With the release of iOS 11, Apple has made it clear that they are serious about removing old, unused apps from users’ devices. This is in line with their goal of making the device more efficient and keeping users on their platform. There are a few reasons you might want to remove your old apps. Maybe you no longer use them and don’t need them taking up space on your device. Or maybe you upgraded to a newer phone or tablet and don’t need the old app anymore. If you decide to remove your apps, here are some tips:

  1. Go through your app list and find the ones you no longer use or use only occasionally. Tap on each one to see its details, then tap “Remove from Device” at the bottom of the screen.
  2. If you have multiple versions of an app installed, choose which one to remove by tapping on its icon and selecting “Remove from Device” from the menu that appears. If an app is updated but doesn’t have a new version number, it will still be listed under “Updates” in App Store after being removed so make sure to select it before removing it from your device!
  3. If an app is required for using certain features on your device (like Photos or Maps), be sure to uninstall it before deleting it from your device as doing so may cause problems when trying to use those features later on. ..

If you’re always running out of storage space on your iPhone or iPad, a built-in feature called offloading can free some up. You also won’t lose any of your settings, which is why most people find automatic offloading ideal.

What Is Offloading?

Offloading is an Apple-specific term that means deleting an app’s program data, but keeping any documents or settings associated with it on your device.

After an app is offloaded, you can re-download it and it will work just as it did before. For example, saved game data or documents you created in a word-processing app will remain right where you left them.

On iPhone or iPad, you can offload apps either one at a time or enable automatic offloading of any that are unused. When apps are offloaded, their icons remain on the Home screen, but you’ll see a small iCloud Download icon beside their names.

When you tap the icon of an app that’s been offloaded, it will download automatically from the App Store, provided it’s still available and your device is connected to the internet.

How to Manually Offload Apps

To manually offload apps one at a time, open “Settings,” and then tap General > iPhone Storage (or General > iPad Storage on an iPad).

There, you’ll see a list of all installed apps sorted by size. Tap the one you’d like to offload. On the next screen, tap “Offload App.”

The app will then be offloaded. If you ever need it again, just tap its icon on the Home screen and it will download automatically.

How to Automatically Offload Unused Apps

To turn on automatic offloading, tap “Settings,” and then tap “App Store” (or “iTunes and App Store” on certain versions of iOS and iPadOS). Scroll down and toggle-On “Offload Unused Apps.”

Give your device some time to decide which unused apps to offload. Depending on how many it offloads, the process could take a few minutes or longer. When you check back later, you should have plenty of breathing room to install new apps or work with documents.

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