--- title: "How to Hide Messages on iPhone: 4 Ways (iOS 27)" description: "Messages can't go in the iPhone Hidden folder. Here are the ways that work: remove it from the Home Screen, lock it with Face ID, hide it from search." url: https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps/messages lang: en-gb published: 2026-10-31 updated: 2026-10-31 author: "VaultForYou Editorial Team" publisher: VaultForYou --- # How to hide Messages on iPhone > Messages is built into iPhone, so it can't be hidden like an App Store app. These are the ways that work instead. Published 2026-10-31 - Updated 2026-10-31 - By VaultForYou Editorial Team - Checked against iOS 27 - 31 Oct 2026 ## Quick answer Messages comes with iPhone, so Apple won't let you put it in the Hidden folder. Instead, touch and hold it, tap Remove App, then Remove from Home Screen. It stays in App Library and search. To stop people opening it, lock it with Require Face ID. - **Fastest way:** Remove from Home Screen; it stays in App Library. - **Can it be hidden?:** No. Apple only lets you hide App Store apps. - **Own privacy setting:** Hide Alerts for a conversation. - **Still visible in:** Screen Time, Battery and your App Store purchases. - **iOS version:** Any recent iOS - **Time needed:** About 10 seconds - **Difficulty:** Easy - **Needs an app?:** No - **Reversible?:** Yes - **Changes backups?:** No Messages is built into iPhone, so it can't be hidden like an App Store app, and Messages has 5 privacy settings of its own. Below are 4 ways, fastest first, and the places Messages still shows up afterwards. We checked the iOS steps against Apple's iOS 27 documentation and Messages' settings against Apple's official help pages in October 2026. ## Method 1: Take Messages off your Home Screen Apple's Hidden folder only takes apps from the App Store, so Messages can't go in it. The next best thing is to take it off your Home Screen. 1. **Remove from the Home Screen** Touch and hold Messages, tap Remove App, then tap Remove from Home Screen. The app stays installed in App Library. Messages stays installed and keeps working from App Library. It still shows up when someone searches for it. To stop people opening it, lock it: touch and hold Messages, tap **Require Face ID**, then confirm. See [all Messages' privacy settings](/en-gb/apps/messages). ## Method 2: Messages' own privacy settings iOS hides the app icon. Messages itself can hide what's inside it. These settings work on any iOS version that Messages supports. ### Hide Alerts for a conversation Swipe left on a conversation and tap Hide Alerts. It stops notifications only for that conversation, and a Hide Alerts icon appears next to it. ### Screen Unknown Senders Go to **Settings -> Apps -> Messages -> Unknown Senders**. Moves texts from people not in your contacts to a separate Unknown Senders list, and you don't get notified about them. Called Filter Unknown Senders before iOS 26; off by default in iOS 26 unless you had the old setting on. ### Delete conversations and empty Recently Deleted Deleted messages stay in Recently Deleted for 30 days. Tap the Filter button in the conversation list, choose Recently Deleted, and delete them permanently there (this can't be undone). ### Auto-delete old messages with Keep Messages Go to **Settings -> Apps -> Messages -> Keep Messages**. Choose a setting other than Forever and conversations, including attachments, are removed automatically after that time. ### Hide Messages message previews Go to **Settings -> Notifications -> Messages -> Show Previews**. Choose Always, When Unlocked, or Never for message previews. If Messages is locked with Require Face ID, message content does not appear in notification previews or search. ## Method 3: Move Messages photos into a vault Hiding the app doesn't hide photos you've saved from it. Those sit in your camera roll, where anyone scrolling Photos can see them. Move them into a vault, then delete the originals from Photos and empty Recently Deleted. > **Lock this in VaultForYou.** Keep Messages photos in an encrypted vault that opens only with a pattern you draw. [Download on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/app/vaultforyou/id0000000000) See [how to hide photos in Messages](/en-gb/hide-photos/messages) for the in-app options. ## Other ways to hide Messages - **Remove it from the Home Screen.** Touch and hold Messages, tap **Remove App**, then **Remove from Home Screen**. It moves to App Library and still shows in search. - **Keep it out of Siri and search.