If you’ve ever wanted to remove preinstalled apps from Fire TV, you’re on the right page.
Below is a step-by-step guide showing how to remove the unwanted application from your Fire TV.
We are often asked how to delete preinstalled apps from Fire TV.
Luckily, it is not as difficult as you may think and will take you just a few minutes.
Uninstalling or completely removing Firestick/Fire Cube apps can give you more space and may help your device perform better.
You will be able to use the free space to download the applications you want on your Fire TV.
Remove Preinstalled Apps from Fire TV
The first thing you need to know about deleting preinstalled applications on Firestick is that some cannot be removed.
Fire TV needs some services to function properly. Amazon pre-installs these apps to ensure the smooth running of the device.
However, your Firestick also has plenty of bloatware apps that come pre-installed. You’ll be happy to know you can remove these apps easily.
Many users who do want to remove locked preinstalled apps on Fire TV choose to “jailbreak” the device.
By taking this option, you root the Firestick software and can remove any app and side-load 3rd party applications from various app stores.
Because jailbreaking is technical, we will focus on removing preinstalled bloatware apps.
To do this, there are several methods that you can also use to remove any app from Amazon’s Fire TV.
In this tutorial, we will show you how to do it.
Deleting Apps on Firestick/Fire TV
Before jumping into the step-by-step tutorials for each method, it should be noted there are two different Fire TV interfaces.
Our guide will show you how to remove apps from Firesticks/Fire Cubes with the old Fire TV interface and also the new Fire TV interface.
We will also highlight some other interesting methods for removing unwanted apps.
You can see remove apps using the home button or a file manager, and we’ll show you how.
If you’re unsure which interface your device has, you can find out based on the Firestick model you own.
Amazon’s new Fire TV interface is available on the 3rd Gen Firestick, the Firestick Lite, and the Firestick 4K.
Users with older Firestick devices – such as the 1st Gen and 2nd Gen – will be using the old Fire TV interface.
Whichever Fire TV version you are using or whichever device you have, the following methods make it easy to remove preinstalled and unwanted applications.
Remove Apps from New Fire TV Interface
With the tutorial below, you can remove any app – including preinstalled bloatware – from newer Fire TV devices:
Step #1. Navigate to the “Settings” page and select “Applications”.
Step #2. Select “Managed Installed Applications”.
Step #3. Choose the app you want to remove from Fire TV and select it.
Step #4. A page opens showing app options including Force Stop, Clear Cache, and Clear Data. You need to choose the option “Uninstall”.
Step #5. When the “Are you sure?” message appears, select “Uninstall” again.
Fire TV will now remove the delete the application, which may take a few seconds. And that’s it!
You have just successfully removed a preinstalled app on Amazon Fire TV.
Remove Apps from Old Fire TV Interface
If your device has the old Fire TV interface, you can remove unwanted applications by following these steps.
It is worth noting the method is the same aside from how you access the applications on the software:
Step #1. On the Home Screen, navigate to the right to find the “Settings”.
Step #2. Choose “Applications” from the Settings menu.
Step #3. Select “Manage Installed Applications”.
Step #4. Scroll down to find the app you want to remove from Fire TV.
Step #5. From the menu that includes options like “Clear Data” and “Force Stop”, select the option “Uninstall”.
Step #6. Fire TV will now ask if you are sure you want to delete the app. Select “Uninstall” again.
It can take a few seconds for the device to remove an app. And there you go, the app you wanted to delete is no longer on Fire TV.
How to Delete Apps on Fire TV Using the Home Button
If you don’t want to go digging around in the Fire TV settings, there is a simpler way to delete preinstalled apps.
You can do it directly from your remote by using the home button.
Follow these steps to quickly delete Fire TV apps using this method:
- Hold down the home button on the Firestick/Fire Cube remote.
- Select “Apps” from the available options.
- Find the app you want to delete.
- Push the “Options” button on the remote.
- Scroll down on the options to select “Uninstall”.
When Fire TV asks if you are sure, click “Uninstall” again. You’re set!
The app you wanted to delete is no longer available on your device.
Delete Fire TV Apps Using a File Manager
Sometimes you want to remove more than one app at once, or you want more control over which apps can be removed.
There is no built-in file manager on Fire TV, so you need to use a third-party solution.
ES File Explorer is one of the most popular file managers.
Follow the steps below to use this method to remove apps from Firestick/Fire Cube:
Step #1. Install ES Explorer on your Fire TV (you can choose any other third-party file manager) from the app market. Open the ES File Explorer app.
Step #2. On the left sidebar, select the “Library” to bring up a grid system of your installed apps.
Step #3. Locate the app you want to remove.
Step #4. A green checkmark shows which app/s you are selected.
Step #5. When an app is selected, a menu of options appears at the bottom of the screen. Click “Uninstall”.
Step #6. Click “OK” on the confirmation page.
You have now successfully uninstalled an app on Fire TV using the file manager method.
Reinstalling Apps
If you decide to reinstall some apps, there are a few ways you can do it.
You can head to the official Amazon App Store and download apps directly to your Fire TV device.
Alternatively, you can get apps from third-party app stores. Sometimes these stores will have apps that are not available on Amazon’s official store.
However, because unofficial apps are unverified, you’ll need to side-load them onto your device from a PC.
Conclusion
With the methods above, you can easily remove preinstalled apps from Fire TV in less than a minute.
One of the best things about removing unwanted apps from Amazon Fire devices is you free up precious space. Storage is limited on Fire TV hardware, so many users want to expand available space.
Deleting preinstalled and unwanted apps is the easiest way to get to do that.
You may also find some of the preinstalled bloatware apps are hogging resources. By removing these applications, you can often see a boost in performance. It is common for the Firestick or Fire Cube to become more responsive.
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