The Shocking Truth About iPhone Apps Taking Up Precious Space – And How To Instantly Offload Them!

Let’s face it – we live in a world where mobile applications have become an essential part of our daily lives. We use them for communication, entertainment, business, and so much more. New apps are developed every day, and we can’t seem to get enough of them. However, the more apps we install, the more space they take up on our iPhones. This often leads to storage issues and a slow-performing device. In this article, we reveal the shocking truth about iPhone apps taking up precious space and how to instantly offload them.

The truth is, most iPhone users have less storage space than they think they do. The amount of space on an iPhone is no longer solely determined by its capacity but also by the number of apps and files taking up space. According to several studies, the average iPhone user has around 80 apps installed on their device. That’s a lot of apps! And with time, many of these apps become redundant, outdated, or simply irrelevant.

The problem with having too many apps on your iPhone is that they take up space, and storage space is a valuable resource. If your phone is consistently running out of storage space, it can cause your device to slow down, glitch, or even crash. Moreover, having too many apps can impact your iPhone’s battery life, as some apps use battery power even when they’re not in use.

The good news is that there’s a simple and effective solution to this problem – offloading apps. Offloading an app means removing the app from your device but keeping its data and settings so that you can reinstall it later if needed. This feature is available in iOS 11 or later and can be accessed by going to Settings > General > iPhone Storage. You can then select the app you want to offload and tap “Offload App.” This will remove the app from your device but keep its data and settings intact.

Another benefit of offloading apps is that it can free up significant amounts of space on your device. When you offload an app, it removes the app itself but not its data. For example, if you offload a game, you’ll free up space used by the actual game app, but your high scores and progress will be saved in iCloud. This means that you can always reinstall the app in the future and pick up right where you left off.

In conclusion, iPhone apps taking up precious space is a harsh reality that all users need to face. If left unchecked, this can lead to slow performance, battery drain, and other issues. By offloading apps, you can free up significant amounts of space on your device while keeping your data and settings intact. So, take a few minutes to go through your apps and offload those that are no longer needed. It’s an easy and effective way to keep your device running smoothly and avoid storage-related headaches.

This article explains how to use the Offload Unused Apps feature on iPhones running iOS 11 and later and how you can use it to avoid the Storage Almost Full alert.

What to Know

  • To automatically offload apps, go to Settings > App Store > Offload Unused Apps.To manually offload apps, go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Offload Unused Apps.To reinstall the offloaded app, tap on the app icon to download it again.

How to Automatically Offload Unused Apps on an iPhone

iPhone recommendations ensure you always have enough space for your next download. If you don’t want to drill down to each app’s storage and free some space, then Offload Unused Apps can work in the background to recover space while keeping the app data backed up. 

  • Open Settings.
  • Select App Store > Offload Unused Apps.
  • Toggle the Offload Unused Apps switch to on.

How to Manually Offload Unused Apps on an iPhone

Use the manual option to offload apps one at a time. It can also be an excellent way to remove addictive social apps from the screen while keeping their data.

Open Settings.

Select App Store > Offload Unused Apps.

Toggle the Offload Unused Apps switch to on.

  • Open Settings.
  • Select General > iPhone Storage.
  • Go to Offload Unused Apps and select Enable.
  • Go through the list of apps and choose an app to offload manually. In this example, we’ll use the Google Assistant app.
  • Remember, manual offloading is optional as iOS automatically offloads unused apps when it’s low on storage.
  • Tap Offload App, then tap Offload App again to confirm.

What Does It Mean to Offload an App on an iPhone?

The iPhone optimizes storage space with a three-pronged strategy. Users can trash documents and files, remove an app with all its data, or offload an app. The Offload Unused Apps feature is a nice compromise when you want to free up space taken up by an app but keep its data. 

Select General > iPhone Storage.

Go to Offload Unused Apps and select Enable. 

Go through the list of apps and choose an app to offload manually. In this example, we’ll use the Google Assistant app.

Remember, manual offloading is optional as iOS automatically offloads unused apps when it’s low on storage. 

Tap Offload App, then tap Offload App again to confirm.

If anyone asks, “Does offloading an app free up space?” the answer is yes. 

Offloading an app is different from deleting an app on an iPhone. The Offload Unused Apps feature frees up the storage used by the apps but keeps all documents and data intact. It helps you avoid the monotony of configuring an app from scratch. The app’s icon and user data will remain on the iPhone. The icon will display a cloud with a downward arrow. When you want to use it again, tap the icon and download it again.

Storage space is necessary to keep iOS updated. So, this feature working under the hood gives you the flexibility to uninstall apps without losing data. As it only removes unused apps, you shouldn’t miss them too much. 

Reinstating the Offloaded App

When you download the app again, it should be available on the App Store. You also might have to sign in again with your username and password if required. An offloaded app displays the usual icon but not the cloud icon in Spotlight.

Tap the icon to launch the app from the search results, and iOS will display an alert that you’re trying to open an app that is not currently installed. Tap OK to download the app. There’s no download progress indicator, so you have to go to the last known location of the app. 

  • How do you delete apps?
  • On Android, press and hold your finger on the app you want to delete until a menu pops up. Choose App info > Uninstall. On iOS, tap and hold on the app, then select Remove app > Delete app > Delete.
  • How do you hide apps on iPhone?
  • With iOS 14, Apple added an App Library that organizes all of your apps and displays them on their own separate page to the right of the Home page. To remove an app from the Home screen, press and hold your finger on the app’s icon until the menu pops up, then select Delete App. You then have the option of removing the app from the Home screen or deleting it completely.
  • How do you update apps?
  • On Android, open the Google Play app, select your profile icon, then select Manage apps & device. Select Update All to download patches for everything, or select Update next to individual apps to patch them. On iOS, open the App Store, select your profile icon, then select Update next to apps or select Update All.
  • How do you move apps to a SD card?
  • To move apps to a SD card on Android, first make sure the SD card is properly formatted. Then, go to Settings > Apps & notifications > App info and select the app you want to move. Select Storage > Change and choose the SD card from the list of options.

On Android, press and hold your finger on the app you want to delete until a menu pops up. Choose App info > Uninstall. On iOS, tap and hold on the app, then select Remove app > Delete app > Delete.

With iOS 14, Apple added an App Library that organizes all of your apps and displays them on their own separate page to the right of the Home page. To remove an app from the Home screen, press and hold your finger on the app’s icon until the menu pops up, then select Delete App. You then have the option of removing the app from the Home screen or deleting it completely.

On Android, open the Google Play app, select your profile icon, then select Manage apps & device. Select Update All to download patches for everything, or select Update next to individual apps to patch them. On iOS, open the App Store, select your profile icon, then select Update next to apps or select Update All.

To move apps to a SD card on Android, first make sure the SD card is properly formatted. Then, go to Settings > Apps & notifications > App info and select the app you want to move. Select Storage > Change and choose the SD card from the list of options.

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