Let guests download, with a password
Guest downloads are switched off out of the box. Turn them on and anybody with the album link can grab the entire album as a ZIP; add a password and they need it too.
A guest ZIP isn't the same as yours. It contains only what's visible in the album, and voice notes only if you leave both voice switches on.
Off until you say otherwise
A new album lets guests look but not take. That's deliberate: viewing a photo and holding a copy of the original file are distinct things, and the second one is the host's call deliberately instead of by omission.
Switching it on takes 1 toggle and applies to everybody holding the link, right away.
- Switch guest downloads on. It rests with the event, alongside the album settings. Off is standard.
- Set a password if you want one. It gates downloading only. Viewing the album is a separate password.
- Tell guests it exists. Nobody looks for a download they were not told about.
What a guest actually gets
Only what the album shows them: contributions that are approved, ready and unhidden. Anything you took out of the shared album is left out of the guest ZIP too, which is by design — otherwise the download would give back precisely what you had just removed.
Your own export ignores all of this. You always keep everything.
| Contains | Your export | Guest ZIP |
|---|---|---|
| Approved contributions | Yes | Yes |
| Items you hid | Yes | No |
| Items awaiting review | No | No |
| Voice notes | Yes | Only if both voice switches are on |
The guest ZIP is a subset of yours, never vice versa.
Voice notes are a separate decision
There are 2 switches for voice: whether they show up in the album at all, and whether guests can download them. Either switch off keeps them out of the guest ZIP. A recorded message feels more personal than a photograph, and it's reasonable to show it without handing out copies.
Both are on out of the box, so if you want them out you must say so.
What the password does
It rests in front of downloading, and only that. Guests can still open and browse the album; the password is what they need to take the files. It's separate from any password you may have put before viewing.
That combination is the useful middle ground: an open album for everybody, and the originals only for the folks you gave the word to.
It needs a paid plan
Original-quality downloads ship with the paid tiers, and the guest download counts as one. On the free tier the switch offers nothing: the server refuses instead of handing over reduced copies.
So that's a decision to make alongside the plan, not after the party.
Say that it exists
A download no one knows about isn't used. Put it in the message you send the following morning: the album is open, and you can take the photos. That 1 line is what turns the switch into something folks really use.
If you set a password, send it in the same message instead of separately. A second message is 1 too many.
Common questions
Are guest downloads on by default?
No. They're off up until you switch them on for the event.
Do guests get the items I hid?
No. The guest ZIP contains only what the album shows.
Are voice notes included?
Only when both the album-visibility and the guest-download switch for voice stay on.
Is the download password the same as the album password?
No. One controls viewing, the other controls downloading, and you're free to use either or both.
Does this work on the free tier?
No. Original-quality downloads are part of the paid plans.
Download everything
Your own export, and how it differs.
Publish or hide the album
The other password, the one for looking.
Hide or delete uploads
Why hidden items stay out of the guest ZIP.
A guest album for a wedding
Let everyone take the day home with them.
A guest cannot download
Forward us the album name and your plan. Switch password and plan cover it jointly.