If you use an old iPhone, chances are you’ve run into the problem of not being able to download new apps. This might be due to Apple no longer supporting iOS updates for your device, along with app developers optimizing software for the latest iOS release—all of which pushes you to buy a new phone. But what if you don’t want to do that?
Luckily, there are several safe and legal ways that you can install your favorite apps on an older iPhone. And it’s far easier than you might think! Here are all your options.
1. Let Apple Download the Last Compatible Version
This is the easiest option available to download an older version of an app, but one that you may not know about. That’s because the app store doesn’t make it clear whether an older version of an app exists.
On the app page, it’s common to come across a message telling you that an app Requires iOS 13.0 or later, leading you to believe that your phone is not compatible. But this isn’t always true. You can ignore that message and go ahead and hit the download button anyway. When you do, the Apple App Store will display a message asking if you want to download an older version of the app.
Here’s what to do:
- Open the App Store on your iPhone and search for the app you want to download.
- Select the app name or icon to open the download page.
- Start downloading the app by hitting the Get button or tapping on the cloud symbol with the downward arrow.
- Wait for the App Store to display the message Download an older version of this app?
- Select the Download button to get the app.
If this doesn’t work for you, you will instead see the message This application requires iOS 13.0 or later. In this case, there are a couple of other options you can try. If you want to find out more about iOS before continuing, then you can read our explanation on what iOS is.
2. Download Apps From Your Purchased List
The second option you have is to try downloading apps that you’ve downloaded before. This option works really well if you have recently reset your iPhone to factory settings, only to find out that some of the previously installed apps now require a later version of iOS to work.
Additionally, some people find that the App Store won’t automatically give them an option to download a previous compatible version. This is despite having just had a working version installed on their phone. If you’re one of those people, try downloading an app from your Purchased app list instead. I tried it out and found I was even able to get an app that I had first downloaded in 2015; one that was now only available on iOS 13.2 or later.
The Purchased app list is not just apps that you have paid for, it is a complete history of apps you have downloaded using your iCloud account.
To download previously purchased apps:
- Open the App Store app on your phone and navigate to your Account page by selecting the profile icon in the top right corner of the screen.
- Select Purchased to bring up a list of all your purchased apps linked to that iCloud account.
- Scroll through the list to find the app you want to install.
- Hit the cloud icon with the downward arrow beside the app to begin downloading it.
3. Use a New Device to Add Apps to Your Purchased List
I’ve tried re-downloading apps from my Purchased list and found that it worked with no issues at all. But what do you do if there’s an app you want that you haven’t purchased or downloaded in the past? One workaround is to use a newer iPhone running on a more recent iOS to download the app you want.
The key is to make sure you log into your iCloud account on the newer device, to ensure that the app is saved to your history of app purchases. Once the app is downloaded, head back over to your old device and try downloading it from your Purchased list, following the same steps as in the previous method.
To test this method, I borrowed a friend’s iPhone XS to log into my iCloud account. I downloaded an app that I knew couldn’t be downloaded on my older device. Once I got the app, I went back to my old iPhone 5S and downloaded the same app from my Purchased list, and it worked!
Here are the steps laid out:
- Log into your iCloud account using an iPhone running a recent iOS version.
- Open the App Store and download the app you want.
- Go back to your old iPhone device and open up the App Store.
- Navigate to your Account page by selecting the profile icon in the top right corner of the screen.
- Select Purchased to bring up a list of all your purchased apps linked to that iCloud account.
- Scroll through the list to find the app you just installed on the newer iPhone device.
- Hit the cloud icon with the downward arrow beside the app to begin downloading it.
Limitations
The benefit of these methods is that they doesn’t require you to download any third-party apps that may be dangerous or present security issues. But, of course, it doesn’t mean that our methods will work for every app.
Some newer apps won’t have backwards compatibility, meaning that they were developed for more recent iOS systems. Apps like that won’t have an older version available for you to download, and there’s nothing you can do about that. Adding to this, the further back you go in the iPhone lineup, the less likely you are to find a compatible version of the app you’re after.
But with how easy it is to see if an older app version is available, it’s well worth giving these methods a go.
Get Your Favorite Apps on Your Old iPhone
With the way that Apple displays apps in its App Store, you could easily think that some of your favorite apps are no longer compatible with your iPhone. But don’t be fooled! A lot of apps offer older versions that will work on your iPhone, and they’re incredibly easy to get.