Turn Off Automatic Updates on Samsung Android

How to Turn Off Automatic Updates on Samsung Android Devices.

I show you how to turn off automatic updates on your Samsung phone. This guide covers how to stop apps from updating on their own and how to disable automatic system software updates.

I’m showing you this on a Samsung S23 Ultra running Android 15 with OneUI 7.0.

Why You Might Want to Turn Off Automatic Updates

There are a few good reasons to turn off automatic updates:

• You are traveling and don’t want large downloads using your mobile data.
• You want to wait and see if other people have problems with a new update before you install it.
• You want to control when updates happen, not have them happen unexpectedly.
• You are low on storage space and want to manage downloads yourself.

You can always do the updates later. You don’t have to install them the moment they show up.

How to Turn Off Automatic Updates on Samsung Android Devices Video

How to Turn Off Automatic System Software Updates

1. Open Settings on your Samsung phone.
2. Scroll all the way down until you see Software update.
3. Tap on Software update.
4. You will see the settings for updates here. You can also check if there is any available update right now.
5. Look for the Auto download settings. This controls how updates are done.
6. You will see a few options:
   • Wi-Fi only – Updates download only when you are on Wi-Fi.
   • Wi-Fi or mobile data – Updates can download using either Wi-Fi or mobile data. This uses more mobile data, so I don’t recommend this unless you really need the update immediately.
   • Never – No automatic downloads at all.
7. Choose Never to turn off automatic updates completely.

What Happens When You Choose Never

If you choose Never, your phone will not automatically download or install updates. You might still get a notification that an update is available, but nothing will be downloaded or installed until you decide to do it yourself.

How to Manually Check for Updates Later

When you are ready to update, you can do it manually.

1. Open Settings.
2. Scroll down and tap Software update.
3. Tap Download and install to check for any available updates.

You can also change the auto download setting back to Wi-Fi only if you want future updates to download automatically when you are on Wi-Fi.

How to Turn Off Automatic App Updates in Google Play Store

System updates are not the only updates that happen automatically. Your apps also update on their own through the Google Play Store. Here is how to turn that off:

1. Open the Google Play Store app.
2. Tap your profile picture in the top right corner.
3. Tap Settings.
4. Tap Network preferences.
5. Tap Auto-update apps.
6. Choose Don’t auto-update apps.

Now your apps will only update when you choose to update them.

How to Turn Off Auto Update for a Single App

If you want most apps to update automatically but want to keep one app on a specific version, you can do that too.

1. Open the Google Play Store.
2. Search for the app you want to control.
3. Open the app’s page.
4. Tap the three dots in the top right corner.
5. Uncheck the box for Enable auto update.

This app will no longer update automatically, even if other apps still do.

How to Manually Update Apps

When you are ready to update your apps:

1. Open the Google Play Store.
2. Tap your profile picture.
3. Tap Manage apps and device.
4. Tap Updates available.
5. Tap Update all or update individual apps one by one.

Quick Recap

• For system updates, go to Settings, then Software update, then Auto download settings, and choose Never.
• For app updates, go to the Google Play Store, then Settings, then Network preferences, then Auto-update apps, and choose Don’t auto-update apps.
• You can also turn off auto update for a single app from its page in the Play Store.
• You can always check for updates manually when you are ready.
• Turning off automatic updates helps you avoid unexpected downloads and gives you control over when updates happen.