Stop a download in progress on iPhone and iPad

Have you ever started downloading an app, then regretted it? Have you decided that you want to stop an app download when you realize that you don’t have enough storage, or that you don’t want to consume the last remaining storage space you have? The normal thing has been to continue with the download and delete it after the fact, but did you know you can stop the download in progress on iPhone and iPad without waiting for the app install?

You can stop a download in progress on iPhone and iPad by following the steps below:

• In order to stop a download in progress on iPhone and iPad, you must have already started downloading an app. If you haven’t downloaded the app yet but want to try this tutorial on for size, you’ll need to start downloading the app first.
• Next, to stop a download in progress on iPhone and iPad, you’ll need to go to the desktop where the app is starting to download onto it. If you go to the desktop, you’ll see the app faintly in the background, with a progress circle showing how far it must go before the app installs.
• Tap the app as the circle starts progressing, which will pause the app and eventually stop the app from downloading. The app, faint in the background during the download, will now disappear from the desktop.

You can always resume an app download when the time is right, but to stop a download in progress on iPhone and iPad just may save you for now — even if temporarily.

Deidre Richardson

Deidre Richardson (dual B.A., History and Music, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) stumbled upon tech a little later in life than expected. After picking up her first smartphone (the Galaxy S3), the rest is history. She currently writes for SamMobile, the largest Samsung fan site worldwide, as well as smartwatch site smartwatch.me.