Find and Remove iPhone Apps You Don't Use to Save Storage - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Find and Remove iPhone Apps You Don't Use to Save Storage

by

There's an app for everything these days, and it's easy to reach a point where you have so many of them on your iPhone that a sizable proportion are simply forgotten about, and soon storage space starts to become an issue.

iPhone Free Up Storage Feature
Fortunately, there's an easy way that you can keep tabs on which apps you use the most and which ones have basically become redundant, and are just adding needless clutter to your Home Screen and eating up storage. Follow the steps below to learn how it's done.

How to Identify and Delete Apps You Don't Use

  1. Launch the Settings app on your iPhone.
  2. Tap General.
  3. Tap iPhone Storage.
    settings

  4. A list of all the apps (including stock apps) on your iOS device will load in order of size, with the largest apps listed first. Scroll down the list and look at the Last Used: date underneath the title of each app. (Alternatively, change the Size sort filter to Last Used.) If it's been several weeks or months since you opened an app, or it says Never Used, then consider uninstalling it – tap the app in the list.
    settings

  5. Two uninstall options are presented on this screen. Tap Offload App to unload the app but preserve any documents and data (these are reinstated if you later reinstall the app) or tap Delete App to remove the app and all related data from your device. If there are any files associated with the app, you can also tap Edit and delete them individually.

If you tend to download a lot of apps that often get left unused, consider enabling the iPhone Storage menu recommendation to automatically Offload Unused Apps when you're low on storage.

How to Reinstall Deleted Apps

If you uninstall an app but later decide that you want to use it (and it's still available in the App Store) simply follow the steps below to reinstate it.

  1. Swipe down on your ‌Home Screen‌ to invoke search.
  2. Type in the name of the app you're looking for.
  3. Tap the Redownload button (the cloud icon with the arrow pointing out of it) to download the app once again.
  4. search

Need to free up more storage? Check out our dedicated iPhone storage saving guide for more tips.

Popular Stories

Apple Event Logo

Apple Just Released a New Accessory

Monday May 4, 2026 8:13 am PDT by
Apple today released a new Pride Edition Sport Loop for the Apple Watch. The band features a rainbow design with 11 colors of woven nylon yarns. The new Pride Edition Sport Loop is available to order now on Apple.com and in the Apple Store app in 40mm, 42mm, and 46mm sizes, and it will be available at Apple Store locations starting later this week. In the U.S., the band costs $49. There...
iOS 27 on iPhone 17 1

iOS 27 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Saturday May 2, 2026 8:43 am PDT by
Apple is expected to unveil iOS 27 during its WWDC 2026 keynote on June 8, and there are already many rumored features and changes for iPhones. The first developer beta of iOS 27 will likely be available immediately following the keynote, and a public beta typically follows in July. Following beta testing, the software update should be released to all users with a compatible iPhone in...
Apple Announces 2026 Pride Band Watch Face and iPhone Wallpaper Article 2

iOS 26.5 Coming Soon With These New Features

Monday May 4, 2026 8:40 am PDT by
iOS 26.5 is expected to be released next week, following more than a month of beta testing. The update is relatively minor, but there are a couple of new features and changes across the operating system that we have recapped below. iOS 26.5 lays the groundwork for end-to-end encryption for RCS in the Messages app and ads in the Apple Maps app, and it will include a new Pride wallpaper and a...