What "Hidden" means and why you might use it
Hidden is a feature that removes an app from your home screen, app drawer, or main menu without deleting it. The app stays installed and working — you just won't see it in the normal places you look. On phones, this is useful if you have apps you use rarely but want to keep. On computers, hiding apps declutters your start menu or dock.
Hidden apps are not the same as disabled apps. A hidden app can still run, send notifications, and update. You can unhide it anytime and use it exactly as before. The steps to hide an app differ depending on whether you use an iPhone, Android phone, Windows computer, or Mac.
Key Takeaways
- On iPhones, you hide apps by removing them from your home screen or by using the App Library to organize them out of sight.
- On Android phones, the method depends on your phone brand — Samsung, Google Pixel, and others each have different steps.
- On Windows computers, you can hide apps by right-clicking the Start menu and removing them from view.
- On Macs, you hide apps by moving them to a folder or using Launchpad settings to keep them out of sight.
- Hidden apps remain installed and functional — hiding is not the same as uninstalling or disabling.
How to hide apps on an iPhone
On iPhones, the simplest way to hide an app is to remove it from your home screen. Press and hold the app icon, then tap Remove App. Choose Remove from Home Screen. The app disappears from your home screen but stays in the App Library, which you can access by swiping to the last home screen page or swiping up from the bottom.
If you want the app completely out of sight, you can also use the App Library to organize apps into folders that you rarely open. Swipe to the App Library, find the app category, and leave it there. You can still search for the app using Spotlight — swipe down from the top of the screen and type the app name to find and open it.
To unhide an app on your home screen, go to the App Library, find the app, press and hold it, and tap Add to Home Screen. The app reappears where you choose to place it.
How to hide apps on an Android phone
Android phones vary by manufacturer, so the steps depend on your phone brand. On a Google Pixel, press and hold the app icon on your home screen, then tap Remove. The app moves to your app drawer but no longer shows on the home screen. To hide it from the app drawer entirely, you need to use a third-party launcher app, which is beyond the basic Android settings.
On a Samsung phone, press and hold the app icon and tap Remove from Home. The app stays in your app drawer. To hide it from the app drawer, open the app drawer, tap the menu icon (three dots), select Hide apps, and check the boxes next to the apps you want hidden. They disappear from the app drawer but remain installed.
On other Android brands like OnePlus, Motorola, or others, the process is similar to Samsung — look for a menu option in the app drawer itself. If you cannot find a hide option, your phone may not have a built-in feature, and you would need to use a third-party launcher instead.
To unhide apps on Samsung, go back to the app drawer menu, tap Hide apps again, and uncheck the apps you want to show. On other phones, the unhide option is usually in the same menu where you hid them.
How to hide apps on Windows
On Windows 10 and Windows 11, you can hide apps from your Start menu. Right-click the app in the Start menu and select Unpin from Start. The app disappears from your Start menu but remains installed on your computer. You can still find it by searching — press the Windows key and type the app name.
If you want to hide an app from your taskbar (the bar at the bottom of your screen), right-click the app icon on the taskbar and select Unpin from taskbar. Again, the app stays installed; you just remove the shortcut from view.
To unhide an app on Windows, search for it using the Windows search box, right-click it, and select Pin to Start or Pin to taskbar. The app reappears in the location you choose.
How to hide apps on a Mac
Macs do not have a built-in "hide app" feature like phones do, but you can achieve the same result by moving apps to a folder or using Launchpad. Open Finder, go to your Applications folder, and create a new folder (press Command+Shift+N). Name it something like "Hidden Apps" and drag the apps you want out of sight into that folder.
Alternatively, you can use Launchpad to organize apps. Open Launchpad (usually in your Dock or by pressing F4), press and hold an app icon until it wiggles, and drag it to a folder. You can create a folder by dragging one app onto another. Apps in folders are less visible but still searchable using Spotlight (press Command+Space and type the app name).
To unhide an app on a Mac, open Finder, go to Applications, and drag the app back to your Dock or desktop. If it is in a Launchpad folder, open Launchpad and drag it out of the folder.
What happens when you hide an app
When you hide an app, it remains fully installed on your device. It can still receive updates, send notifications, and run in the background if it is designed to do so. Hiding only changes where the app appears — it does not stop the app from working.
If you hide an app and later want to use it, you can always find it by searching. On phones, use Spotlight (iPhone) or the search function in your app drawer (Android). On computers, use the search box in your Start menu (Windows) or Spotlight (Mac). The app will open normally, and you can use it exactly as you did before hiding it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I hide an app without uninstalling it?
Yes. Hiding and uninstalling are different. When you hide an app, it stays on your device and continues to work. When you uninstall it, you remove it completely. All the methods described here hide apps without removing them.
Will a hidden app still send me notifications?
Yes, a hidden app can still send notifications unless you turn off notifications for that specific app in your settings. Hiding only removes the app from view — it does not disable notifications or background activity.
Can I search for a hidden app if I forget where it is?
Yes. On any device, you can search for the app by name. On iPhones, use Spotlight. On Android, use the search function in your app drawer. On Windows, use the Start menu search. On Macs, use Spotlight. The hidden app will appear in the search results, and you can open it from there.
Is hiding an app the same as disabling it?
No. Hiding removes an app from view but leaves it running. Disabling stops an app from running entirely. On Android, you can disable system apps in your settings, but this is a separate action from hiding. On iPhones and Macs, there is no built-in disable feature for most apps.
Can I hide multiple apps at once?
On most phones and computers, you hide apps one at a time. On Samsung Android phones, you can select multiple apps in the app drawer hide menu and hide them all together. On other devices, you repeat the hiding process for each app.