Joining the Samsung family requires using Samsung’s One UI skin and default apps. When you buy atop Samsung phone, you’re greeted with a custom launcher and several pre-installed Samsung apps. Among that list is Samsung Gallery. Samsung Gallery is one of Samsung’s most prized photo managing apps, a respectable substitute for Google Photos.
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With Samsung Gallery, you have all the tools you needto manage your photos. One of its standout features is the ability to create shared albums, just like in Google Photos. Others can view and edit these shared albums, making it a great way to share your photo collection. This guide will walk you through creating a shared album using Samsung’s Gallery app.
How to create a shared album in Samsung Gallery
The Gallery app is pre-installed on Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets. If the app isn’t installed, visit the Samsung Store todownload the Gallery app. We use a Samsung Galaxy S23 running One UI 6.1 in this example.
A shared album can contain a collection of pictures and videos. Any shared album uses up your free Samsung account cloud storage. Uploading videos will quickly exceed the 5GB limit if you use this feature to share your videos.
Creating a shared family album with other Samsung family members
Instead of navigating to the Samsung Gallery app, create a shared family album by visiting your Samsung account via settings. To get started, select theFamilyoption and then tapFamily shared album. Images and videos saved in this album appear on every device connected to the family account.
Transferring a created shared album
The downside of using Samsung Gallery is that your newly shared album is now stuck in Samsung’s ecosystem. If you plan to transfer your shared albums onto a Windows PC or on an iPhone, import these albums from your phone. For a Windows PC, plug in your Galaxy device and manually transfer your files from your internal storage. To move a Samsung shared album to Apple, useGoogle Photosas the intermediary app to send these files over.
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How to share an existing album in Samsung Gallery
You may have some pre-made albums sitting in the Samsung Gallery app. But you haven’t shared these albums with your family or friends. You can select and share an entire album. Read below to learn how.
You can only share these albums with other Galaxy users and devices.
To improve your personal privacy, tap thethree-dot(kebab) menu inQuick Shareand selectTurn on Private Sharing. You cannot share more than 20 files at once. ThePrivate Sharingoption encrypts access to the person who receives your files, prevents users from taking screenshots and sharing files, and restricts how long the album is available to share.
Sharing a completed album can only be viewed by your invited contacts. If you plan to create a shared album for your family (or friends) while inviting them as contributors, the app requires creating a shared album.
How to view your created shared albums list in Samsung Gallery
You may want to track which albums you shared and with whom. Alternatively, you can add more people to view these shared albums. Read the steps below to learn how to find and manage your shared album list.
To invite more members to a shared album, select an album in your shared album list and tap thetwo-people iconat the top of the screen.
The Samsung Galaxy S23 and S24 series allow you tocreate a family groupas addable members to your shared albums list. This requires One UI 5.1 or later in the US and One UI 6.1 or later in Europe.
How to unshare a shared album in Samsung Gallery
Losing contact with relatives or disconnecting with old friends can happen. And maintaining your privacy and intimate details about your life is more important. You can undo sharing an album by removing your contacts from the shared album or deleting the shared album. Read the steps below to learn how.
You can toggle off the invitation link by visiting your album settings in the three-dot (kebab) menu.
Setting up your Samsung Galaxy for the best experience
Purchasing a Samsung Galaxy phone or tablet means acquiring the best from Samsung and Google. If youremove some of Samsung’s bloatware, replace these apps with more Google-favored ones; for example, if you don’t enjoy using Samsung Gallery, you can always use Google Photos. Otherwise, continuetweaking the Samsung One UI experience. Eventually, you will find settings and a layout that works best for you.
