How to Delete Stickers on iPhone: A Complete Guide

Stickers are a fun and expressive way to communicate through iMessage on your iPhone. Whether you're sending emojis, animated characters, or custom creations, they can add personality to your texts. However, as your collection grows, you might find yourself overwhelmed by sticker packs you no longer use - or maybe you’ve installed a few by accident. If you're wondering how to delete stickers on your iPhone, you’re in the right place. How to delete stickers on iPhone: a complete guide? In this guide, we will walk you through everything you need to know about managing and deleting stickers on iPhone, whether they’re part of a sticker pack, third-party app, or individual custom stickers you have created.

1. Understanding Stickers on iPhone

Before jumping into the steps, let’s take a moment to understand how stickers work on iOS:

iMessage Stickers: These come from the App Store and can be downloaded directly through the iMessage app.
Third-party App Stickers: Some apps (like Bitmoji or GIPHY) integrate with iMessage and provide stickers.
Custom Stickers: iOS also allows you to create stickers from your photos using the “Lift Subject from Background” feature (iOS 16 and later).

Each type of sticker can be managed differently. Let’s look at how to delete or remove them.

2. How to Delete Sticker Packs from iMessage

Many stickers on your iPhone come from sticker packs downloaded through the iMessage App Store. To remove them:

Step-by-Step Instructions:

Open the Messages app on your iPhone.
Open any conversation.
Tap the App Store icon (the "A" icon) to the left of the text field.
Swipe through the app drawer to find the sticker pack you want to remove.
Scroll all the way to the end and tap on the three dots (...) More button.
You’ll see a list of all your iMessage apps and sticker packs.
Tap Edit (top-left).
Scroll to the sticker pack you want to delete.
Tap the minus (-) sign next to it.
Tap Remove from Choices or toggle the switch off to disable it.

Note: This method disables the sticker pack from appearing in the iMessage drawer, but doesn’t completely uninstall it from your iPhone.

3. How to Uninstall Sticker Apps Completely

If you want to completely delete a sticker app from your iPhone (not just from Messages), follow these steps:

Method 1: From the Home Screen

Go to your Home Screen.
Find the sticker app you want to delete (some appear as standalone apps).
Tap & just hold the app icon until a menu appears.
Tap Remove App > Delete App.

Method 2: From Settings

Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage.
Scroll and find the sticker app.
Tap on the app.
Tap Delete App.

4. How to Delete Custom Stickers Made from Photos (iOS 16+)

If you have used the “Lift Subject from Background” feature to create stickers from your photos, they may appear in your Stickers drawer in iMessage. To delete these:

Steps to Delete Custom Photo Stickers:

Open Messages and start a new message or open any conversation.
Tap the emoji/sticker icon next to the text field.
Tap the Sticker icon (typically a small square face).
Tap Recents or Custom Stickers tab.
Tap and hold the sticker you want to delete.
Select Delete or Remove from Recents.

Note: In iOS 17 and later, you can also manage custom stickers through the Photos app by finding the original image used and removing its sticker if it's linked.

5. How to Remove Third-Party Sticker Integrations (e.g., Bitmoji, GIPHY)

If you have installed third-party keyboard or messaging apps that include sticker functionality, you might want to disconnect or delete them.

To Delete Bitmoji Stickers:

Go to your Home Screen.
Locate the Bitmoji app.
Long press and tap Remove App > Delete App.

To Disable Bitmoji or GIPHY in Messages:

Open Messages and tap a conversation.
Tap the App Store icon > swipe to Bitmoji or GIPHY.
Tap the three dots (...) > Edit.
Toggle off Bitmoji or GIPHY.
Tap Done.

6. Hiding Stickers from Frequently Used or Recents

Sometimes you don’t want to delete a sticker pack, but just don’t want it showing up in your frequently used.

Here’s how to remove stickers from “Recents”:

Open Messages.
Tap the emoji/sticker icon.
Go to the Recents tab.
Tap and hold a sticker you desire to remove.
Tap Delete or Remove from Recents (if available).

Unfortunately, there's no "clear all" button for Recents, but deleting them one by one works.

7. Troubleshooting Sticker Removal

Here are some quick fixes if you’re having issues removing stickers:

Restart your iPhone: Sometimes deleted sticker packs still show up. A quick restart often clears the cache.
Update iOS: New iOS versions may improve how stickers are managed.
Reinstall & Remove: Reinstall the sticker app, then properly uninstall it from your device.
Reset Keyboard Dictionary: If stickers are linked to predictive text, you can reset it via Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset Keyboard Dictionary.

8. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1. Can I permanently delete stickers from iPhone?

Yes. If it’s a standalone app, delete it via the Home Screen or Settings. For custom or recent stickers, delete them from within the Messages app.

Q2. Can I hide stickers without deleting?

Yes. You can remove them from the iMessage drawer or recent list without uninstalling the app.

Q3. Why do stickers keep showing up after I delete them?

Restart your iPhone or ensure the sticker app is fully uninstalled. Some iMessage apps auto-reinstall if not properly removed.

Conclusion

While stickers on iPhone can be a blast to use, managing them is key to keeping your messaging experience clean and efficient. Whether you want to clean up your iMessage drawer, delete custom photo stickers, or remove third-party apps altogether, the steps above will help you take full control.

As Apple continues updating iOS, sticker management becomes more intuitive. But for now, with a bit of tapping and swiping, you can delete, hide, or disable stickers on iPhone easily and keep your messages as neat (or quirky) as you like.

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