The beating heart of every smartphone is undoubtedly the app store, from which we can download applications to make our device even more interactive and multimedia. On the iPhone it is the App Store, for many the first real app store, which in fact immediately decreed the success of Cupertino's phones compared to the competition. If we are new to the world of iPhones and we do not yet know which applications to download, in this great guide we will show you the best applications of each category for iPhone that you can download for free from the App Store . Many of the recommended apps are also available on the iPad, in case we decide to focus on this type of tablet, so as to have the same apps both on the phone and on the tablet.
READ ALSO: Best iPad apps
Best iPhone apps
The store is truly infinite, so we decided to group the various free apps into categories, showing you the apps with the highest ratings, with the highest number of downloads or the most innovative apps of the moment, so you always know what to download.Free calls app
The apps for making free phone calls from smartphones and tablets are indispensable because they allow you to make free calls via the Internet even when we travel abroad or when we do not want to affect the minutes included in the operator's offer. Among these are famous apps such as Skype, Viber and many messaging apps (which we will see in the chapter below).Messaging app
If WhatsApp is the app that everyone must have on their smartphone to send free messages and also to make calls, we can install other alternative applications for messages and chats, among which we recommend Telegram and Facebook Messenger.All the reported apps also allow you to make free calls and video calls via the Internet.
Gallery and photo editing app
Even though the iPhone gallery app works great, you can get more features by using one of the iPhone photo editing applications with Adobe Photoshop (available for free), Snapseed and Fotor.Since the internal memory space always tends to run out, it is essential to install Google Photos which makes unlimited backup of the photos (while iCloud only has a space of 5 GB).
If, on the other hand, we are looking for apps to apply photo filters without using a PC, we also invite you to read our article on the best apps with photo filters .
Camera app
The photo-taking app on the iPhone is very complete, but it can also be changed using one of the best iPhone camera apps, among which, in doubt and not to be mistaken, it is always worth downloading and installing VSCO.If we love taking selfies in another article we have collected the best apps for taking Selfie Photos .
Music app
The iPhone has its own app for listening to music (formerly it was called iTunes, now it is simply Music) that works well for both local music and streaming music.Obviously we can download valid alternatives, in particular for those who listen to streaming music; obviously, among the best apps for listening to music on iPhone and iPad streaming also Spotify stands out. Do you like YouTube music? In this case we can also download the specific YouTube Music app, as seen in our Youtube Music guide for Playlists, Mixtapes and downloads .
For those who listen to music offline with MP3 files or other audio files, we recommend using Musixmatch, which can also display the lyrics of the songs (in Italian, in a foreign language and translated).
In another article, to complete the category, we also saw the best apps for making music and playing .
Video app
On iPhones we can view videos with the dedicated system app, but it is not very complete.Fortunately, we can also download VLC to iPhone, in order to better manage all types of videos; other video apps we can find in our guide to the best apps to watch videos and movies on iPhone and iPad .
If, on the other hand, we want to edit videos shot with the camera on the fly, we refer you to reading our article on the best apps to edit videos .
Online streaming app
We now find video streaming platforms galore and all are compatible with iPhones! We find the inevitable Netflix, but also Amazon Prime Video and Infinity.We can view other apps in our article on apps to watch streaming movies .
Web browser app
Safari is the default iPhone browser and is very fast and full of features, particularly if we use other Apple devices with the same account (iMac, MacBook, iPad etc.).Sometimes, however, it can be useful to use a different browser, perhaps to keep some searches in private, hide some sites or browse anonymously. In particular, we have seen the best browsers for iPhones and iPads alternative to Safari, among which obviously the most famous browsers such as Firefox, Chrome and Edge stand out.
For those looking for an effective method to navigate incognito without leaving a trace, we can also read our guides on how to navigate incognito on the iPhone .
VPN app
If we fear that our connection will be intercepted or we need to pass filters and status checks, we can use valid VPN apps on the iPhone, many of which are free and with limitations. Currently the best VPN apps are undoubtedly Aloha Browser and ProtonVPN, as also indicated in our guide to the best free and unlimited VPN for iPhone .Virtual assistant and home automation app
On the iPhone we find Siri as a virtual assistant, fairly precise in the answers but with poor integration with home automation devices (at least compared to competitors). To control our devices with voice even from the iPhone, we recommend downloading the Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa and Google Home apps, so that you always have everything under control, even using voice commands.Keyboard app
The default keyboard on the iPhone, which in itself is very good, can be replaced with an alternative app such as Gboard, the smart keyboard developed by Google. To download other keyboards, please read our article on the best applications to change keyboard on iPhone .App to block phone calls
Address book management on iPhones works well and there is no need to install different apps.If, on the other hand, we need to block calls from call centers and annoying calls from iPhone, we must absolutely install the Truecaller app, the best in its category.
