Motorola bloatware list: what you can disable on a moto phone

Motorola keeps its phones close to stock Android, so its own layer is small: a handful of Moto apps, a notifications service and the update client. Most of what people call Motorola bloatware is partner apps installed for the market where the phone is sold. This list covers both.

How do I disable a Motorola app?

Motorola's own help says preinstalled apps cannot be removed, but they can be disabled. The path is the same as on a Pixel:

1. Open Settings > Apps > See all apps.
2. To include system apps, tap the three-dot menu and choose Show system.
3. Open the app and tap Disable. For an app you or a partner installed, tap Uninstall.

You can also touch and hold an app's icon in the app drawer, tap App info, and choose Disable or Uninstall there. To turn an app back on, open it in the same list and tap Enable.

For apps without a Disable button, use ADB from a computer (see how to set up ADB):

adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.motorola.ccc.notification
adb shell pm enable com.motorola.ccc.notification   # to undo

Which Motorola apps are safe to disable?

• com.motorola.ccc.notification: Motorola Notifications, which sends tips, product news and offers. Turning it off stops those messages; system update notices come from a different package.
• com.motorola.genie: Device Help, Motorola's support and diagnostics app.
• com.motorola.demo: the retail demo mode, where it is present.
• com.motorola.timeweatherwidget: the Moto time and weather widget, if you use another one.
• com.motorola.fmplayer: FM Radio, if you never listen to it.
• com.motorola.gamemode: Moto Gametime, the in-game toolbar, if you do not play.

What partner apps come with Motorola phones?

Motorola sells many phones through carriers and retailers, and the partner apps depend on where you bought it. Phones sold in the US often include social, shopping, streaming, travel and game apps. These are usually ordinary apps: drag them to Uninstall in the app drawer, or open App info and tap Uninstall.

The ones that cannot be uninstalled are usually install helpers, such as Meta's com.facebook.appmanager, com.facebook.services and com.facebook.system. If you do not use Facebook apps, disable them. Our guide to preinstalled third-party apps explains what these helpers do and why some apps come back.

Carrier models add the carrier's tools; see the carrier list.

Which Motorola apps are advanced?

• com.motorola.moto: the Moto app. It runs Moto Actions such as twist for camera, chop for flashlight and flip to silence, and some display settings. All of them stop without it.
• com.motorola.motodisplay: Peek Display, the glance screen that shows notifications when the phone is idle. Without it you lose that screen.
• com.motorola.camera3: the camera app on many recent models. The stock camera, its gesture shortcut and Motorola's camera modes go away; other camera apps still work, usually with less processing. The package name differs on older models.

Which Motorola apps should I keep?

• com.motorola.launcher3: the Moto launcher. Keep it unless another launcher is set as your home app.
• com.motorola.ccc.ota: Motorola Update Services, which downloads Android updates and security patches.
• com.android.systemui, the phone app, contacts and messaging, as on any Android phone.

Package names on Motorola phones change between models and Android versions. If a name in your list contains ota, update, launcher or camera and you are not sure, leave it alone.

Why does Settings list apps I can't find in the drawer?

There are three usual reasons. First, system parts such as Motorola Update Services have no icon at all; they only appear once you choose Show system. Second, apps you disabled leave the drawer but stay in the Settings list, marked as disabled. Third, if the phone has more than one user, apps installed by another user do not appear in your drawer but still take up storage. Motorola's help notes that only the phone's owner can remove those, using Uninstall for all users in the app's menu.

How do I check what a Moto package does?

List the Motorola packages on your phone and look them up before you act:

adb shell "pm list packages | grep motorola"

Paste the output into the package-list audit to see a verdict next to each line, or check single names with the package lookup. A name the site has not documented yet is marked as such, so you can leave it alone until it is.

Do Motorola apps come back after an update?

Monthly security updates rarely touch disabled apps. A new Android version can re-enable Moto apps and sometimes reinstalls partner apps you removed. After each major update, check the app list or compare adb shell pm list packages -d with your saved list. See what changes after an Android update.

The Motorola hub lists every Motorola package we document, and the debloat checklist builds a script for only the lines you tick.