The fastest way to remove an app depends on your phone type
On an iPhone, press and hold the app icon on your home screen or in the App Library until a menu appears, then tap Remove App and confirm. On Android, press and hold the app icon, tap Uninstall, and confirm the removal. Both methods take about five seconds and free up the storage space the app was using.
If you cannot find the app on your home screen, swipe to find it first. On iPhone, swipe left through your home screen pages or open the App Library by swiping to the rightmost screen. On Android, swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open your app drawer, then find the app there.
Some apps that came with your phone cannot be fully deleted — instead, you will see an Uninstall button that removes only the updates you installed, returning the app to its original state. This is normal and does not harm your phone.
Key Takeaways
- Press and hold any app icon to see the remove or uninstall option on both iPhone and Android phones.
- Deleting an app removes it from your phone and frees up storage space, but does not delete your account with that service.
- Built-in apps like Mail or Maps cannot be fully removed on most phones, but you can hide them or remove their updates.
- If you delete an app by mistake, you can reinstall it from the App Store (iPhone) or Google Play (Android) at no cost.
Where to find apps you want to delete
Apps live in different places depending on how you organize your phone. On iPhone, check your home screen first, then the App Library (swipe all the way right). On Android, swipe up from the bottom to open the app drawer, which shows every installed app in alphabetical order.
If you still cannot find an app, use the search function. On iPhone, swipe down from the top of the home screen and type the app name. On Android, swipe down from the top and search in the search bar. Once you find it, press and hold the icon to delete it.
What happens when you delete an app
Deleting an app removes the program from your phone and frees up storage space. It does not delete your account with that service — if you reinstall the app later, you can log back in with the same username and password.
Your photos, messages, and other data stored in that app will be gone unless you backed them up separately. For example, deleting Instagram removes the app but not your account; deleting the Notes app removes notes you created in that app unless you exported them first. If you are unsure whether data will be lost, check the app's settings for an export or backup option before you delete it.
Deleting apps that came with your phone
Most phones come with built-in apps like Mail, Maps, Stocks, or Reminders. On iPhone, you can delete most of these by pressing and holding the icon and tapping Remove App, then Remove from Home Screen or Delete App. Some system apps (like Settings or Phone) cannot be deleted at all, but you can hide them from your home screen.
On Android, built-in apps usually cannot be deleted, but you can disable them. Press and hold the app icon, tap App info, then Disable. This removes the app from your app drawer and stops it from running in the background, though it still takes up a small amount of storage.
Freeing up storage space by removing apps
Apps take up storage space, and deleting ones you no longer use is one of the fastest ways to free up room on your phone. To see which apps use the most space, go to Settings on either phone type, then look for Storage or General and iPhone Storage. The list shows each app and how much space it uses.
Apps that store a lot of photos, videos, or downloaded content — like social media apps, streaming services, or games — usually take up the most space. Deleting these can recover gigabytes of storage. If you want to keep using the app but save space, you can also clear its cache or data from Settings instead of deleting it entirely, though this varies by app.
Reinstalling an app you deleted by mistake
If you delete an app and change your mind, you can reinstall it at no cost. On iPhone, open the App Store, tap the search icon, find the app, and tap the cloud icon with a down arrow to reinstall it. On Android, open Google Play, search for the app, and tap Install.
When you reinstall, you will need to log back in with your account credentials. Any data you had in the app before deletion is usually still there on the company's servers — for example, your email messages, photos, or saved settings will reappear once you log in.
Removing apps you no longer use regularly
If you have apps you installed but rarely open, deleting them keeps your phone cleaner and faster. Look through your home screen and app drawer for apps you have not used in weeks or months. Games, trial versions of apps, or services you switched away from are good candidates for removal.
Some phones offer an automatic feature that removes unused apps. On iPhone, go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage and enable Offload Unused Apps. This removes the app but keeps your data, so you can reinstall it later without losing anything. Android does not have a built-in equivalent, but you can manually delete apps whenever you want.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does deleting an app delete my account?
No. Deleting the app removes only the program from your phone. Your account with that service remains active on their servers. When you reinstall the app, you can log back in with the same username and password and access everything you had before.
Can I delete apps that came with my phone?
Most built-in apps on iPhone can be deleted, though a few system apps like Settings and Phone cannot. On Android, built-in apps usually cannot be deleted, but you can disable them to hide them from your app drawer and stop them from running. Either way, you can hide apps you do not want to see.
What if I delete an app and lose my data?
If the app stored data only on your phone (like notes or photos you took in that app), that data is gone. Before deleting an app with important data, check its settings for an export or backup option. Many apps let you save your data as a file you can read or email to yourself.
Will deleting apps make my phone faster?
Deleting unused apps frees up storage space and can prevent your phone from slowing down when storage is nearly full. However, straightforward having an app installed does not make your phone slow — it is only a problem if your storage is almost out of space or if the app runs constantly in the background.
Can I delete multiple apps at once?
On iPhone, you can select multiple apps by pressing and holding one, then tapping others while holding the first. Tap Remove App to delete them all at once. On Android, you must delete apps one at a time through the app drawer or Settings.