How to Restore Apps and Games to Your iPhone or iPad

You can remove apps you aren't using and download them again later

By
Daniel Nations
Daniel Nations
Daniel Nations
Writer
  • University of Texas at Arlington
Daniel Nations has been a tech journalist since 1994. His work has appeared in Computer Currents, The Examiner, and other publications. He is a developer who has published apps in the Apple App Store, Google Play marketplace and Amazon Appstore; he also has worked as a data analyst and DB administrator.
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Updated on May 15, 2020

What to Know

  • Launch the App Store, tap your profile picture, and tap Purchased from the profile settings.
  • Tap Not on This iPhone or Not on This iPad. These options narrow the apps down to those you no longer have installed on the device.
  • Locate the app and tap the cloud button to restore it to the iPhone or iPad.

This article explains how to restore previously purchased apps and games to your iPhone or iPad.

How to Restore Previously Deleted Apps

These instructions apply to devices running iOS 5 and later.

  1. First, launch the App Store. If you have a lot of apps downloaded to your iPad and don't want to hunt for the App Store icon, you can use the Spotlight Search feature. 

  2. Tap your profile picture at the upper-right corner of the screen.

    The profile button doesn't show up on the search screen, so you may need to tap Today on the tab at the bottom for it to appear.

    Profile button on iPad App Store

  3. Tap Purchased from the profile settings.

    If you have Family Sharing turned on, you may need to tap My Purchases from a second screen.

    Purchased button on App Store Account on iPad

  4. At the top of the purchased list, tap Not on This iPhone or Not on This iPad. These options narrow the apps down to those you no longer have installed on the device.

  5. Scroll down the list until you locate the app and tap the cloud button to restore it to the iPad.

    iCloud button to re-download a previously purchased app on iPad

  6. If you have an older device or haven't upgraded to the latest version of the iOS operating system, you may get an alert that the app is incompatible with your device. You can download the last version of the app that supported your operating system or update iOS to the latest version before downloading.

You can also search for an app to reinstall in the App Store. Apps you've purchased will have the cloud button rather than having a price. You can even search for apps in Spotlight Search without opening the App Store. 

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