Every application you download or purchase through the Apple App Store is permanently recorded in your Apple Account purchase history. While this makes re-downloading previously acquired applications straightforward, your purchase ledger can quickly become cluttered with obsolete utilities, deprecated software, or personal applications you prefer not to display. Furthermore, if you participate in an Apple Family Sharing group, your full purchase history may be visible to other family members. Learning how to hide and unhide purchased apps in the App Store on iPhone allows you to maintain privacy and curate a clean account history.
What Happens When You Hide an App in the App Store?
Hiding an application modifies how your Apple Account displays the item across devices:
- The application is removed from your public Purchased tab in the App Store on all connected devices linked to your Apple Account.
- Family Sharing members can no longer see or download the hidden application from shared purchases.
- Hiding an app does not uninstall it from your iPhone, cancel active recurring subscriptions, or remove previous billing transactions from your bank statements or Apple receipt emails.
How to Hide Purchased Apps in the App Store on iPhone
Hiding an app directly on your iOS device takes only a few taps:
- Launch the App Store application on your iPhone.
- Tap your Profile icon located in the upper-right corner of the screen.
- Select Purchased (or Apps if your device runs iOS 17.4 or later). If you use Family Sharing, tap My Purchases.
- Browse through the list or use the search bar at the top to locate the specific application you wish to hide.
- Swipe from right to left across the application name.
- A red Hide button appears. Tap Hide.
- Tap Done in the top-right corner to save your changes. The application immediately disappears from your purchased history list.
How to Unhide Previously Hidden Apps in the App Store
If you need to restore an application to your active download history or make it visible to Family Sharing members once again, access your account’s hidden purchases:
- Open the App Store and tap your Profile icon in the top-right corner.
- Tap your name or Apple Account email address at the very top of the account sheet. You may be prompted to authenticate using Face ID, Touch ID, or your account passcode.
- Scroll down through your account settings and tap Hidden Purchases.
- Locate the application in the list of previously hidden purchases.
- Tap the Unhide button adjacent to the application icon. The item is instantly restored to your main App Store purchase library.
How to Re-Download a Hidden App Without Unhiding It
If you simply want to install an application that is currently hidden without making it visible in your general purchase history, you do not need to unhide it first:
- Open the App Store and tap the Search tab at the bottom right.
- Search for the app by its exact name.
- Instead of a price tag or “Get” button, you will see the cloud download icon (or “Open” if already installed).
- Tap the cloud icon to re-download the application directly to your iPhone while keeping its entry hidden in your global purchases.