An iPhone Home Screen where a single app tile is sealed behind a glowing padlock, representing an app locked with Face ID.

How to Lock Apps on iPhone with Face ID

iOS 18 added a built in way to lock any app on your iPhone behind Face ID, so handing your phone to someone no longer means an open door to your messages, banking, or Photos. This guide shows how to lock and hide apps, and where that protection quietly stops.

On iOS 18 or later, touch and hold any app icon, tap Require Face ID, and confirm. The app then asks for Face ID every time it opens, and its contents stay out of Search, Siri, and notification previews. To make the app itself disappear, choose Hide and Require Face ID so it moves into the locked Hidden folder in the App Library.

What locking an app with Face ID actually does

When you lock an app, iOS asks for Face ID, Touch ID, or your passcode every single time you open it. The change is instant and fully reversible, and it works on almost any app sitting on your Home Screen or in the App Library. There is no new password to invent or remember, because the lock reuses the same authentication that already unlocks your iPhone.

Locking also quiets the app across the rest of the system. Its content stops appearing in Search and Siri suggestions, notification previews are held back until you authenticate, and the app will not spill into shared sheets or the share menu. A locked banking or Photos app no longer leaks a preview on your Lock Screen or in a quick search while a friend is holding your phone to look at something else, which is exactly the moment most private content gets seen by accident.

How to lock any app on your iPhone

Touch and hold the app icon until the quick actions menu appears, then tap Require Face ID. Your iPhone shows Require Touch ID or Require Passcode instead if that is the method it uses. Confirm with a glance or your code and the lock takes effect immediately. To remove it later, touch and hold the app again and choose Don't Require Face ID.

The feature lives in iOS 18 or later, so update your iPhone first if you do not see the option in the menu. A locked app still shows on your Home Screen and still appears by name in Search, it simply refuses to open its contents without authentication. If you want the app icon itself to vanish from view so no one even knows it is installed, use the hide option covered next.

How to hide an app completely

From the same touch and hold menu, choose Require Face ID and then Hide and Require Face ID. The app leaves your Home Screen and moves into a locked Hidden folder at the bottom of the App Library, and its notifications and badges go silent. To reach it again, scroll to the Hidden folder and authenticate with Face ID to reveal what is inside.

Hiding has limits worth knowing before you rely on it. A short list of built in Apple apps cannot be locked or hidden, and some apps tied to accounts you use elsewhere will not offer the hide option. Hiding an app also does not delete or encrypt anything inside it, so the data is still fully intact for anyone who can pass the Face ID prompt.

Where app locking stops, and how to protect private photos

App locking is a convenience barrier, not encryption. It reuses your device passcode, so anyone who knows the code you use to unlock your iPhone can also authenticate into a locked app. Lock the Photos app and your pictures are still full resolution files sitting in your library, and they still sync to iCloud, where they can be opened from iCloud.com or any device signed in to your Apple Account.

For photos and documents you never want another person to reach, move them into an encrypted vault that has its own passcode, kept separate from the one that unlocks your phone. Vaultaire keeps every item encrypted on device, so even someone who can unlock your iPhone and clear the Face ID prompt still cannot open the vault without its own code.

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Frequently asked questions

Which apps can I lock with Face ID on iPhone?

You can lock almost any app you download from the App Store, along with most built in Apple apps. A short list of system apps cannot be locked or hidden, and the feature requires iOS 18 or later, so update your iPhone if you do not see the option.

Does locking an app hide its notifications?

Locking holds back the app's notification previews and keeps its content out of Search until you authenticate. Hiding the app goes further and silences its badges and alerts entirely while it sits in the locked Hidden folder in the App Library.

Can someone open a locked app if they know my passcode?

Yes. App locking reuses the same Face ID and device passcode that unlock your iPhone, so anyone who can unlock the phone can also authenticate into a locked app. It stops casual snooping, but it is not a separate secret. For a barrier that survives a shared passcode, use a vault app that has its own independent passcode.

Is locking the Photos app enough to keep photos private?

Locking Photos keeps casual snoopers out, but the images are still full resolution files in your library and still sync to iCloud. Someone signed in to your Apple Account can view them from another device, so move truly private photos into an encrypted vault.

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