Android can hide unused or private apps from the places you see most often, but the exact feature depends on the phone and launcher. Some methods only remove an icon from the home screen. Others hide the app from the app drawer or place it in a locked area. This guide explains how to hide apps on Android and what to do when your phone does not include a true hide-app feature.
Notifications can reveal an app even when its icon is hidden. If that is part of the problem, also review how to fix Android notifications not coming through so you can tune notification behavior app by app.
Table of Contents
- What hiding apps can and cannot do
- How to remove an app from the home screen
- How to hide apps from the app drawer
- How to hide apps on Samsung Galaxy
- Alternatives when Pixel or another phone has no hide option
- Places where hidden apps may still appear
- Summary
What hiding apps can and cannot do
Hiding an app is different from uninstalling it.
- Hide: keeps the app installed, but removes it from visible places
- Uninstall: removes the app from the phone
- Disable: stops some built-in apps and reduces their visibility
- Lock: requires authentication before opening the app
Even after hiding an app, it may still appear in Settings, the Play Store installed-app list, notification history, or permission screens. Treat app hiding as a visibility control, not a way to erase all traces of an app.
How to remove an app from the home screen
The simplest method is to remove only the icon from the home screen.
- Long-press the app icon on the home screen
- Choose Remove, Remove from Home, or a similar option
- The app stays installed and remains available from the app drawer
This is safe and reversible. It is enough when you only want a cleaner home screen, but it does not hide the app from the full app list.
How to hide apps from the app drawer
Some Android phones and launchers include an app drawer hide option.
- Long-press an empty area of the home screen
- Open Home settings or Settings
- Look for Hide apps, Hidden apps, or a similar menu
- Select the apps you want to hide
- Save the setting
Menu names differ widely by manufacturer. OPPO, Xiaomi, Samsung, and other brands use their own launchers, so the setting may not match Pixel's layout.
How to hide apps on Samsung Galaxy
Samsung Galaxy phones include a built-in hide-app option in Home screen settings.
- Long-press an empty area of the home screen
- Tap Settings
- Open Hide apps on Home and Apps screens
- Select the apps you want to hide
- Tap Done
Galaxy also offers Secure Folder, which separates apps and data into a protected area. If you want authentication as well as visual hiding, Secure Folder is usually a better fit than simple app hiding.
Alternatives when Pixel or another phone has no hide option
Pixel's default launcher has limited support for hiding arbitrary apps from the app drawer. If your phone lacks a true hide setting, use safer alternatives:
- Remove the icon from the home screen only
- Move the app into a folder
- Turn off notifications for the app
- Uninstall apps you do not need
- Disable eligible built-in apps
- Switch to a launcher that includes a hide-app feature
Changing launchers also changes the home screen experience. Before installing a launcher only for app hiding, check its permissions, ads, update history, and reputation.
Places where hidden apps may still appear
Hidden apps can still be exposed in other parts of Android, such as:
- Settings app lists
- Google Play installed apps
- Notification history
- Recent apps
- Share sheets and permission settings
If the app contains sensitive information, hiding the icon is not enough. Use the app's own lock feature, strengthen the phone lock screen, hide notification previews, or uninstall the app if you no longer need it.
Summary
How you hide apps on Android depends on the manufacturer and launcher. Start by removing the icon from the home screen. If you need stronger hiding, check the launcher settings, Samsung Galaxy's hide-app menu, or Secure Folder.
Hiding apps does not completely remove their presence from Android. For privacy, combine app hiding with notification controls, lock screen settings, and app-level authentication where available.
