← All guides

Frontback alternatives: what to use now that Frontback is gone

Last updated:

Start with the thing nobody says out loud: the original Frontback is not on the App Store anymore. Search for it today and you get apps from other developers using the name — Camera FrontBack SE is the most established of them (4.7 stars, ~120 ratings). If you want the format Frontback invented — you and what you're looking at, in one image — the most-used app doing it now is MixCam, and Selfie is the one that also gives the shot a film look.

What Frontback actually was

Frontback (2013) put the front and back camera in one frame and made the format popular before shutting down. Everything below inherits the idea; none of them are the same app, and any listing claiming to be Frontback is a different developer's product.

What to use instead

MixCam — the established replacement. The biggest app in the front-and-back category, with several layouts including split-screen. Downside: filters are basic — the output looks like two camera feeds in a frame.

Camera FrontBack SE — the closest in spirit. Simple, does the one thing. Downside: a small user base, so slower fixes and fewer updates than the larger apps.

Dualgram — the minimalist. Clean dual photos, few decisions to make. Downside: limited styling.

BeReal — the format as a social network. Uses the same two-camera idea but built around a daily prompt and a friend feed. Downside: it captures back-then-front rather than simultaneously, and you cannot really use it as a plain camera.

Selfie — the format with a look. Genuine simultaneous capture via Apple's multi-cam engine, plus 50+ vintage presets applied live to both cameras — so the result reads as a photograph rather than a screenshot of two feeds. Repositionable picture-in-picture, photos and video with sound. Weaker than MixCam on layout variety. Free to download, iOS 17+.

Choosing without overthinking it

  • You want the largest, safest option: MixCam.
  • You want the social ritual Frontback had: BeReal is the closest, with the trade-offs above.
  • You want the shot to look like a photo, not a demo: Selfie.
  • You want the simplest possible app: Camera FrontBack SE or Dualgram.

Frequently asked questions

Is Frontback still available? The original app is not on the App Store. Apps using the Frontback name today are from other developers.

Which alternative captures both cameras at the same instant? MixCam, Dualgram, Camera FrontBack SE and Selfie use simultaneous capture. BeReal captures the two sides in quick succession instead.

Check these for yourself

Features and pricing change. These are the primary sources for every app named above, so you can verify what is written here rather than take our word for it:

Selfie: front and back camera at once, with vintage filters.

Selfie is developed by Engcraft, LLC, the team behind several AI and camera apps on the App Store. Contact: useselfieapp@gmail.com