Friends Everywhere FAQ
Questions people ask about Friends Everywhere: how it works, where your posts are kept, who can see them, and how much of your iCloud storage it uses.
How it works
What does Friends Everywhere do?
Two things. It gives you a small private feed where you see what your friends have shared, and nothing else. And each day, Keep Up suggests one person from your contacts as a nudge to call or send them a message.
What do I need to use it?
An iPhone or iPad running iOS 26 or iPadOS 26, signed in to iCloud. You don't make an account. The app uses the iCloud account you already have.
What's in a post?
Every post has one emoji. You can add some words, up to 10 photos, or a link, but the emoji alone is enough.
Can people like or comment on my posts?
No. There are no likes and no comments. When something in a friend's post makes you think of them, the reply button opens Messages, the phone or FaceTime so you can continue the conversation directly.
Does the feed go on forever?
No. Posts are grouped by day. At the end of each day you'll see a card like "That was Tuesday · 3 friends shared", and once you've caught up the feed tells you so.
Where your posts are stored
Where are my posts kept?
In your own iCloud account, in the app's private storage there. There's no Friends Everywhere server and no Friends Everywhere database. Apps From Outer Space can't see your posts, your friends or your contacts.
Are my posts encrypted?
Somewhat. The emoji, words, links, and date of each post are more protected. The photos are also protected, but not end-to-end at this time. We're working to improve this.
Where are my friends' posts kept?
In their iCloud accounts, not yours. Your iPhone or iPad keeps a copy so the feed opens quickly and works offline.
What stays only on my device?
Your contacts, and everything Keep Up uses to pick someone: who's included, when you last reached out, and who you've snoozed. None of it is uploaded anywhere.
What syncs between my own devices?
Your posts, which days you've finished reading, and anyone you've muted. Mutes and read days are kept in a separate part of your iCloud that is never shared with anyone.
How do friends know it's me?
When you set up, you choose which of your phone numbers or email addresses to use. The app turns each one into a one-way code (a SHA-256 hash) and stores the codes in your feed with your display name. A friend's iPhone makes the same codes from their own contacts and compares them, so you show up under the name they've saved for you. Your actual number or address isn't stored in your feed. The codes make it hard to read your number casually, but someone with a list of numbers to try could still match them, so think of them as discreet rather than secret.
Who sees your posts
Who can see what I post?
Only the people you invite. There's no search, no public profile and no way for a stranger to find your feed.
How do invites work?
You invite people one at a time, usually by Messages. Each invite works only for the person you sent it to, and gives them read-only access. If they forward it, it won't work for anyone else.
Does everyone I invite see every post?
Yes. In this version you have one feed, and everyone you've invited sees everything you post.
What do my friends see?
Your emoji, any words, photos and link you added, when you posted it, and your name: the one they've saved for you in Contacts, or the display name you chose if they don't have you saved. Photos appear at the size you sent them.
Can they save my photos?
Yes. Someone you've invited can save a photo from your post to their own library, or take a screenshot. Only share photos you're comfortable with them keeping.
Will anyone know I've read their post?
Nobody is told when you read something, including the person who posted it.
If I invite someone, do I see their posts?
Only if they share their feed back. When someone accepts your invite they can choose to follow you and share theirs too, or just follow you. If you're in the same room, Settings ▸ Set Up Together walks you both through following each other.
Your iCloud storage
Does Friends Everywhere use my iCloud storage?
Yes, your posts (including photos) are added to your iCloud, so they count toward your iCloud storage the same way photos and backups do. Your friends' posts are stored in their iCloud, so they don't count toward the storage your posts use.
How does it keep that small?
Photos make up nearly all of it, so the app works on those:
- The standard photo setting, Good for sharing, resizes each photo before it uploads, to at most 2048 pixels on its long side. That's more than the feed or a full-screen view needs, and usually a fraction of the camera original. If a photo is already smaller than the resized version would be, it's sent as it is, so this setting never makes a photo bigger.
- In Settings ▸ Posting you can pick Good for sharing, Full resolution, or Ask each time. Ask each time lets you decide on each post. Smaller photos upload faster and use less of your iCloud.
- After the day a post was shared, the copy on your iPhone or iPad is kept at a smaller size. iCloud keeps the photo at the size it was posted, and when you open an older photo, the app fetches that copy into temporary space your iPhone can clear when it needs room.
- An emoji, a few words and a link take up very little space.
How do I see how much I'm using?
Settings ▸ Storage shows how many posts and photos you've shared, and how much space they take up on this device. Because older photos are stored smaller on your device than in iCloud, your iCloud use for older posts is higher than that number. Friends' posts aren't counted there.
Does the app delete old posts to save space?
No. Your posts stay until you delete them, so your feed is also a record of what you've shared. The app never deletes anything by itself, because deleting a post also takes it out of your friends' feeds.
How do I get space back?
Settings ▸ Storage ▸ Tidy Up Older Posts lists your posts oldest first, with each one's photo count and size. Nothing is selected to start. Pick the ones you want to delete, check the total, and confirm.
Your controls
How do I delete a post?
Press and hold one of your posts in the feed and choose Delete. It's removed from your device, from your iCloud, and from the feed of everyone you've shared it with. This can't be undone. If a friend already saved a photo, their saved copy stays in their library.
How do I remove someone from my feed?
Settings ▸ Manage Sharing opens Apple's sharing screen, which lists everyone who has access to your feed. Remove anyone there and they lose access straight away. They can't get back in unless you invite them again.
How do I stop seeing someone's posts?
Settings ▸ Following ▸ ⋯ next to their name. Mute hides them for a day, a week or a month, and muted friends never send you notifications. Unfollow stops following their feed and deletes their posts from your device.
Can I choose who Keep Up suggests?
Yes. Settings ▸ Manage Contacts lets you include or leave out people, one at a time or several at once. You can also give the app access to only some of your contacts when it asks.
What notifications does it send?
At most two kinds, and each has its own switch in Settings ▸ Notifications: a daily reminder of who to keep up with, and an alert when a friend shares, limited to one per friend per day.
How do I delete everything?
There's no account to close, because there isn't one. To remove your posts, delete them in the app (Tidy Up lets you choose several at once), or delete the app's data from your iCloud storage settings. That also removes your feed for everyone you've invited. Deleting the app removes everything stored on that iPhone or iPad.
Can I export my posts?
There isn't a way to export yet. It's planned for a later version.
What does Apps From Outer Space know about me?
Nothing about you, your posts or your friends. The app has no analytics, no tracking, no ads and no third-party code. The only thing we see is what Apple shows every developer: overall download numbers and crash reports, which aren't tied to you or anything you've shared. The full policy is on the privacy page.
What does it cost?
Nothing, and there are no ads. Version 27.0 is free in full. Some new features in later versions might be paid.
