Ever handed your phone to a friend to show them a photo, only to have a mini-panic attack when they start swiping toward your private apps? We've all been there. Maybe it's a dating app you’re not ready to explain, a banking app with sensitive info, or just the sheer clutter of those "utility" apps you use once a year but can’t delete.
For the longest time, "hiding" an app on an iPhone was basically a shell game. You’d shove things into folders buried on the fourth home screen and hope for the best. But Apple finally got the hint. With the rollout of recent iOS updates, specifically iOS 18 and the refined versions in 2025 and 2026, the question of how do i hide apps on my iphone has a much better answer than "put it in a folder named 'Boring Stuff'."
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The New Way: Locking and Hiding with Face ID
This is the big one. Apple introduced a native way to not just hide an app from view, but to actually lock it behind your biometrics. This is a game changer. If you want an app to essentially vanish from your home screen and require your face to even see it exists, this is your go-to method.
- Find the app you want to tuck away on your Home Screen.
- Long-press (haptic touch) the icon until the menu pops up.
- Tap Require Face ID (or Touch ID, depending on your model).
- Now, you’ll see two options. Tap Hide and Require Face ID.
- Confirm it by tapping Hide App.
The app is now gone. It’s not on your home screen. It won't show up in search. It won't send you embarrassing notifications at the worst possible time.
Where did it go?
To find it again, you have to swipe all the way to the right to your App Library. Scroll to the very bottom, and you'll see a folder labeled Hidden. It looks empty. It stays empty until you tap it and authenticate with your face or passcode. Only then do your secret apps reveal themselves.
The "Old School" Method: Removing from Home Screen
Sometimes you don't need a high-security vault. You just want your home screen to look clean. Maybe you have thirty different smart home apps that you only access via widgets or Siri. In this case, you don't need to lock them; you just need to un-pin them.
To do this, long-press the app and select Remove App. When the secondary menu appears, choose Remove from Home Screen.
The app stays on your phone. It’s still in the App Library (the normal part, not the hidden part). It will still show up if you swipe down and search for it. This is basically the "out of sight, out of mind" approach. It's great for decluttering, but if you're trying to hide something from a nosey partner or a curious kid, this won't stop them for a second.
Hiding Entire Pages for Focus
I personally use this when I'm on vacation. I have a whole page of work apps—Slack, Outlook, Zoom—that I don't want to see when I'm trying to relax.
- Long-press on a blank area of your home screen until the apps start jiggling.
- Tap the horizontal dots at the bottom of the screen (the page indicator).
- You’ll see a birds-eye view of all your home screen pages.
- Uncheck the circle under the page you want to hide.
- Tap Done.
The apps on that page are still there, but the entire page is effectively invisible. You can toggle it back on in seconds when you're back in "work mode."
The Sneaky Trace: Siri and Search
This is where most people get caught. You think you've hidden an app, but then you swipe down to search for "Weather" and Siri "helpfully" suggests the very app you were trying to keep under wraps.
If you haven't used the "Hide and Require Face ID" method mentioned above, you need to manually tell Siri to stop talking about certain apps.
Go to Settings, then Siri & Search (or "Apple Intelligence & Siri" on newer models). Scroll down to the specific app. Turn off Show in Search and Show on Home Screen. Honestly, it's a bit tedious if you have a lot of apps, but it's the only way to ensure the search bar doesn't betray you.
Don't Forget the App Store History
This is the "pro" level of hiding. Even if an app is hidden on your phone, someone can go into the App Store, tap your profile, and see every app you’ve ever downloaded.
To fix this:
- Open the App Store.
- Tap your Profile Picture in the top right.
- Tap Apps (or Purchased).
- Find the app you want to erase from your history.
- Swipe left on it and tap Hide.
Now, if someone searches for that app in the App Store, it will show the "Get" button or the "Cloud" icon rather than suggesting it's already in your library. It’s a small detail, but if you’re serious about privacy, it’s a necessary step.
Limits You Should Know About
Apple isn't perfect. There are some "un-hideable" apps. You can't use the Face ID hide method on core system apps like Settings, Camera, or Find My. Apple figures if you hide the Settings app and forget where it is, you're basically locked out of your own life.
Also, if you use Family Sharing, be aware. The "Organizers" of a family group can often see download histories even if you've hidden the app on your local device. If you're 16 and trying to hide a social media app from your parents, this native iOS hiding might not be enough if they’re tech-savvy with the Screen Time settings.
What about the "Hidden" folder itself?
One common complaint is that the folder at the bottom of the App Library is literally labeled Hidden. It’s like a big neon sign saying "I have secrets!" While you can't rename that folder or make the folder itself disappear, the fact that it requires biometrics is the real security. Even if they know it's there, they can't see what's inside.
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Actionable Steps for Total Privacy
If you want to be thorough about how do i hide apps on my iphone, follow this sequence:
- Lock and Hide: Use the Face ID method for the most sensitive apps. This removes them from the Home Screen and Search in one go.
- Clean the App Store: Hide the purchase history for those same apps so no digital paper trail exists.
- Audit Siri: Check your Siri Suggestions to make sure no "Recently Used" data is popping up in your widgets or search bar.
- Review Screen Time: If you share a device, check your Screen Time settings to ensure app usage isn't being logged in a way that gives the game away.
Start with your most sensitive app first—usually banking or private messaging—and test the "Hidden" folder in your App Library to get a feel for how the authentication flow works before you hide twenty different things and forget where they went.