPhone, open Photos > Collections > Shared Albums, tap Add (+), name the album, and choose photos. In iOS 27, set Sharing Options and tap Done. In iOS 26, choose the people to invite, tap Done, then Create.
The album’s version matters as much as your phone’s version. An older album does not automatically acquire the new sharing features when you update iOS. This guide separates new iOS 27 albums from the iOS 26 workflow and explains what to check before inviting people.
Before You Start
Sign in to your Apple Account and connect to the internet. Open Settings > your name > iCloud > Photos, then enable Shared Albums. On iOS 27, iCloud Photos must also be on; our iCloud Photos setup guide explains Sync this iPhone. Apple documents that prerequisite in its version-specific Shared Albums instructions.
A normal album organizes your own pictures; it does not invite anyone. Use a Shared Album when you want selected pictures in a collection that other people can access. Decide which images belong there before sharing, particularly when your selection includes children, documents, or private locations.
Use these steps for a new album on iOS 27. Apple’s iPhone Shared Albums guide describes the current choices.
- Open Photos > Collections > Shared Albums. Tap Add (+) to start a new shared collection.
- Name the album and add photos or videos. Use a recognizable name such as Family Reunion. Review the selected items; a short initial selection makes it easier to check the result before adding the rest.
- Tap Sharing Options. Choose People You Choose for controlled access, or Anyone with the Link. With controlled access, an uninvited person who receives the link can request permission; review each request before approving it.
- Choose whether it should expire. Make Album Temporary ends the album after 30 days. Leave that off for a collection you want to keep using.
- Tap Done. Open the new album and check its name, contents, and sharing choice before inviting anyone.
For pictures already organized in a personal album, iOS 27 also offers Photos > Collections > Albums > your album > More > Create Shared Album > Done. This copies its contents into a new shared album. See Apple’s personal-album instructions. Review the whole selection rather than assuming every image in an old album is suitable to share.
Invite People and Set Permissions in iOS 27
- Open your shared album and tap Manage Shared Album. Choose Invite Participants.
- Choose how to send the invitation. Enter the recipients in the sharing app and send it. You can also copy the album link from the management screen. Send it privately if you chose restricted access.
- Have one recipient open the link. Confirm that the intended person can join and see the initial pictures. Someone on older Apple software may need an update or the web version on iCloud.com.
- Review participant permissions. In Manage Shared Album, tap the person. Can View and Comment limits them to those activities; Can Add Photos lets them contribute; Can Manage Album and Photos also allows management and removal of other people’s contributions. Tap Done after choosing.
Grant management rights only when you want that person to help run the album. Apple’s participant-permissions guide explains the roles. To remove someone, open Manage Shared Album, select the person, and use Remove Participant. A participant may already have saved copies, so removing access cannot retrieve those files.
Use this separate route if your iPhone is on iOS 26. Do not look for iOS 27’s permission roles on that screen.
- Open Photos > Collections > Shared Albums. Tap Add (+).
- Name the album and select its pictures. Choose invitees from Contacts, or enter their email addresses or iMessage phone numbers.
- Tap Done, then Create. Ask an invitee to accept and check that the collection appears.
- To invite someone later, open the album. Tap More, tap its name, then choose Add Participants. Enter the people and tap Done.
To give someone who does not use iCloud browser access to an iOS 26 album, open it, tap More > Shared Album Details, and enable Public Website. This publishes a viewable website; it is a separate choice, not an automatic private invitation. Share its address only after deciding that public web viewing fits the photos.
Add Pictures, Check Activity, and Save Copies
In iOS 27, open the shared album, choose More > Add Photos, select the items, then Done. Alternatively, select pictures in Library and use Share > Add to Shared Album. The final posting button is Done in iOS 27 and Post in iOS 26. Check the album afterward instead of assuming a tap completed the upload.
For iOS 27 contributions and comments, open Collections > Shared Albums > Activity. This shows album activity, not proof that every invitee viewed every picture. Apple’s contribution guide explains activity and the Items Not Shared message: the organizer may need more iCloud storage.
To keep a copy of an individual shared picture or video, open it and use Share > Save Image or Save Video. Check that it appears in your own library before relying on it. Shared downloads may differ from the original file’s information; keep independent originals for important pictures.
Storage, Quality, and Limits
Apple’s current album limits distinguish these cases:
New version-27 albums: Full-resolution photos and videos use the owner’s iCloud storage, including contributions from other people. There can be 100 participants including the owner. Ordinary albums have no item-count limit beyond available owner storage.
Temporary version-27 albums: These do not use the owner’s iCloud storage, but hold at most 5,000 combined photos and videos. They expire after 30 days, so they are a poor choice for your only copy.
Albums created in version 26 or earlier: They do not count against iCloud storage and hold up to 5,000 items with 100 subscribers. Photos are generally reduced to 2,048 pixels on the long edge; panoramas can be 5,400 pixels wide. Videos are limited to 15 minutes and delivered at up to 720p. These older limits should not be applied to a new full-resolution album.
Upgrade an Existing Older Album
In iOS 27, open the older album and choose More > Upgrade Shared Album, then follow the prompts. Check with participants first: afterward, older devices need updated software or iCloud.com to open it.
Apple’s upgrade guide says pictures already in the album remain exempt from storage usage, while newly added items use the owner’s storage and share at original resolution. Upgrade does not promise to restore detail lost in an older shared copy. Keep your original files.
The older album copy is available in Shared Albums settings for six months after upgrading. To recover it, use Settings > your name > iCloud > Photos > Shared Albums > Archived Shared Albums, then Recover and confirm. Recovery brings back the older album separately, so invitations can be sent again.
Troubleshooting
An invitation is missing
For an older invitation, confirm Shared Albums is enabled. Check the invitation in Photos > Collections, or Shared Albums > Activity. You can also accept it from Notification Center or from Shared Albums on iCloud.com/photos while signed in. Verify which email the sender used; if you declined it or the setting was off, ask them to resend. See Apple’s invitation troubleshooting guide.
A participant cannot add photos
Check their role in iOS 27: select the person in Manage Shared Album and enable Can Add Photos. For iOS 26, use More > the album name and enable Participants Can Add Photos. A working viewing link alone does not establish contribution permission.
I want to stop sharing or delete the album
Save anything you need first. Deleting a shared album removes its shared content for everyone; it is different from deleting a normal organizational album. An owner can use More > Delete Shared Album and confirm. A participant can leave instead. Copies already saved into someone’s own library remain there.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can someone with an Android phone join?
A new or upgraded version-27 album supports joining and contributing through the web, even without an Apple Account. Access still follows the owner’s chosen permissions. An older album’s Public Website option provides web viewing; do not assume it has the newer collaboration tools.
Does updating my iPhone upgrade every album?
No. Existing older albums retain their earlier behavior until upgraded. Check the particular album before promising full-resolution sharing or applying storage limits. Feature availability can also differ by region.
Start with a few pictures and one invitee. Once you have checked access and contributions, add the rest of the collection and review the participant list.
Matthew Burleigh has been writing tech tutorials since 2008. His writing has appeared on dozens of different websites and been read hundreds of millions of times.
After receiving his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Computer Science he spent several years working in IT management for small businesses. However, he now works full time writing content online and creating websites.
His main writing topics include iPhones, Microsoft Office, Google Apps, Android, and Photoshop, but he has also written about many other tech topics as well.