We can try other apps to block calls and messages in our article on Blocking calls from unwanted numbers and unwanted SMS .
Email app
The Mail on iPhone app also works quite well, but we can try some excellent alternative apps for the most famous services such as Gmail, Outlook and Yahoo! Mail.In another article the best apps to read Email on iPhone alternatives .
Who uses Gmail as an email account, will be able to backup the iPhone address book in Gmail in order to keep it even if you change your mobile phone.
Maps and navigators app
On the iPhone there is the Apple Maps app to view the maps and to get a fast and free navigator, although not always precise. On the iPhone, however, we can use the always precise Google Maps, which also works as an offline navigator as seen in the guide to Cheats and secrets of the Google Maps Navigator app on the iPhone .Alternatively, we can also download Waze or HERE WeGo, indicated among the best navigator apps and maps for iPhone .
Social Network and dating app
This is a fairly obvious category, since we find on iPhone the official app for each social network currently active: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, Snapchat and TikTok.If we are looking for dating apps, we recommend you read our guide on Tinder or the guide to the best dating apps to know who we like near us .
Google app
Google provides tons of useful and free iPhone apps. Not only Youtube and Google Maps, Gmail and Chrome, but also many strangers that work really well and that I always recommend to download and install even to those inside the Apple world.In another article we can see all the Google apps for iPhone .
Cloud Storage app
The iCloud service is integrated on the iPhone, with 5GB of free space; unfortunately, this space tends to end immediately, forcing us to buy a subscription to get more space.In addition to iCloud, however, you can also use the Google Drive app, Dropbox, Onedrive or the excellent pCloud .
Other iPhone compatible cloud services can be found in our Free Cloud Drive comparison guide to save files online .
Widget app
As we have seen, the widgets on the iPhone are useful for fast information on the lock screen and apps such as the Weather, Google Maps and Google News integrate very well and provide a valuable service.Weather app
Among the best Weather apps for iPhone, we recommend you try 3B Meteo and AccuWeather, among the most precise to know the rainfall, the wind, the temperatures for the day and for the following days.Travel, hotel and reviews app
Again we have all the main apps for travel and to know the reviews of a place: Tripadvisor, Booking, Skyscanner and Trivago.In another article we have seen the best apps for traveling and going on vacation with iPhone .
Sports results app
There are really dozens of applications to follow football matches and other sports live and to know the results in real time; the best to download on iPhone are SofaScore and All Goals.App to track your phone
We have seen, in this regard, several apps to send the position from the mobile or be followed in real time, to which we have also added the apps with GPS locators to find and "stalk" with friends or family and the useful apps to find the mobile lost or stolen .App to manage iPhone
For those who don't want to use iTunes or one of the new programs that have taken its place, we can use some alternative programs to manage iPhone and iPad without iTunes on PC .Among the essential apps to connect the iPhone to the PC, we recommend you also try Pushbullet to receive and send SMS from your computer .
App file manager
In another article we told you about the file managers for iPhone and iPad, which also function as download managers and also support bluetooth connections, Wi-Fi connections and cloud storage, so as to have all your files in one place.App notes and notes synchronized
If we take many notes and notes, we can synchronize them online to use on other devices as well. The best are Google Keep, OneNote and Evernote, as seen in the article on the best applications for taking notes and notes on a phone .Documents and Office app
For those who work a lot with office documents, you can use the Microsoft Office Word, Excel and Powerpoint Apps for free on any iPhone. Alternatively, we can use the Google Docs, Sheets and Slides app, or the Polar Office app.For PDFs, just install Adobe Reader or one of the alternative apps in the guide on how to Read and Open PDF with apps on iPhone .
In another article we also showed you the Apps to scan documents and convert them to PDF .
Best iPhone apps from other categories
On the site we have made numerous other guides for the apps on the iPhone, below we can find the complete list:- App to read the news of the day
- App to paint and draw
- Applications to check internet traffic thresholds and residual credit
- App to learn English or other languages
- App for parents with babies to help them with children
- App to check the pregnancy of pregnant women
- App to compare prices and save on every purchase or expense
- Apps for training, sports, running and fitness
- App for remote control of PC and Mac
- Spy app
- Wikipedia app
- calculator app for Android and iPhone
- App to watch live streaming football
- App to send the position or be followed in real time
- Best apps to call for free
- App to watch TV on mobile
With this great guide we will always have at hand the free applications to install on our iPhone, so as to obtain quick links to everything we need to make the best use of a new smartphone, especially if we come from the Android world.
READ ALSO: Best iPhone games, all free
