LocalPhotos Companion
Your entire Mac photo library, right in your pocket. Browse, search, and view your photos and videos on the go — synced directly and securely from your Mac over your own network, with no cloud in between.
1. Your Whole Mac Library, On the Go
The Companion is a fast, private browser and curator for the library your Mac organizes. The same photos, faces, places, and search you set up on your Mac are ready on your iPhone and iPad — wherever you are, even offline.
🖼 Browse & View
Scroll years of memories in a familiar grid grouped by month. Open any photo full-screen, and play Live Photos and videos — just like on your Mac.
👥 People & Places
Browse by the people your Mac has grouped and jump to places on an interactive map. The results your Mac already computed, ready to explore on the go.
🔎 Search Anything
Search by person, place, text, and date across your whole library. It works even offline, using the searchable index synced from your Mac.
Browse people, grouped on your Mac
Interactive travel & map view
2. Direct, Encrypted Mac Sync
Pair your iPhone or iPad with LocalPhotos on your Mac over your local Wi-Fi, a wired connection, or a private VPN. Browse terabytes of media stored on your Mac without filling up your phone's storage.
🔒 Encrypted PIN Pairing
Pair privately with a 6-digit PIN shown on your Mac (it refreshes periodically for security). No cloud servers, no account logins, and no third-party tracking.
📥 Originals, Offline
Download full-resolution originals by date range or album to keep them on your device — and the app keeps that selection up to date automatically on every sync.
⚡ Smart Offline Caching
Thumbnails and your library index are cached locally, so you can browse, search, and navigate your entire Mac library even when you're off your home network.
🌐 Tailscale & Remote Access
Away from home? Use Connect by Address with your Mac's Tailscale or VPN address to reach it securely from across town or overseas.
Pairing & sync settings on iPad
Download originals for offline
3. The Power Combo: Mac + iPhone & iPad
Together, LocalPhotos for macOS and the Companion make a private, cloud-free system for your digital memories.
Mac as the Home Base
Your Mac stores massive multi-terabyte libraries on internal SSDs or external drives, and runs all the AI indexing — faces, search, and duplicates — in the background.
Mobile Access Anywhere
Browse your full collection from the sofa on iPad, or search on your iPhone while traveling — over local Wi-Fi, a wired connection, or Tailscale.
Private by Design
Your photos move only between your own devices, over an encrypted connection you control — never a third-party cloud, and never an account.