---
title: "How to Lock Apps on iPhone With or Without Face ID (2026)"
description: "Lock any app on iPhone with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode, turn the lock off again, and see which apps can't be locked and what a locked app still shows."
url: https://www.vaultforyou.app/blog/lock-apps-iphone
lang: en
published: 2026-10-29
updated: 2026-10-29
author: "VaultForYou Editorial Team"
publisher: VaultForYou
---

# How to lock apps on iPhone, with Face ID or without it

> Apple's app lock stops someone you hand your phone to, but it opens with your iPhone passcode, so it won't stop anyone who knows it.

Published 2026-10-29 - Updated 2026-10-29 - By VaultForYou Editorial Team

## Quick answer

To lock an app on iPhone, touch and hold its icon, tap Require Face ID (or Touch ID or Passcode), then tap it again to confirm. The app then asks for authentication every time it opens. iPhones without Face ID use Touch ID or the passcode the same way. To remove it, tap Don't Require Face ID.

- **Turn it on:** Touch and hold the app -> Require Face ID -> Require Face ID again.
- **Without Face ID:** The same menu offers Touch ID or your passcode instead.
- **Can't be locked:** Calculator, Camera, Clock, Contacts, Find My, Maps, Shortcuts and Settings, among others.
- **The catch:** Your iPhone passcode opens every locked app.

Touch and hold the app on your Home Screen, tap **Require Face ID**, then tap **Require Face ID** again to confirm. From then on, the app asks for Face ID every time it opens. On an iPhone with Touch ID, the same menu says Require Touch ID, and you can require your passcode instead. It works for most apps, including built-in ones like Photos, on iOS 18 and later. It's a lock you can't set a separate password for: your iPhone passcode opens every locked app.

We checked these steps against Apple's iOS 27 documentation in October 2026. Below: how to lock and unlock an app, how to do it without Face ID, how to turn Face ID off for apps, and what the lock does and doesn't protect.

## How to lock an app on iPhone with Face ID

1. Go to the Home Screen.
2. Touch and hold the app until the quick actions menu opens.
3. Tap **Require Face ID** (or **Touch ID** or **Passcode**).
4. Tap **Require Face ID** again, then authenticate.

To open the app, tap it and authenticate. Opening it doesn't unlock it for good: Apple says a locked app relocks automatically after you quit it, so you authenticate again next time.

The same menu has a second option, **Hide and Require Face ID**. That locks the app and also moves it off your Home Screen into a locked Hidden folder in App Library. It only works for apps you downloaded from the App Store. Our guide on [how to hide apps on iPhone](/blog/hide-apps-on-iphone) covers it, including where hidden apps still show up.

## How to lock apps on iPhone without Face ID

You have three options when Face ID isn't available, isn't set up, or you'd rather not use it.

### Use Touch ID or your passcode

The app lock isn't tied to Face ID. On an iPhone with a Home button, the quick action reads **Require Touch ID**. On any iPhone with a passcode, you can require the passcode. The steps are the same as above.

### Use the app's own lock

Some apps have a password setting that's separate from your iPhone passcode. This is the only kind of lock that keeps out someone who knows your passcode. Two built-in examples:

- **Notes:** lock individual notes with a custom password in **Settings -> Apps -> Notes -> Password**. See [how to lock notes on iPhone](/blog/lock-notes-iphone).
- **Pages:** set a password on a document in **More -> Document Options -> Set Password**. Apple says adding the password encrypts the file.

Some third-party apps also have their own passcode or Face ID setting; look in the app's own settings.

### Block an app with Screen Time

Screen Time can block some built-in apps and features that the app lock can't reach, such as Camera.

1. Go to **Settings -> Screen Time -> Content & Privacy Restrictions**.
2. On iOS 27, tap **Other Features** and block the apps or features you want. On iOS 26, turn on **Content & Privacy Restrictions** first, then tap **Allowed Apps & Features** and turn them off; Apple says a built-in app you turn off is temporarily hidden from your Home Screen, not deleted.
3. Set a Screen Time passcode in **Screen Time -> Passcode & Management -> Lock Screen Time Settings**, so changes need that four-digit code.

Screen Time is a parental-control tool, so it's clumsy for everyday privacy. You have to go back into Settings every time you want to use the app.

## How to turn off Face ID on apps

"Turning off Face ID on an app" can mean two different switches.

**To remove Apple's app lock:** touch and hold the app, tap **Don't Require Face ID** (or Touch ID or Passcode), then authenticate. For a hidden app, open the Hidden folder at the bottom of App Library first, then do the same.

