Key Takeaways
- iOS 18 made app locking native. Long-press any app, tap Require Face ID, and only your face (or device passcode) can open it. No third-party tool needed.
- Hide is stronger than lock. The Hidden Apps folder in iOS 18 removes an app from the home screen, search, and Siri suggestions, so anyone who picks up your phone won’t know the app exists.
- For kids, Screen Time still does the heavy lifting. App Limits and Content & Privacy Restrictions block apps on a child’s phone, but only with a unique Screen Time passcode your child doesn’t know.
- For young kids, a closed environment beats an endless lockdown. Apps like Jellies give children a pre-reviewed space where there’s nothing to lock in the first place.
You hand your phone to your child to show them a photo. They tap the wrong corner and your Messages open. Or a friend grabs your phone to look at a recipe and a dating app pops up in Recents.
For years, iPhones offered no real way to lock individual apps without third-party tools or Screen Time hacks. iOS 18 changed that. This article shows how to lock apps on iPhone in five practical ways, starting with iOS 18’s Face ID lock and covering the iPhone parental controls parents use on a child’s device. Every method uses tools already on your phone.
Why Lock Apps on iPhone?
Locking apps on iPhone protects sensitive apps like banking and Messages from prying eyes, keeps kids out of apps they shouldn’t open on a shared family iPhone, and helps adults curb their own social media use. iOS 18 finally made it a built-in feature instead of a workaround.
Privacy from people who borrow your phone. Most adults hand their phone to someone else a few times a week. A friend wanting to see a video, a coworker looking up a number, a child wanting to play a game. None of those moments should give the other person a window into your Photos, Messages, bank app, or dating app.
Parental control on a shared iPhone. On a family iPhone or a child’s hand-me-down device, the use case flips. You’re not protecting the phone, your child is being protected from it. Locking apps and blocking websites on iPhone work as complementary protections. According to Common Sense Media’s 2025 Census, 51% of children age 8 and younger have their own mobile device, but plenty of others share a parent’s phone daily.
Focus and self-control for adults. The third use case is locking yourself out. Reddit and Quora are full of adults asking how to lock TikTok, Instagram, or X for specific hours, or until a certain time of day. Pair app locks with consistent screen time rules to make the change stick.
5 Ways to Lock Apps on iPhone
There are five reliable ways to lock apps on iPhone. The first two are new in iOS 18 and work for individual apps you choose. The next three use Screen Time and work on any recent iOS version, including older iPhones. You can jump to the method that fits your iOS version and use case.
Method 1: How to Lock Apps on iPhone with Face ID (iOS 18+)
On iOS 18, any app can be locked behind Face ID, Touch ID, or your device passcode. Long-press the app, tap Require Face ID, and the app stays on your home screen but won’t open without authentication. Notifications and content previews are hidden too.
This method needs iOS 18 or later. If your iPhone is older, jump to Method 3.
What this method locks: the app’s content, notifications, and search previews. The icon stays visible on the home screen, useful for apps you want one tap away (banking, Messages, dating) but private from anyone else holding your phone. Lock certain apps individually; you don’t have to lock every app.
Lock an app behind Face ID
1. Touch and hold the app icon on the home screen or in App Library.
2. Tap Require Face ID (or Require Touch ID / Require Passcode on devices without Face ID).
3. Confirm with Face ID.
4. Tap Require Face ID again on the confirmation popup.
Unlock or remove the lock
1. Touch and hold the locked app.
2. Tap Don’t Require Face ID.
3. Confirm with Face ID.
One thing to know: the lock is only as strong as your device passcode. Anyone who knows it can authenticate as you, so if your child has watched you unlock your phone, the Face ID lock won’t stop them.
Method 2: How to Hide Apps on iPhone in the Hidden Apps Folder (iOS 18+)
iOS 18 added a Hidden Apps folder inside App Library. Apps moved there disappear from the home screen, don’t show in Spotlight search, and require Face ID to open. This is the strongest single-app lock Apple offers.
