2 Easy Ways to Hide Apps on a Samsung Galaxy

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A step-by-step guide to hiding and moving apps into secure folders

Co-authored by Nicole Levine, MFA Reviewed by Stan Kats

Last Updated: March 10, 2026 Fact Checked

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• Using the Settings Menu
|
• Using a Secure Folder
|
• Video
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• Expert Q&A

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Are there apps on your Samsung Galaxy that you want to keep private? You can quickly hide apps on any Android device using the Settings menu. Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets also allow you to create a secure folder to transfer apps and photos to an encrypted space that keeps your data separate from the rest of your phone storage. This wikiHow article teaches you how to hide apps on a Samsung Galaxy using the Settings menu and secure folder.I

Hiding Apps on Samsung Phones: Quick Options

• To quickly hide apps from the home screen and apps menu, tap and hold the home screen, select Settings, tap Hide apps on Home and Apps screen, and select apps to hide.
• You can create a secure folder to move apps to a password-protected folder. Enable this feature in Settings > Security and privacy > More security settings > Secure Folder.

Steps

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Using the Settings Menu

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1. 
   1
   Tap and hold an empty area of the home screen and select Settings. After you tap and hold for a second or so, the screen will zoom out, and you'll see the Settings (or Home screen settings on some devices) option.

   • Use this method to hide certain apps from your home screen and apps menu. You can still access the hidden apps by adding them to your edge panel.
2. 
   2
   Tap Hide apps on Home and Apps screen. This will open a list of all the apps installed on your Samsung Galaxy.
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3. 
   3
   Tap the app(s) you want to hide. This will add the app(s) to the "Hidden apps" box at the top of the screen. You can tap as many apps as you want to hide.
4. 
   4
   Tap Done. It's at the bottom of the page. This hides the apps that you selected.
5. 
   5
   Open your hidden apps. Once you hide apps with this method, they won't appear in on the apps menu or on the home screen, and you won't even be able to find them by searching. To use the hidden app, you will need to either unhide it or add it to your edge panel. Here's how to add it to the edge panel:

   • Swipe in from the left side of the home screen to open the edge panel.
   • Tap the Settings icon.
   • Tap Edit.
   • Select apps to add. You can also remove apps by tapping the red minus sign on an app.
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Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Using a Secure Folder

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1. 
   1
   Create a secure folder. You can create a secure folder on your Samsung phone or tablet to hide your apps in a password-protected area. Apps and files stored in the secure folder are kept separate from the rest of your phone storage and cannot be accessed by apps outside of the secure folder. Use the following steps to create a secure folder:

   • Swipe down from the top of the screen and tap the gear icon.
   • Tap Security and privacy.
   • Tap More security settings.
   • Tap Secure Folder.
   • Tap Continue to agree to the Terms and Conditions, and sign in to your Samsung account.
   • Follow the on-screen instructions to give the secure folder permission to access your phone storage, select a lock method (PIN, password, or pattern), and enable "Reset with Samsung Account."
   • Tap Next, then confirm your password to enter your secure folder.
2. 
   2
   Open the secure folder. You can find your secure folder on your Home screen or in the Apps menu. To open it, tap it and then enter your pattern, PIN, password, or fingerprint to gain entry.

   • If it opens automatically, you can skip this step.
3. 
   3
   Tap +. It's at the top of the secure folder. This displays a list of all the apps on your phone.
4. 
   4
   Select the apps you want to add to your secure folder. You can select as many apps as you want.

   • Alternatively, you can tap Download from Play Store or Download from Galaxy Store at the top of the list of apps to download an app directly to your secure folder using the Google Play Store or Samsung Galaxy Store.
5. 
   5
   Tap Add. This will install the apps you selected inside the secure folder.

   • Apps installed in the secure folder are kept separate from the rest of your apps, files, cache, and saved data on your Samsung Galaxy. You will need to log into any apps you move to your secure folder again. Additionally, any files you want your secure folder apps to access will also need to be moved to the secure folder.
   • To open apps in the secure folder, tap your secure folder and then enter the password, PIN, pattern, or fingerprint to unlock it. Then, tap the app in the secure folder.
6. 
   6
   Delete the apps from your Apps menu. Adding apps to your secure folder installs a copy of those apps in the secure folder, but it does not delete them. If you want those apps to be hidden, you will need to delete them from your Apps menu so that they can't be accessed outside the secure folder. Use the following steps to delete an app from your Apps menu:

   • Swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open the Apps menu.
   • Tap and hold an app you want to uninstall.
   • Tap Uninstall.
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Expert Q&A

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• Question

  Are there any other methods to hide my apps?

  

  Henry Paris
  Electronic Repair Expert

  Henry Paris is an Electronic Repair Expert specializing in sharing information about smartphones. Henry is the owner and manager of Electronic Repair Solutions (ERS Bit), and has a follower base of over 63,000 YouTube subscribers and over 150,000 followers on Instagram. As Ersbit, Henry and his team create electronics repair content, offering repair tutorials, product reviews, and stress testing of devices. His most popular videos highlight phone camera and screen replacement tips. His channels offer recommendations and tips on how to save money by doing DIY repairs and other device upgrades. Henry’s aim is to educate his audience by covering all aspects of repairing phones, so that they can save money and fix their devices, themselves.

  

  Henry Paris

  Electronic Repair Expert

  Expert Answer

  You can find and download free applications that can conceal your apps on the Play Store. Also, you can download a different Android launcher that lets you select apps that can appear on your home screen.

  Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
  Thank you for your feedback.
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  Not Helpful 4 Helpful 10
• Question

  Games are all hidden and I can't figure out how to open them?

  

  Community Answer

  If the games are not in the main menu or app menu, they are in the Game Launcher. Look in the game launcher for the games.

  Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
  Thank you for your feedback.
  If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow

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