Open, close, switch apps

Open and close apps

To open an app, tap its icon on the home screen, or swipe up from the bottom of your home screen to open the app tray, then tap the app.

To leave an app and go to your home screen, just swipe up from the bottom of the screen.

You don't need to close apps. Android manages the memory and battery that apps use, so you don't need to worry about leaving apps open.

To close one app, drag up from the bottom of the screen, hold, then let go. In your recent apps, swipe up on the app.

To close all apps, drag up from the bottom of the screen, hold, then let go. In your recent apps, swipe right until you see the start of the list, then tap Clear all. (You can prevent certain apps from being cleared.)

Open apps from sidebar

Your phone includes a sidebar that you can swipe open from the edge of your screen to access your favorite apps and actions. You can choose how apps open from the sidebar:

Open in freeform windows you can drag to reposition around the screen
Open in full screen

(If you don't see the sidebar, turn it on in Settings > Gestures.)

To open an app, swipe in from the edge of your phone where you see a translucent bar to open a menu of apps, then tap one to open it in a floating, freeform window or full screen.

To open an app in another mode (freeform or full screen), drag it from the sidebar to the center of the screen.

To open an app in a split screen, drag it from the sidebar to the top or bottom of the screen.

To move the freeform app, touch & hold at the top, then drag.

To resize the freeform app, drag a bottom corner diagonally:

Drag all the way down to open to full screen.
Drag all the way up for a floating, movable icon you can tap to reopen the app.

To close the app, tap in the upper corner.

To customize the sidebar, tap . You can add or remove apps and reorder them.

Switch between open apps

To switch between recently used apps, swipe left or right at the bottom of the screen.

To see your list of recent apps, drag up from the bottom of the screen, hold, then let go:

To see more apps, swipe left or right.
To switch to an app, tap it in the list.
To choose between opening the app in freeform or full screen, touch & hold its icon.

Tip

Use two apps at once with split screen.

Clear recent apps

You can clear all apps from your list of recent apps. Or, you can prevent an app from being cleared from your recent apps when you tap Clear all to close all apps.

To remove all apps from the list:

Drag up from the bottom of the screen, hold, then let go to see your list of recent apps.
Tap Clear all.

To lock an app in the list:

Drag up from the bottom of the screen, hold, then let go.
On the app you want to keep in the list, tap .

To unlock the app so it's removed when you tap Clear all:

Drag up from the bottom of the screen, hold, then let go.
On the app, tap .

Get help using an app

To search this help, tap at the top of this page, and type keywords (like “add contact”).

If you don’t see what you’re looking for, check for app-specific help:

Open the app.
Tap or .
Look for Help or Settings > Help.