How To Hide Apps On iPhone: In 3 Easy Methods [Video]

Learning how to hide apps on iPhone is a vital skill for every iPhone user as it can be used to foster privacy and execute some type of self-discipline.

Hiding apps on iPhones is important if you have someone who regularly snoops through your device, and you would like to put an end to that. When you hide an app, it becomes harder for others to access the hidden App readily.

Then, there is self-discipline; if you have become addicted to a particular game or can’t go an hour without checking your social media, learning how to hide apps on iPhone can also help you deal with these issues.

Of course, it would be much easier for you to find your hidden apps than others, but hiding them puts in extra work as you cannot simply access them on your home screen.

The difficulty of finding the App will depend on the method you used in hiding the App. Still, when apps are hidden, it generally adds extra work to using such apps, and because most people hate extra work, this can help put those addictions in check to some extent.

How To Hide Apps On iPhone

How To Hide Apps On iPhone
How To Hide Apps On iPhone

There are different ways to hide apps on iPhone, but in this section, we will focus on the most important 3:

Hiding Apps On Your iPhone

Step 1: Press and hold down the App

The apps installed on your phone are often scattered across your home screen and arranged in the order in which they were installed, with the last App to be installed being the last App you will find as you scroll right.

The first thing you need to do is press and hold the App you intend to hide, bringing out a short menu.

Step 2: Choose the right option

On the menu that appears after step 1 above, you will be given the following options, “Remove App,” “Share App,” and “Edit Home Screen.”

The goal is to hide the App so that you will select “Remove App.:

Step 3: Select the middle option

The next menu will contain a prompt message asking whether you want to permanently delete the App or remove it from the Home Screen.

You want to hide the App, for now, so you will select “Remove from Home Screen.” This will hide the App completely from other apps and make it more difficult to find it. The only way to find it is to know how to find hidden apps and what you are looking for.

How to Find Hidden Apps in App Library

However, we will teach you how to find an app you have hidden using the method above to ensure you leave here well-grounded in these matters.

Step 1: Scroll right on your screen.

Use a finger to keep scrolling right until you arrive at the end of all the App. The more apps you have on the phone, the longer you need to scroll.

Step 2: Search on the “App Library” icon.

You will find all your apps arranged in different folders once you arrive at the end of all the apps; ignore those.

At the top of the screen, you will find a search bar with “App Library” written inside. Type in the name of the App you have just hidden to find it. The App will immediately appear under the search results.

Step 3: Press and hold the App

Once the App is found, you will need to press and hold it down to see the option. In the menu, you will be asked to “Add to Home Screen,” “Share App,” or “Delete App.”

Click on the first option, and your App will be immediately added to your home screen and reunited with the other unhidden apps.

Hiding Pages of App on Your iPhone

Step 1: Press and hold down on an empty portion of your screen

Go to any page of apps you intend to hide or clean and hold down any space between the apps; this will leave the apps shaking with a little minus (-) sign above each App.

Clicking on that sign will bring out the options as in the first method above.

Step 2: Click on the (-) sign to hide apps.

You will need to do it one after the other and click on the minus sign for each App you intend to hide. Again, the method is similar to the first method described above. The difference here is you are trying to hide multiple apps.

Restoring the apps can also be done using the method we described under the first method.

Hiding App in a Folder on Your iPhone

Step 1: Tap and hold an app

This method allows you to easily hide apps inside a folder that can be accessed whenever you need to.

The first step is to press and hold down the App you want to hide, then click on “Edit Home Screen” to proceed.

Step 2: Drag the App to create a folder

Once you have clicked on “Edit Home Screen,” you will be able to drag the App across different areas.

But to make a folder, drag that App towards another app you want to be included in the new folder and let it go once it is on top of that App.

This will create a folder that can be automatically named, but you will need to change the name to something you can easily remember because you are trying to hide them.

Step 3: Drag other apps into that folder

Since you are trying to hide multiple apps within a folder, you can now drag other apps you want to hide into the newly created folder one after the other.

Once you are satisfied with the apps you have moved into the folder, you can move the folder.

Step 4: Move the folder

Next, hold down the folder and start dragging it across the screen to where you wish to stack it. Your best bet is to keep moving right to the end of the screen and then to leave the folder at the utmost right end of the screen.

While the folder will not be exactly hidden, it makes it harder to access them as you need to scroll to the last part of your screen every time you want to use any app in that folder.

The apps contained in the folder will also still be visible on the home page. However, they will be tinier than usual, making them less likely to be seen often or clicked on.

You can move the folder back into the home screen if you ever decide to stop hiding the apps contained inside.

How Do You Find Hidden Text Messages on iPhone?

How To Hide Apps On iPhone
How To Hide Apps On iPhone

Now that we have learned how to hide apps on iPhone let us discuss another issue that occurs almost too often; hidden messages.