Apple’s own page is titled “Lock or hide an app on iPhone” because the two features pair together. A hidden app is locked plus invisible: gone from the home screen, App Library list, Spotlight, Siri suggestions, and the App Store’s purchased list. Use this for apps no one else should know are installed.
Move an app to the Hidden folder
1. Touch and hold the app icon.
2. Tap Require Face ID, then tap Hide and Require Face ID.
3. Tap Hide App to confirm.
4. Authenticate with Face ID.
Find and access your hidden apps
1. Open App Library by swiping left past your last home screen.
2. Scroll to the bottom. The Hidden folder sits below all your other app categories.
3. Tap the folder and authenticate with Face ID.
A few apps can’t be hidden, including Phone, Messages, FaceTime, and Settings. Apple won’t let you remove these from the home screen.
Method 3: How to Lock Apps on iPhone Using Screen Time App Limits
Screen Time’s App Limits lock any app after a set amount of daily use. Pair with a Screen Time passcode and the lock survives even when your child knows your phone unlock. This is the only method that works on iOS 17 and earlier.
This is the right method for time-based locks (lock TikTok after 30 minutes a day, lock games after 9 pm), and the only option for older iPhones that can’t run iOS 18.
Set a time limit that effectively locks the app
1. Open Settings → Screen Time → App Limits.
2. Tap Add Limit and choose an app category (Social, Entertainment, Games) or a specific app.
3. Set the daily time. For a hard lock, set 1 minute.
4. Toggle Block at End of Limit on. Without this toggle, the user can tap Ignore Limit and continue.
Schedule a downtime lock
For locking apps for a certain time each day rather than after a daily allowance:
1. Settings → Screen Time → Downtime.
2. Set the start and end times.
3. Under Always Allowed, remove any apps that should be locked during downtime.
Lock the lock with a Screen Time passcode
Without a Screen Time passcode, anyone (including your child) can lift the App Limit in seconds.
1. Settings → Screen Time → Use Screen Time Passcode.
2. Enter a 4-digit code different from your phone unlock.
3. Add your Apple ID for passcode recovery.
Don’t reuse your phone unlock code. Our 12 ways kids bypass Screen Time post covers the workarounds children actually use, including watching parents enter the code.
Method 4: How to Block Apps on Your Child’s iPhone Entirely
For a child’s iPhone, Screen Time’s Content & Privacy Restrictions block entire app categories or specific apps from opening or installing at all. Stronger than time limits, and the right choice when the iPhone belongs to your child rather than you.
To lock apps on iPhone for kids more aggressively, head into Content & Privacy Restrictions. Before starting, kid-proof your iPhone with Family Sharing if you haven’t already.
Block specific apps with Allowed Apps
1. Settings → Screen Time → Content & Privacy Restrictions and turn it on.
2. Tap Allowed Apps.
3. Toggle off any built-in app you want blocked entirely: Safari, Mail, FaceTime, Camera, Wallet, AirDrop.
This only blocks Apple’s built-in apps. For third-party apps like TikTok or Instagram, use the next step or fall back to Method 3’s App Limits.
Block app installs and third-party apps
1. Settings → Screen Time → Content & Privacy Restrictions → iTunes & App Store Purchases.
2. Set Installing Apps to Don’t Allow.
3. For age-based filtering, go to Content Restrictions → Apps and pick a maximum age rating.
Method 5: How to Lock Your Child Into One App with Guided Access
Guided Access is the opposite of app locking. Instead of locking apps off-limits, it locks the phone into one app so the child can’t leave. Useful for handing the phone to a young child with one safe app open.
Best for handing the phone to a toddler with one safe app open, so they can’t swipe over to Messages or the App Store.
