How do I get rid of the hidden app folder in the App Library?

How do I get rid of this hidden app folder in the App Library. It’s so suspicious and unnecessary. I don’t want this on my phone and I feel like apple is encouraging a culture where people lie hide and cheat. Help me remove this.


[Re-Titled by Moderator]

iPhone 11 Pro Max, iOS 18

Posted on Sep 28, 2024 6:37 AM

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Posted on Oct 7, 2024 4:03 AM

I want it gone because my husband assumes I’ve got things in it. I don’t and have to show him. This is not something I asked for but is now here and I want an option to remove the folder completely!

77 replies

Dec 31, 2024 7:27 AM in response to Kdatl1

Kdatl1 wrote:

I want either the option to delete the hidden folder space or have a pw to unlock it. I am older. One day, my children are going to need access to my phone, which they do have access to now, but wouldn’t be able to unlock that folder to see nothing is in it. It is MY phone and I should have the option to modify security or eliminate this folder.
If you have never been an executor of an estate, you probably won’t understand this, so scroll on.


An iPhone accessed by a person with physical access and passcode and with abusive or other ill intent is going to be a Bad Day far beyond that hidden folder. The contents of the hidden folder — and why you’d even have anything there, given your general concerns — are negligible in the scale and scope of the resulting mess of the full breach you are positing here.


That written, log your feedback with Apple, same as has been recommended before, too: Product Feedback - Apple


Dec 8, 2024 9:06 AM in response to Lawrence Finch

You seem to miss the point. Yes if you want to hide things from your family or friends it is a useful tool but many people do not want to do that. They have open relationships and do not want to create conflict by being presumed to have something to hide.

Such conflict can lead to domestic violence and make people, particularly females, feel unsafe.

Likewise, parents will also not be able to monitor their children’s activities and in this corrupt day and age of on-line grooming having apps that are hidden means that they may not be able to keep their children safe.

I see nothing wrong with having the app should one wish to hide things from their family but I think it would be better if the folder could be switched off and removed for those of us that have nothing to hide

Dec 9, 2024 5:49 PM in response to Booboodc



Booboodc wrote:

I don’t have a partner I didn’t choose to hide the apps. This goes against my privacy and my standards of owning an iPhone you do not pay my bills so you should not be able to control my phone figure it out Apple how to remove this hidden app I don’t even know what was in the app other than Snapchat


You don’t have a hidden app.


You have a means to:


If this feature is not something you can ignore, send your feedback to the people that work for Apple:

Dec 9, 2024 6:50 PM in response to Lawrence Finch

What do you mean, not big on options? Nearly every feature in the iOS can be switched off or on, or changed in some way. I see no reason why they wouldn’t have done it here, like everywhere else. If your having that much difficulty with looking up a setting, a smart phone is probably not for you. I know, I’m a tech myself, so I’m well aware of the difficulties. Makes no sense to not have the option though, that’s like not including the power button, just because people can’t find it.

Dec 10, 2024 6:32 PM in response to GingerBeard777

GingerBeard777 wrote:

I just want it gone because I have no use for it and an empty folder in the App Library is ugly and silly looking.

You can’t always get what you want.


However, there is a very good reason to have Hidden a fixed item. If it was elective, that would be a giveaway that the user had something to hide.



Dec 12, 2024 7:15 PM in response to charan113

charan113 wrote:

Several support cases with Apple but they tell me it’s not possible to delete the hidden folder which is very annoying. I hope the 18.2 and higher versions gives the option. This is very premature from Apple they added the feature but no way to delete them

I simply don't get what issue anyone could have with a folder, they don't have to use for anything. Apple has never been big on choices. The folder is there, just like other things on your iPhone, you likely don't have a need for and won't use, and you can't remove them either.


Just so you know, iOS 18.2 was released yesterday and the folder is still there as I fully expected it would be and likely will be for the foreseeable future.

Dec 25, 2024 1:27 AM in response to Layyabayya

My apologies in advance for a very long post.


After reading all of the posts concerning this topic, I’d like to offer a few comments that might provide a different perspective.


When I first noticed the “Hidden” group in my App Library, I tried, and failed initialy to see what was in it. I thought my phone had been hacked. I then did a quick search and discovered it was a feature and that by looking in Settings | Apps, and looking at all the apps, that I could determine which - if any - apps were included in this group (There were none).


I can understand why Apple might have been asked to put in such a feature: many people would want this feature: especially families who must share a single device for all of their computing and communication needs. Even at tje basic level, these devices aren’t cheap, but they open up worlds and access to services many of us here might take for granted. Far from hiding unseemly or even nefarious content and applications, the ability to keep some users of the phone from, e.g., making unapproved purchases on Amazon or getting into other such apps to make purchases or change account settings for any number of things, certainly would appeal to many. Others have mentioned other situations where this could apply, as well as unintended consequences of such a hidden set of apps or data.


What would really meet the many needs of the users would be to make iOS a true multiuser platform from the end users’ perspective. Parents, could create a “sub-login” for their individual family members. In each account, they could specify what could be seen and used on their own screen. In this example, the kids would have their own face-id for login, and they would see the few apps that the main user wanted them to see. The Parental control scenario…


I would opt for an enable/disable setting in Settings, with Disabled being the default. However, this whole concept is not an easy one to implement, and it is full of problems and unintended consequences of it’s own. I imagine Apple chose the current feature implementation as the lesser of several evils, though I have no direct knowledge of their processes.


I encourage you all to keep thinking about this. I would rather have the ability to disable this feature as I don’t necessarily have need of it. Thank you for your patience and attention!







Dec 31, 2024 6:38 AM in response to Layyabayya

I want either the option to delete the hidden folder space or have a pw to unlock it. I am older. One day, my children are going to need access to my phone, which they do have access to now, but wouldn’t be able to unlock that folder to see nothing is in it. It is MY phone and I should have the option to modify security or eliminate this folder.

If you have never been an executor of an estate, you probably won’t understand this, so scroll on.


How do I get rid of the hidden app folder in the App Library?

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