# Shared Google Photos and iCloud albums for weddings: set-up and limits

> To make a shared Google Photos album for your wedding, create an album, turn on link sharing and Collaborate, then share the link or the album's QR code. Anyone with the link can view it, guests add photos from a Google Account, and an album holds up to 20,000 photos and videos. New iCloud shared albums work in a browser but hold up to 100 people.

Updated 7 October 2026 · 6 min read · By the DropSnaps team · https://dropsnaps.com/guides/shared-google-photos-album-wedding

A shared album in Google Photos or iCloud is a free way to collect your wedding guests' photos: you make an album, share its link (or its QR code) and guests add their photos to it. It works well for a small wedding where everyone already uses the same service. For a bigger or mixed crowd, the limits on accounts, numbers and storage start to matter. This guide shows how to set each one up, and what to check before you rely on it.

## How to make a shared Google Photos album for your wedding

1. **Create the album.** In the Google Photos app, sign in to your Google Account, create a new album and give it your names and the date. Add a couple of your own photos so it isn't empty.
2. **Turn on link sharing.** Share the album and create a link. Anyone who has the link can view the album.
3. **Let guests add photos.** In the album's options, make sure **Collaborate** is on. Turn it off and people can only look.
4. **Get the QR code.** Google can show a QR code unique to your album, so you can print it on table cards and signs.
5. **Tell guests.** Put the link on your wedding website and the QR code on the tables, and ask your MC to mention it.
6. **Close it afterwards.** When you've collected everything, turn off Collaborate so the album stops changing, and download what you want to keep.

> **Tip:** If the link gets shared further than you'd like, turn link sharing off and back on. Google makes a new link and the old one stops working.

## How to make an iCloud shared album

Apple changed Shared Albums with iOS 27 in September 2026. Albums you create now work differently from older ones.

1. **Create it.** In the Photos app, go to Collections, then Shared Albums, and tap Add. Give it a name and choose a few photos.
2. **Choose who can join.** Under Sharing Options, either invite and approve people, or share the album with a link.
3. **Decide whether it's temporary.** "Make Album Temporary" deletes the album after 30 days (anything not saved to a photo library goes with it), so for a wedding you'll usually leave it off.
4. **Share the link.** Friends and family can join and add photos on the web, even without an Apple Account or an Apple device.

## The limits to know about

| | Google Photos shared album | iCloud shared album (iOS 27 or later) | iCloud shared album (older) | DropSnaps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| To add photos, guests need | A Google Account | A web browser; no Apple device needed | An Apple Account | Just a phone camera |
| Photos and videos | Up to 20,000 per album | No set limit beyond your iCloud storage | Up to 5,000 per album | Unlimited on paid plans, within the plan's storage |
| People | Anyone with the link | Up to 100, including you | Up to 100 | No limit on guests |
| Quality kept | Not stated in Google's help | Originals at full resolution | Photos 2,048 pixels on the long edge; videos 720p, up to 15 minutes | Originals in full quality |
| Whose storage | Not stated in Google's help | Yours: what guests add counts towards your iCloud storage | Doesn't count towards iCloud storage | Included in your plan |

Facts about Google Photos and iCloud are from their help pages, checked on 7 October 2026. Some iCloud features aren't available in every country.

### What those limits mean for a wedding

- **Accounts.** Anyone with the link can look at a Google Photos album, but adding photos is done from a Google Account: Google shows each contributor's account name or picture next to what they add. Guests without one, or who'd rather not use it, tend not to join in.
- **Numbers.** A new iCloud shared album holds up to 100 people, including you. At a wedding of 120 guests, some won't get in.
- **Storage.** With a new iCloud album, every photo and video guests add uses your iCloud storage, and guests' videos can fill a storage plan quickly.
- **Getting it all out.** On a computer you can download photos from photos.google.com or icloud.com, and Google Takeout can export your Google Photos as zip files. Allow time for it.
- **Deleting.** Deleting an iCloud shared album permanently deletes all of its photos, so save everything first.

## When a shared album is the right choice

- A small wedding, where most guests already use Google Photos, or most have iPhones.
- You're happy to set it up, look after it and download everything yourself.
- You don't need a slideshow, a guestbook or a way to check photos before everyone sees them.

## When a QR code photo-sharing page is easier

A photo-sharing page like DropSnaps is built for exactly this job. Guests scan a QR code and upload from any phone in full quality, with no app and no account. You get a live wall and a TV slideshow for the reception, a guestbook, moment tags, approve-before-showing if you want it, and one zip download of every original afterwards.

It costs nothing to start: the Free plan covers up to 50 photos for a small gathering, and Standard and Premium add unlimited photos and videos for one payment per event. See [pricing](https://dropsnaps.com/pricing), the [complete guide to wedding photo sharing](https://dropsnaps.com/guides/wedding-photo-sharing) or our roundup of the [best wedding photo sharing apps](https://dropsnaps.com/guides/best-wedding-photo-sharing-apps).

## Tips if you go with a shared album

- **Make a new album just for the wedding**, rather than sharing from your main library.
- **Put a date on it.** Tell guests when you'll close it (a week after the wedding works), then turn off Collaborate.
- **Send a reminder the morning after**, when everyone is going through their camera roll.
- **Download everything** once it's closed, and keep a copy somewhere other than the album.

Try DropSnaps free at https://dropsnaps.com/, or open the live demo (a sample wedding) at https://dropsnaps.com/e/demo.

## Questions and answers

### How does a shared Google Photos album work?

You create an album, share it by link or with people's Google Accounts, and turn on Collaborate so others can add photos and videos. Anyone with the link can view it, and Google shows each contributor's account name or picture next to what they add.

### Can guests add photos without a Google Account?

They can view the album with the link, but adding photos is done from a Google Account. A QR code photo-sharing page such as DropSnaps needs no account at all.

### Can Android users join an iCloud shared album?

Yes, for albums created on iOS 27 or later (or upgraded to the new version): friends and family can join and add photos on the web, even without an Apple Account or an Apple device. Older shared albums need an Apple Account.

### Does an iCloud shared album use my storage?

Albums created on iOS 27 or later keep everything at full resolution and count it all towards the owner's iCloud storage, including what guests add. Temporary albums don't count, but they're deleted after 30 days.