While most people may want to hide for privacy and security reasons, there are times when an iPhone user accidentally sends a text message to hidden, making it harder to read them.

Text messages are not exactly hidden on iPhone in the real sense of the word “hidden,” but they can be hard to find or access directly.

In this section, we will teach you to find hidden text messages and how to unhide them so you can access them directly.

How to Find Hidden Text Messages on iPhone

Step 1: Open the Message App

We all know which the Message App is, but let us describe what it looks like for clarity. The Message App is a green icon with a white thought bubble in the middle found at the bottom of your Home screen.

Once you find it, click on it to open it.

Step 2: Locate “Unknown Senders”

Messages from known senders and saved contacts are often displayed normally, with the latest messages being on top.

But the messages from unknown senders are often held inside a list known as “Unknown Senders,” which is usually on top of the other messages.

Click on that list to switch to it and view all the messages contained in it.

How to Unhide Text Messages on iPhone

Step 1: Go to “Settings”

Scroll around on your phone screen until you find the “Settings” icon, then click to open it. Next, go to “Notifications” and press it to open and scroll down until you find “Messages,” and open it.

Step 2: Allow Notifications

Once you have opened the “Messages” option under “Notifications,” click on “Turn on Notifications.” This will allow messages to be previewed on your phone screen.

You can also select “Locked Screen,” “Notification Center,” and “Banners” to choose how hidden messages will be displayed.

Finally, go to “Options,” click on “Show Previews,” then select “Always” to unhide incoming messages.

Where Do Hidden Apps Go?

How To Hide Apps On iPhone
How To Hide Apps On iPhone

When learning how to hide apps on iPhone, it is common to wonder where they go. Are they completely lost, and how do you find them again?

Hidden apps are not permanently deleted and can be found in the App Library by scrolling to the right-most part of your screen. There you can search the name of the App you have hidden to reveal it.

You can then access the App from there or restore it to your Home Screen if you decide you no longer want to hide it.

The only time an app will not be found on your iPhone, regardless of the method you used in hiding it, is when you permanently delete the App from your phone.

How Do You Delete Hidden Apps On iPhone?

How To Hide Apps On iPhone
How To Hide Apps On iPhone

As we have seen, apps can be hidden in so many ways on your iPhone, and this, once hidden, can only be found by following certain steps.

However, you may sometimes want to permanently delete an app either because you no longer require it or you want to unclutter things and leave more space on your phone.

And if you can’t find the App to delete, this can become a bigger challenge. Luckily, we know several ways to find hidden apps and delete them but before we show you, let us briefly see some of the reasons why apps may be hidden on your phone.

First, you may have followed any of the steps of hiding apps we described above to hide those apps perfectly well from your Home Screen.

Secondly, you may have gone through “Settings” to set your downloaded apps to show only on the App Library and not the iPhone Home Screen.

Or you may have used some trick to hide the pages of your Home Screen. In a case like this, all the apps on the hidden page will be hard to find.

That said, below are some of the easiest ways to delete a hidden app.

Using Spotlight Search

Step 1: Hold and swipe down anywhere on any of the Home Screens

This will help to display the Spotlight Search, where you can type in the name of the App you are looking for

Step 2: Long-press the App

Once you find the App, long-press the app icon and select “Delete App” to delete the App.

Using the iPhone Settings

Step 1: Go to “Settings”

Find the “Settings” icon and click it to open, then find “General” and tap on it to open as well.

Step 2: Go to iPhone Storage.

Under “General,” find “iPhone Storage” and click on it, then wait for all the apps to load and display.

Step 3: Find the App you wish to delete

Once the apps have loaded properly, find the App you want to remove and click on it. You will find a red “Delete App” button when it opens up. Click on that to delete the App permanently.

Using App Store

Step 1: Open App Store

Find the App Store icon on your Home Screen and click on it to open. Once it opens, tap on your profile to find a list of all the downloaded apps.

Alternatively, you can press and hold down the App Store icon then click on “Updates.” This will also open up the App Store and display your account profile.

Step 2: Find the App

Whichever route you decide to take, scroll down to find all the apps and find the particular one you are into to delete.

On the right part of the App, you will find the “Update” or “Updated Recently” button. Don’t click on that; instead, swipe left from there to find a red “Delete” button.

Step 3: Tap the red button

Finally, tap on the red “Delete” button to permanently delete that App.

However, out of all these methods, deleting apps from the App Library seems to be the easiest, and the process is simple; scroll to the right until you reach the last page and type the App’s name on the search bar provided.

Once the App displays below, long-press on it and click on “Delete App.”

Conclusion

Using an iPhone should be a true delight, but only if you know the different hacks like how to hide apps on iPhone.

We have treated that and how to find and unhide hidden text messages. We finished showing you the many ways to find and delete a hidden app from your iPhone.