**To stop an app's own Face ID sign-in:** go to **Settings -> Face ID & Passcode -> Other Apps** and turn the app off. This is the list of apps that asked to use Face ID for their own login, like a banking app or Pages. It doesn't touch Apple's app lock.

To stop Face ID unlocking your iPhone for a moment, for example before handing it over, press and hold the side button and either volume button for 2 seconds, then press the side button. Your passcode is required to unlock it the next time.

## What a locked app hides, and what it doesn't

A locked app is more private than you might expect in some ways and less in others.

**It hides:**

- The app's content, until you authenticate.
- Information from inside the app in other places. Apple names notification previews, search, Siri suggestions, CarPlay and your call history.

**It doesn't:**

- **Hide the app icon.** A locked app stays on your Home Screen. Only Hide and Require Face ID moves it.
- **Use a separate code.** It opens with your iPhone's Face ID, Touch ID or passcode.
- **Sync to other devices.** Apple says locked status doesn't sync with iCloud. Your iPad stays unlocked unless you lock the app there too.
- **Stop parents seeing it.** Teens aged 13 to 17 in Family Sharing can lock apps, but a parent can still see downloads and usage time in Screen Time.
- **Change the app's data.** Photos, files or messages the app stores elsewhere, or syncs to iCloud, aren't affected by the lock.

## Who can open a locked app?

| Who | Can they open it? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Someone you hand your unlocked phone to | **No** | The app asks for Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode first. |
| Someone whose face or fingerprint is enrolled on your iPhone | **Yes** | Face ID and Touch ID open locked apps. |
| Someone who knows your iPhone passcode | **Yes** | The passcode opens every locked app. |
| Someone using your iPad or Mac | **Yes, if the app is there and unlocked** | The lock doesn't sync with iCloud. |
| A parent in your Family Sharing group (ages 13-17) | **They can see it's there** | Screen Time shows downloads and usage time, and lets them restrict the app. |
| Someone looking at notifications or search | **They see less** | Apple keeps a locked app's information out of notification previews, search and Siri suggestions. |

## Which apps can't be locked?

Apple says some apps that come with iPhone can't be locked, including:

- Calculator
- Camera
- Clock
- Contacts
- Find My
- Maps
- Shortcuts
- Settings

Children under 13 in a Family Sharing group can't lock or hide apps at all. For Camera and other built-in features, Screen Time restrictions are the workaround described above.

## Lock or hide: which do you need?

| You want to... | Use | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Stop someone opening an app while they use your phone | **Require Face ID** | The icon stays visible. |
| Stop someone seeing the app exists at a glance | **Hide and Require Face ID** | Downloaded apps only. It moves to the locked Hidden folder. |
| Keep someone who knows your passcode out | **An app with its own password** | Apple's lock won't do this. |
| Block a built-in app like Camera | **Screen Time** | Protect it with a Screen Time passcode. |

## When an app lock isn't enough

Apple's app lock is built for one situation: you hand someone your phone to show them something, and you don't want them wandering into your messages or photos. It's very good at that. If you want a person to use your phone more freely, read about [guest mode options on iPhone](/blog/iphone-guest-mode).

It's not built for someone who knows your passcode, such as a partner, a parent or an ex. Every locked app opens with that passcode. If what you're protecting is photos, locking the Photos app is a good start; our guide on [how to lock photos on iPhone](/blog/lock-photos-on-iphone) compares it with the Hidden album and other options.

For photos, videos and documents that need a lock of their own, we make VaultForYou, so weigh this accordingly. It keeps the files you choose in a vault that opens only with a pattern you draw, not your iPhone passcode. Files are encrypted on your iPhone, the keys stay in the iOS Keychain, and they stay outside the Photos library. A forgotten pattern can't be recovered, so export anything you can't afford to lose.

> **A lock your iPhone passcode doesn't open.** Keep private photos and documents behind a pattern only you know. [Download on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/app/vaultforyou/id0000000000)

## Frequently asked questions

### How do you put Face ID on apps?

Go to the Home Screen, touch and hold the app until the quick actions menu opens, and tap Require Face ID. Tap Require Face ID again and authenticate. From then on, the app asks for Face ID every time you open it and relocks after you quit it. Apps that have their own Face ID sign-in may also offer a setting inside the app.

### How do I lock apps on iPhone without Face ID?

Use the same quick action: on an iPhone with Touch ID it reads Require Touch ID, and you can also require your passcode. For built-in apps that can't be locked, Screen Time can block them behind a Screen Time passcode. Some apps, like Notes for locked notes, also have their own password setting that's separate from your iPhone passcode.

