If you’re an iPhone owner, you know how irritating and upsetting it can be when your device starts running slowly.
A slow-moving iPhone can strongly affect your user experience, and it can also be caused by a number of things. From a lack of storage space to not being updated, there’s a whole lot that can contribute to a slow-moving phone. One of those things is the kind of apps you have on it, as using them or simply having them downloaded might make your iPhone’s speed worse. Read more about three of them below.
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1. Facebook
Facebook is often considered the blueprint for most of today's modern social media apps, and though it contains a lot of entertaining features, those features are what can end up slowing down your iPhone over time.
"If you're still using Facebook in 2026, you should know Meta's app is heavy on background refreshing, notifications, and media preloading, which means that by the time you open the app, even if your internet connection isn't ideal, you're able to scroll through several posts and media," wrote tech writer José Adorno for BGR. "This constant activity in the background can put additional strain on the battery life of your iPhone and even contribute to slowdowns on older devices."
2. Apps You Never Use
This might sound obvious, but if there is a selection of apps on your iPhone you used to use, like games, photo editing apps, and more, but hardly touch them anymore. As it turns out, these apps can take up too much storage space, subsequently making your iPhone run slower. If you don't want to delete certain ones, you can offload them.
"Apps you opened once in 2021 and forgot about are still living rent-free in your phone's head and slowing things down," explains tech repair pro Sam Devia. "They take up storage and background resources even when you never touch them. To fix this, go to Settings, then General, then iPhone Storage, and turn on Offload Unused Apps. The icon stays on your home screen, and if you ever need the app again, it will download automatically."
3. Waze or Google Maps
Navigation apps are a gift for many, especially those who need to make long drives for work or school, commute in a big city, travel, etc. However, they house a lot of data and require a lot of power, making them more taxing on your iPhone than you may think.
"Navigation apps like Waze are among the most demanding apps you can have on your iPhone," adds Adorno. "If the phone is already suffering from poor battery health and regular technology aging, then Waze, Google Maps, and other navigation apps can noticeably impact your experience. After all, these apps heavily rely on continuous GPS, real-time data, and map rendering."