** Go to **Settings -> Siri -> Excluded Apps**, tap **Add Apps** and select Messages. Apple says excluded apps aren't available to Siri, Search or suggestions. - **Hide its notification previews.** Go to **Settings -> Notifications -> Messages -> Show Previews** and choose **Never** or **When Unlocked**. ## Does hiding Messages hide its notifications, Siri suggestions, Spotlight and backups? | Where | Locked with Face ID | Removed from Home Screen | |---|---|---| | Notification previews | Content hidden | Still shown | | Siri suggestions | Not shown | Still shown | | Spotlight search | Content hidden | Still shown | | iCloud backup | Unchanged | Unchanged | Apple says information inside a locked or hidden app doesn't appear in places like notification previews, search and Siri suggestions. Hiding never changes what your iPhone backs up. ## Hide Messages on iPad The same Require Face ID menu works on iPad with iPadOS 18 or later. Hiding doesn't sync through iCloud, so hide Messages separately on each device. ## Frequently asked questions ### Can you hide Messages on iPhone? Not in the Hidden folder. Messages comes with iPhone, and Apple only lets you hide App Store apps. You can remove it from your Home Screen so it lives only in App Library, and you can lock it with Require Face ID so it needs your face or passcode to open. ### Where does Messages go when you remove it from the Home Screen? It moves to App Library, the last page after your Home Screens. Messages stays installed and keeps all its data. You can also still find it by swiping down on the Home Screen and searching for its name. Drag it back to a Home Screen page any time. ### Does hiding Messages delete it or its data? No. Hiding or removing Messages from the Home Screen doesn't delete the app or anything in it. Only Delete App removes it from your iPhone. Data that Messages syncs through iCloud stays in iCloud either way. ### Can someone tell that I hid Messages? Possibly. The Hidden folder itself is visible at the bottom of App Library, though it needs Face ID or your passcode to open. Messages can also still appear in Screen Time, the Battery list and your App Store purchase history. Anyone who knows your passcode can open everything. ### Does hiding Messages on iPhone hide it on my iPad? No. Apple says hidden and locked apps don't sync through iCloud, so the setting only applies to the iPhone where you set it. If you use Messages on an iPad, hide it there too with the same Require Face ID menu. ## Bottom line Messages can't be hidden, but it can be taken off your Home Screen and locked. Add Messages' own settings to hide what's inside it. For photos, a vault is the only option that takes them out of Photos. ## 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: Change Siri settings on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/change-siri-settings-iphc28624b81abc/ios) - [Apple Support: Change notification settings on iPhone](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/change-notification-settings-iph7c3d96bab/ios) - [Apple Support: Lock or hide an app on iPad](https://support.apple.com/guide/ipad/lock-or-hide-an-app-ipad4026f2de/ipados) - [Apple Support: Lock or hide apps on your iPhone (Personal Safety User Guide)](https://support.apple.com/guide/personal-safety/lock-or-hide-apps-on-your-iphone-ipsd0be4c185/web) - [Apple Support: View conversations from unknown senders in Messages on your iPhone](https://support.apple.com/en-us/125068) - [Apple Support: Use Messages on your iPhone or iPad](https://support.apple.com/en-us/104982) - [Apple Support: Use Shared with You on your iPhone and iPad](https://support.apple.com/en-us/102197) ## More Messages privacy guides - [How to hide photos in Messages](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-photos/messages) - [Messages privacy on iPhone: every setting](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/apps/messages) ## Hide apps for other apps - [How to hide WhatsApp on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps/whatsapp) - [How to hide Facebook Messenger on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps/messenger) - [How to hide Signal on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps/signal) - [How to hide Telegram on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps/telegram) - [How to hide LINE on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps/line) - [How to hide Viber on iPhone](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps/viber) - [All hide-app guides](https://www.vaultforyou.app/en-gb/hide-apps) --- 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