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How to Ditch Pre-Installed iPhone Apps With iOS 10 Beta

Goodbye forever, Stocks, Apple Watch, and Tips.

Angela Moscaritolo
 & Angela Moscaritolo Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

Our team tests, rates, and reviews more than 1,500 products each year to help you make better buying decisions and get more from technology.

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Rejoice, iPhone users: Soon, you'll be able to say goodbye to unwanted default apps like Stocks, Apple Watch, and Tips.

With iOS 10, Apple is finally letting us remove built-in apps from the Home screens of our iOS devices. The new mobile OS doesn't arrive for the general public until the fall, but developers got their hands on it at WWDC this week, and docs released by Apple shine a light on the pre-installed apps you can jettison for good.

The current iOS 10 beta lets users delete nearly two-dozen default apps, including Calculator, Calendar, Compass, Contacts, FaceTime, Find My Friends, Home, iBooks, iCloud Drive, iTunes Store, Mail, Maps, Music, News, Notes, Podcasts, Reminders, Stocks, Tips, Videos, Voice Memos, Watch app, and Weather. A later version of iOS 10 beta will also let you remove the News app.

In a support note posted to its website this week, Apple warned that "when you remove a built-in app from your Home screen, you also remove any related user data and configuration files." This is important to note, as it "can affect things like related system functions or information on your Apple Watch."

For instance, when you remove an app from your iPhone Home screen, the app will also go away on your paired Apple Watch Home screen. If you remove Stocks or Weather, this information will no longer be available in Notification Center on your iPhone or as Complications or Glances on your Apple Watch.

Meanwhile, if you remove Music or Podcasts, you'll no longer be able to use them with CarPlay. Rest assured that deleting Contacts won't cause you to lose all your contact info: it will still be available in the Phone app.

Deleting default apps might be gratifying, meanwhile, but it won't save a ton of space on your device. Apple said the apps built into iOS "are designed to be very space efficient, so all of them together use less than 150MB."

Regardless, if you're ready to delete some stock apps, the process is super simple, and you likely already know the drill: Just hold the app until it jiggles, tap the X, then tap Remove, just like you'd nix any other third-party app. Then, just press the Home button to finish.

If you decide you need to app back on your phone, just go to the App Store and re-download it.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade. 

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes. 

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app. 

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth. 

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light. 

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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