How To Hide Apps On Android With The New Private Space

Until now, it’s been a pain to try and hide apps on Android. However, the new Private Space feature on Android 15 makes it possible to tuck away apps in a protected zone. In fact, it’s a lot stronger than the feature that lets you hide apps on an iPhone.

Android 15’s Private Space is not just a different, secluded area to keep sensitive apps hidden from, say, children who borrow your phone to play a game. It’s a completely isolated zone, where you can even sign in with a different Google account so as to keep the data stored in those private apps completely separate from those on the “main” phone.

Here’s how to set it up.

Hide Apps On Android

First, you’ll need to make sure your phone is upgraded to Android 15. It’s a relatively new release and Android handset makers can be sluggish in offering operating system updates, so it might be a while before it’s offered to your phone. Recent Google Pixel handset owners should have been offered the upgrade.

Once your phone has received Android 15:

1. Go to the Settings app
2. Select Security and privacy
3. Choose Private Space

You’ll now get a walkthrough that explains how Private Space works and how to set it up. But there are a couple of options you’ll need to consider before you do.

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The first is how the Private Space is secured. You can choose to use the phone’s existing screen lock (maybe your fingerprint, face recognition or a PIN/pattern), or you can choose to use a new authentication method (such as a different PIN) to protect this space. If you’re only worried about keeping some apps away from your kids, your existing screen lock mechanism is probably fine.

The second factor here is whether you want to create a new Google account. This will allow you to keep apps in the Private Space completely isolated from the rest of the phone. For example, if you install a web browser in your Private Space, none of your browsing history will be synced with the browser on your main phone. It’s a complete belt and braces approach.

How To Install Hidden Apps In The Private Space

You can’t just drag and drop apps into the Private Space, nor choose to move apps from the “main” phone to the private area. If you want to add an app to the Private Space, you have to install it afresh from the Google Play Store.

This means, however, you can have two different instances of the same app on the one phone. So, for example, if you manage a Facebook account for work and have a personal Facebook account, you can put the work account in the Private Space and keep the two entirely separate, reducing the risk of embarrassing mistakes.

To install an app in the Private Space, you have to scroll down to the bottom of the app drawer (the screen that contains all of your installed apps), and unlock the Private Space with whichever authentication method you chose previously.

You’ll see a selection of Google apps lurking in there – Chrome, Photos, Files etc – but you can also press the Install button and download anything you like from the Play Store. If you didn’t set up a new Google account for the Private Space, you’ll need to sign in again with your Google credentials.

How To Hide The Private Space

If you want to avoid even revealing the fact you’ve got a Private Space – perhaps because you’ve got an abusive partner checking your phone – you can hide it from the app drawer.

Select Settings > Security and privacy > Private space and select the option to hide the Private Space. To access the space, you’ll need to type “private space” into the phone’s search bar and click on the padlock icon that will appear in the bar.

Obviously, this means the presence of a Private Space isn’t completely impossible to disguise from someone who access to your phone and knows the above method, so think carefully if you’re in a situation where you’re attempting to hide apps from someone.

Also note that any apps in the Private Space won’t run in the background or show notifications in the main notifications area. This means it’s not a suitable place to hide apps on Android that need to be running constantly, such as health monitoring apps.