A lot of people download lots of iOS apps, used them and then abandoned them. Rather than having them fill your homescreen, you can delete them.
When you delete an app, the app and its data are removed from your device. If you want to remove the app, but keep its data, you can offload the app instead. Here’s how you can do both:
Delete an App and Its Data
- Tap and hold the app icon on the home screen until the icons start to jiggle. Be careful not to press too hard, or you’ll activate 3D Touch.
- When the icon jiggling starts, tap the “X” that appears at the top left of the app icon.
- Then, tap “Delete” in the confirmation window. The app and all its data will be deleted and the app icon vanishes from your home screen.
You can also delete apps by going to Settings > General > iPhone Storage or iPad Storage.
This is where you’ll see a list of all the apps on your iOS device, as well as the amount of space they occupy.
- Tap an app on the list. On the app’s page, tap the “Delete App” option, and then confirm the deletion.
Once again, the app and all its data is removed from your device.
Offload an App, but Keep Its Data
If you wish to delete an app but leave its data, you can choose to offload it. Offloading deletes the app but keeps the data it has created on your device.
To offload an app, click Settings > General > iPhone Storage or iPad Storage.
To set your iOS device to automatically offload unused apps when you begin to run out of space, tap Enable next to Offload Unused Apps.
To offload an individual app, tap the app on the list a bit lower down on that page. On the app’s page, tap the “Offload App” option, and then confirm your action.
This remove the app, but keep its data. And, of course, you can reinstall the app any time from the App Store.
