How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone

Reinstall hidden purchased apps

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 1

Open the App Store. If you've hidden apps through the App Store, you can restore them by redownloading them. First, tap the icon on the home screen.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 2

Tap your profile picture at the top of the screen. If you don't have a profile picture, tap the account button . It's a circle icon with a gray upper body silhouette inside. The Account screen immediately opens.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 3

Scroll down and select Hidden Purchases . You'll see this option under the Downloads and Purchases subheading . Tap on it to open a screen displaying all hidden apps.

You can also find hidden or uninstalled apps by searching by name in the App Store. Tap the Search button in the bottom right corner of the screen to open the search screen.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 4

Reload the app to unhide it. Scroll through the list until you find the app you want, then tap the Download button next to it. This will reload the app on your phone.

You also see a cloud icon next to the app name.

You don't need to pay a second time for the purchased app.

Find the app in the library

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 5

Browse your home screens to find the App Library. This is a screen that displays all applications categorized by group. If the app has been downloaded to your library or you've moved it from your home screen to App Library, finding it will be a bit difficult. First, swipe the home screen to the right until App Library appears.

App Library has a search bar at the top with the word App Library inside. Apps are arranged in gray boxes with small app icons.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 6

Search for the name of the app you're looking for. Tap the search field at the top of the screen. This opens an alphabetical list of apps. You can also enter the name of the application you want to search for.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 7

Touch and hold the application icon. The solid screen displays a menu with application-related options.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 8

Select Add to Home Screen . If the app is not visible on the home screen, this option is available in the menu selection list. Tap on it to create an app icon on the home screen.

You can also touch and hold the icon, then drag it left to move it from the gallery to the home screen. Tap Done in the top right corner of the screen to confirm the changes.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 9

Change the settings so new apps don't show up in the library. From the iOS 14 operating system, newly downloaded applications are automatically displayed in the App Library instead of the home screen. To prevent this, take these steps:

Open Settings .

Scroll down to Home Screen .

Under Newly Downloaded Apps , select Add to Home Screen . The new app will show up in the App Library and on the home screen.

Unhide the home screen

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 10

Touch and hold an empty area on any home screen. If multiple app icons disappear at the same time, you may have hidden the home screen page. To find it again, open any home screen page, then touch and hold an area until the icons start wiggling.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 11

Select the row of dots at the bottom of the screen. This opens the screen with all the home screen pages, including the hidden page. Scroll through the list until you find the page you're looking for.

Hidden pages will have an empty circle below, while unhidden pages will have a check mark below.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 12

Tap the circle below the page you want to unhide. A check mark will appear in an empty circle below the page. When you're done, just tap Done in the top right corner of the screen.

Delete the application from the folder

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 13

Touch to open the folder containing the application you want to find. You might have accidentally moved an app to a folder, preventing you from seeing it on your home screen. To get an app out of a folder, first tap the folder to expand it.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 14

Touch and hold until the app starts to jiggle. After opening the folder, you will tap on the application you need to remove from the folder. Instead of releasing the icon right away, hold it until the icons in the folder start to wiggle.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 15

Drag the app from the folder and drop it onto the home screen. You just need to drag the application out of the folder and place it anywhere on the home screen. When you're done, tap Done in the top right corner of the screen.

Reset the home screen interface

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 16

Open the Settings app. Resetting your home screen will display all the apps you've downloaded on your home screen in alphabetical order. This also deletes any folders you created. Go to the home screen and tap the Settings icon to get started.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 17

Select General. Scroll down the Settings menu until you see General , then tap it to open the new menu.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 18

Tap Transfer or Reset iPhone . You'll see this option near the bottom of the menu.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 19

Select Reset . Find Reset below the screen and tap it. A new menu will appear below the screen.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 20

Select Reset Home Screen Layout . When you do this, a dialog box appears giving you the choice of Reset Home Screen or Cancel . Select Reset Home Screen to continue the changes.

Unset parental controls

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 21

Open the Settings app. The iPhone's built-in parental controls let you temporarily hide built-in apps. You can hide or show apps in Screen Time . The first thing is to open Settings .

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 22

Select Screen Time . Scroll down below the Settings menu and tap Screen Time to open the parental controls menu.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 23

Tap Content & Privacy Restrictions . At this point, the device immediately asks you to enter the Screen Time password. You will be taken to Screen Time's privacy settings menu.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 24

Select Allowed Apps . You'll find the Allowed Apps option near the top of the menu. Tap it to open a list of all the built-in apps on your iPhone.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 25

Turn on the app you want to unhide. Each app in the list has a slider button on the side. Tap the slider next to any hidden app you want to unhide.

After you launch the app, the slider button will turn right and be green.

Search for hidden apps

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 26

Use the Spotlight search engine to find apps on your phone. To open the built-in search function on iPhone, you can continue to swipe the home screen to the left or swipe the screen from top to bottom until the search field appears. Enter the name of the application to search. The app will show up in search results if available on your phone.

You can limit apps that show up in search results. If you think the app has been hidden from search engines, go to Settings , then select Siri & Search. Scroll down the application list. Select the app you want and make sure Show in Search is turned on.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 27

Ask Siri to open the app for you. If you're sure you have the app, but you can't find it, ask Siri to open the app. You can say 'Hey Siri, open iTunes'.

How to Unhide Hidden Apps on iPhone Picture 28

Search in the App Store. If you've downloaded the app, you can tell by looking at the app's page in the App Store. Open the App Store app and tap the Search icon in the bottom right corner of the screen. Enter the name of the application you want to find in the data entry box at the top of the screen.

If the app has been downloaded and is on your phone, you'll see an OPEN button next to the app's title.

If the app has been downloaded but not installed on your phone, a Download button will appear next to it.

Apps that haven't been installed or purchased will display a GET button (for free apps) or a button with a price displayed.

Micah Soto

Update 24 October 2023