How Do I Delete Applications from My Android Device?

If your Android phone or tablet is filling up with too many apps, this is a good time to review what you have installed and do some housecleaning. Here's how you uninstall the downloaded apps you don't use anymore.

First, a warning. If you want to delete an app that shipped with your phone, you're mostly out of luck. Shy of going to drastic measures and rooting your phone, the system apps have to stay. Most of these apps are tied into the inner workings of your phone and deleting them could potentially break other apps. System apps include Gmail, Google Maps, Chrome browser, and Google Search. Some manufacturers, such as Samsung and Sony, put their own system apps on their phones and tablets in addition to the Google apps, and some, like the Amazon Kindle, remove all Google apps entirely and include a different set of system apps.

If you have a standard version of Android, the steps to delete or uninstall an app are simple. There may be some variation for some varieties of phones, such as those made by Samsung, Sony, or LG, but this method works on most of them.

For older versions of Android before Ice Cream Sandwich:

1. Tap on the Menu button (either a hard or soft button).
2. Tap on  Settings > Applications > Manage applications
3. Tap on the app you want to delete.
4. Tap on Uninstall.

If there's no uninstall button, it's a system app, and you can't delete it.

For most recent versions of Android:

You can either go to Settings > Apps and use the steps for the older versions of Android or:

For versions after Jelly Bean:

1. Open the app tray.
2. Long-press on the app. (Hold your finger down on the app until you feel a feedback vibration and notice the screen has changed.)
3. Drag the app onto the Home screen.
4. Continue dragging to the upper left corner, where you should see a trash can and the word Uninstall.
5. Release your finger over the Uninstall button.
6. If you only see an area labeled App Info at the top of the screen, you cannot delete that app. 

This doesn't apply to all Samsung devices, but if the general instructions don't work on your device, try this:

1. Tap on the Recent apps button followed by Task manager.
2. Navigate to the Download tab and find the offending app.
3. Tap the Uninstall button next to the app.
4. Tap OK.

If you don't see an Uninstall button, you can't delete the app using this method.

Amazon elected to go with an older version of Android and customize it to pieces, so the instructions to remove apps are different. You can manage your Kindle from your Amazon account on the web, but here's how you delete apps using the device itself:

1. Go to the Home screen and tap on the Apps tab.
2. Tap on the Device tab. (This shows you only apps on your Kindle as opposed to all the apps you could potentially store on your Kindle.)
3. Long-press on the app until you feel or see a response. 
4. Tap Remove from Device. 

It's worth noting that you're not locked into the Amazon App Store when you install apps. While you retain access to Kindle apps you've installed through Amazon, you don't necessarily have that same access to apps you installed through third-party app stores or side-loaded on your device.

Nearly all Android app stores let you keep your license to reinstall a purchased app. If you uninstall an app you purchased from Google Play, for example, you can download it again if you change your mind later. Amazon allows you to delete your access to a purchased app forever, but you must do that through your Amazon account on the web. It is a much more involved act than just uninstalling it from a device. This may come in handy if you deem an app offensive and never want to see it again.

Occasionally you may run into an app that makes other apps, so you find yourself deleting apps you don't remember ever installing. No, you're not imagining things. You can read more about avoiding Android spam, but if you can find the offending app, you can get rid of this problem. Fortunately, app stores are cracking down on this sort of nuisance.