George writes: I have deleted apps and noticed they are stored on iCloud after being deleted. Is there any way to delete unwanted apps from iCloud? Any help would be appreciated.

Hi George! While you can’t actually delete unwanted apps from iCloud, you can hide them from your list of purchased items.

(And in case you’re wondering, no—purchased apps don’t count against your allotment of iCloud storage.)

iTunes hide a purchased app from iCloud

You can hide apps, music, videos, or books from your Purchased list with a little help from iTunes.

Now, you used to be able to hide purchased apps directly from your iPhone/iPad, but that feature seems to have been disabled sometime after last fall’s big iOS 6 update.

That said, you can still hide apps—or purchased music, videos, or books for that matter—with a little help from iTunes on your Mac or PC.

Here’s how…

  • Just open iTunes, click on the iTunes Store tab, click Apps (or Music or Videos), then click the Purchased link in the right column.
  • You’ll see a grid of all the apps you’ve ever purchased from the App Store, and each one will have a little “X” next to its icon.
  • Click the X, and poof! The app will disappear from your Purchased list.

Bonus tip

Want to get your hidden apps, music, or videos back? No problem…

  • Open iTunes again, click the iTunes Store tab, tap the button marked with your iTunes user name, then select Account.
  • On the next page, under the “iTunes in the Cloud” heading, click the “Manage” link next to “Hidden Purchases.”
  • You should now see a listing of all your hidden purchases in iTunes and the App Store. Just click the “Unhide” button next to anything you want re-listed in your “Purchased” apps.

Looking for more iPhone tips? Click here, or click here for help with your iPad.