### How do I turn off Face ID on apps?

To remove Apple's app lock, touch and hold the app and tap Don't Require Face ID, then authenticate. To stop a third-party app using Face ID for its own sign-in, go to Settings -> Face ID & Passcode -> Other Apps and turn that app off. The second switch only affects the app's own Face ID login, not Apple's app lock.

### Can someone open a locked app if they know my passcode?

Yes. Apple's app lock accepts Face ID, Touch ID or your iPhone passcode, so anyone who knows your passcode can open every locked app. Anyone whose face or fingerprint is enrolled on your iPhone can too. To keep something from a person who knows your passcode, it needs a separate lock, such as a custom Notes password or an app with its own code.

### Does locking an app hide its notifications?

It hides what's inside them. Apple says information inside a locked app won't appear in places like notification previews, search, Siri suggestions, CarPlay or your call history. The app icon itself stays on your Home Screen. If you also want the icon gone, use Hide and Require Face ID, which moves a downloaded app into the locked Hidden folder in App Library.

### Which apps can't be locked on iPhone?

Apple says some apps that come with iPhone can't be locked, including Calculator, Camera, Clock, Contacts, Find My, Maps, Shortcuts and Settings. Children under 13 in a Family Sharing group can't lock or hide any apps. Teens aged 13 to 17 can, but a parent can still see the app's downloads and usage in Screen Time.

### Does a locked app stay locked on my iPad or Mac?

No. Apple says the locked or hidden status of an app doesn't sync with iCloud, so it applies only to the iPhone where you set it. If you use the same app on an iPad, lock it there separately. Data the app syncs through iCloud is still available on your other devices.

## Bottom line

To lock an app on iPhone, touch and hold it and tap **Require Face ID**; without Face ID, choose Touch ID or your passcode instead. To undo it, tap **Don't Require Face ID**. It keeps a borrower out and keeps the app's content out of notifications and search.

What it can't do is beat your passcode. Anyone who knows it can open every locked app. For that, you need a separate password inside the app, or a vault with its own lock.

Keep reading:

- [How to hide apps on iPhone](/blog/hide-apps-on-iphone)
- [How to lock notes on iPhone](/blog/lock-notes-iphone)
- [How to lock a folder on iPhone](/blog/lock-folder-on-iphone)

## Sources

- [Apple Support: Lock or hide an app on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/lock-or-hide-an-app-iph00f208d05/ios)
- [Apple Personal Safety User Guide: Lock or hide apps on your iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/personal-safety/ipsd0be4c185/web)
- [Apple Support: Set up Face ID on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/set-up-face-id-iph6d162927a/ios)
- [Apple Support: Password-protect a Pages document on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/pages-iphone/password-protect-a-document-tanca246d3ac/ios)
- [Apple Support: Block features or content with Screen Time on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/block-features-or-content-with-screen-time-iph3ff83f3b1/ios)
- [Apple Support: Create, change, or remove a Screen Time passcode on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/create-change-or-remove-a-screen-time-passcode-iph272b4c4bd/ios)

## Keep reading

- [How to Hide Apps on iPhone (and Where They Still Show Up)](https://www.vaultforyou.app/blog/hide-apps-on-iphone): Hide apps on iPhone with the locked Hidden folder, App Library or Screen Time, see whether hidden apps show up in Screen Time, and learn how to unhide them.
- [How to Lock Photos on iPhone: 4 Ways That Actually Work (2026)](https://www.vaultforyou.app/blog/lock-photos-on-iphone): Lock photos on iPhone with the Hidden album, a Face ID lock on the Photos app, a locked note or an encrypted vault, and see who can still open each one.
- [How to Lock Notes on iPhone, and What Locked Notes Can't Do](https://www.vaultforyou.app/blog/lock-notes-iphone): Lock notes on iPhone with your passcode or a separate password, fix notes that won't lock (tags, PDFs, video) and see who can still open your locked notes.
- [How to Lock a Folder on iPhone (Secure Folder Alternatives)](https://www.vaultforyou.app/blog/lock-folder-on-iphone): iPhone can't lock a folder or match Samsung's Secure Folder. Here are 5 workarounds, from locked Notes and Face ID app lock to vaults, ranked by protection.

---

Our guides are written and fact-checked by the VaultForYou team against Apple's own documentation. We make VaultForYou, a private vault app for iPhone. Download on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/vaultforyou/id0000000000