moss vs Removing or deleting apps
Take an app off the Home Screen, hide a whole page, or delete the app.
Checked 11 November 2026 against Apple's own pages. We make moss, so we have linked every source below.
What Removing or deleting apps is
You can press and hold an app and remove it from the Home Screen, hide a whole Home Screen page, or delete the app outright. All of it is free. A removed or hidden app still appears in the App Library and in search, so it is a few taps away. A deleted app has to be installed again, which takes longer, though a social network can usually still be reached in Safari. We found no study that isolates this trick.
What moss is
moss is an iPhone app that comes with a small physical stone. You choose the apps that distract you, tap your phone on the stone, and those apps stay locked until you tap the stone again. People who live together can link their phones to share schedules and put their phones down at the same time, while each person keeps control of their own phone. Locking is free in the app, the stone is a one-time purchase, and the household features are a paid add-on.
Side by side
| Feature | moss | Removing or deleting apps |
|---|---|---|
| Price | US$49 stone, free app | Free |
| Subscription | None to lock your own phone. Household features are a paid add-on | None |
| Works on | iPhone only, iOS 17 or later | iPhone |
| How you lock | Tap the stone, or start from the app, a Shortcut, the lock screen or the Action Button. Schedules by day of week | The app is out of sight, or gone from the phone |
| How you unlock | Tap the stone, in the app | Search or the App Library, or install the app again |
| If you need back in | 3 emergency unlocks a month, refilled automatically | Install the app again |
| Locking together as a household | Yes, as a paid add-on. Shared schedules, sessions others join in one tap, a view of whose phone is down, a streak. Nobody controls anyone else | None |
| Whose key opens your phone | Only your household's own stone, card and sprigs unlock your phones | No key |
Where Removing or deleting apps is better
- It is free and takes a minute.
- It is permanent, with nothing to do each day.
- A deleted app takes real time to get back, since you have to install it and sign in again.
Where moss is better
- You keep the app for the hours you do want it.
- Block app installs is there if you want to stop yourself reinstalling.
- Schedules bring the lock back every day without you doing anything.
Who should pick which
Pick Removing or deleting apps if
You have an app you would be better off without altogether.
Pick moss if
You want the app some of the time and gone the rest. Deleting the worst one and locking the others works well.
Sources
Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.
moss is a stone that locks the apps you choose.
Tap to lock, tap to unlock. One price, and locking needs no subscription.