Turn on Guided Access
1. Settings → Accessibility → Guided Access and turn it on.
2. Tap Passcode Settings and set a Guided Access passcode.
3. Optionally enable Face ID to end a session faster.
Lock into a single app
1. Open the app the child should be locked into.
2. Triple-click the side button (or Home button on older iPhones).
3. Tap Start in the top-right corner.
4. To end the session: triple-click again and authenticate.
How to Lock Apps on iPhone Without Screen Time
To lock apps on iPhone without Screen Time, use iOS 18’s Face ID lock (Method 1) or the Hidden Apps folder (Method 2). Both work independently of Screen Time. Third-party app lockers exist in the App Store, but most rely on the same iOS 18 features Apple now provides natively.
Some users want app locks without enabling Screen Time at all. Maybe it’s too much friction on a personal phone, or you don’t want the activity tracking. Three options:
- Face ID lock (Method 1) for individual apps you still want one-tap accessible but private.
- Hidden Apps folder (Method 2) for apps you want to disappear entirely from the home screen and search.
- Third-party app lockers like BioProtect XS or AppLock. Most have a free tier. Almost all require iOS 18 underneath, so they offer little beyond what Apple already provides.
For older iPhones that can’t run iOS 18, Screen Time App Limits remain the only built-in option.
Common Mistakes Parents Make When Locking Apps on iPhone
Locking an app is the easy part. Keeping it locked when your child gets clever is where parents trip up.
- Skipping the Screen Time passcode. Without it, your child can turn off restrictions in seconds. Set a unique 4-digit code that isn’t your phone unlock.
- Using your phone unlock as your Screen Time passcode. If your child has ever watched you unlock your iPhone, they have your Screen Time passcode too.
- Locking the app but leaving the website open. Most apps have a web version, so locking Instagram while Safari is open just teaches the child to use the browser. Pair app locks with the block websites on iPhone setup.
- Forgetting that Face ID locks don’t hide the app. A child still sees the icon and knows the app exists. Use the Hidden Apps folder for apps the child shouldn’t even know are there.
When Locking Isn’t Enough: A Different Approach for Young Kids
Locking apps is reactive. You’re naming the apps you don’t want your child to open, one by one, and racing against the next app they discover.
For younger children, some parents skip the per-app lock entirely and use a closed environment instead. A space where every piece of content has been hand-reviewed before the child sees it, so there’s nothing to lock down.
That’s what Jellies does. A video app for kids where every video is reviewed by our team for safety, with no ads, no autoplay surprises, and no comments section. For households with young kids, browsing what’s safe by design at jelliesapp.com is worth a look.
Wrapping Up
Five methods, in order of how often you’ll use them: Face ID lock for sensitive apps on your own phone, the Hidden Apps folder for apps no one should see, Screen Time App Limits for time-based locks and older iPhones, Content & Privacy Restrictions for a child’s iPhone, and Guided Access for locking a young kid into one safe app.
Start small. Long-press your three most sensitive apps right now and tap Require Face ID. That’s 30 seconds of work for a meaningful upgrade in privacy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you lock apps on iPhone?
Yes, in three ways. iOS 18 devices can use the built-in Face ID lock or move apps to the Hidden Apps folder. Older iPhones use Screen Time App Limits.
How do I lock apps on iPhone with a password?
The Face ID lock (Method 1) uses your device passcode as the fallback, which is effectively a password lock. Third-party apps with separate passwords exist but rarely add anything iOS 18 doesn’t already offer.
Can you lock apps on iPhone for a certain time?
Yes, with Screen Time’s App Limits (daily time budget) or Downtime (specific hours each day). Set Block at End of Limit on, or the lock can be skipped with one tap.
How do I lock apps on iPhone without Face ID?
On Touch ID iPhones, the same long-press method uses Touch ID. On older iPhones without either, Screen Time App Limits with a Screen Time passcode is the only built-in option.
Can my child get around the app lock?
Yes, if they know your device passcode or your Screen Time passcode. Use a different code for each, and don’t let your child see you enter either one.