Google Play Services cannot be uninstalled directly like a normal app. There is only one way to uninstall Google Play Services and you need to access the internal system folders to locate the folder related to this app and delete it. For this, you will need to meet some prerequisites and use ADB on a computer, or directly being a root user and use third-party apps developed specifically to remove Google Play Services.
Remove Google Play Services without root
To uninstall Google Play Services without being a root user, first, you must verify that you have correctly installed the phone drivers, the Android drivers, and the necessary tools to ensure the mobile or tablet and the computer communicate correctly.
The phone drivers are automatically installed once you connect the device to the computer using a USB cable. If this is not the case, you must use the Internet to search your device manufacturer's website to obtain the necessary drivers.
The Android drivers and the necessary tools can be obtained by downloading and installing Minimal ADB and Fastboot, a small version of the Android SDK that, to simplify the explanation a little, we will just say that they are the Android Debug Bridge modules necessary for the computer and mobile communicate correctly. Just like any Windows program, it is installed by double-clicking on the EXE file and following the steps of the installer.
Once installed, this software connects the phone to the computer using the corresponding USB cable. Make sure you have the developer options enabled on your phone. To enable these options, go to the System or About section where the version of the installed operating system is indicated and click seven consecutive times on the Build number field. A pop-up message will warn you that you have activated these options.
Enabling the developer mode on Android
Now you must enable USB Debugging in the Android settings. To do this go to Settings > System > Developer Options > USB Debugging. Make sure the corresponding switch is in the active position.
Enabling USB debugging on Android
Go to Windows and open a command window (press the Windows + R key, type cmd and press Enter). On a Mac, you will need to open Terminal.
Command console in Windows Explorer
In the new command window opened, type adb devices and press Enter. You should see the device ID. If you cannot see it, something must not be working properly.
ADB Devices command to recognize Android devices connected to the PC
Now type adb shell and press Enter. If there is an error in this step, look at the mobile device screen and accept the pop-up message for the PC to access the data of the device. Then, type the command pm list packages | grep 'google' and press Enter.
Entering the ADB Shell command and List Packages to list Google apps
You will have on your screen a list with all the Google apps and services installed in the operating system.
List of installed Google apps and services
Type the command pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.google.android.gms and press Enter. If everything has worked correctly, you should see the Success message in the command window and you have managed to uninstall Google Play Services and it will no longer appear among the installed apps.
Uninstalling Google Play Services with ADB completed
Keep in mind that from now, many features of your mobile might stop working properly, especially those related to Google functions integrated into the system.
Remove Google Play Services if you are a root user
Root users can do the process of uninstalling Google Play Services much more easily. You can simply use one of the apps to uninstall other apps on your phone that have advanced features such as Root App Delete. Download the APK file through this green Download button and install the app like any other app.
Open the app and select System Apps.
Root App Delete start menu
Select the mode of use. In the Junior mode it is possible to disable system apps and enable them again later, but be careful with the Pro mode because it allows you to delete apps completely without leaving any backup. Select either of the two options, in this case, both will work to remove Google Play Services.
Selecting Root App Delete’s operation mode
Find Google Play Services in the list, it is inside the OS Kernel section and click on it.
Google Play Services on the list’s OS Kernel section
Select Remove patch and you will have completely uninstalled this system application.
Button to uninstall Google Play Services with Root App Delete
Google Play Services is a basic app of the preinstalled operating system running in the background, and unlike other apps, it does not offer the usual option of Uninstalling from the app manager. In fact, it cannot even be forced to stop or disable. Uninstalling the app is not recommended as it could cause apps and the operating system to malfunction. This app works as a bridge between the apps and the features offered by Google on phones, if you uninstall Google Play Services, Google apps will stop working, the mobile will work as if you did not have an associated Google account and other third-party apps could also stop working as they require the features offered by this service to function.
In the past, you could disable Google Play Services, but over time, these features have become more and more important, and this possibility has been disabled. Of course, there are versions of Android or ROMs that can work without Google Play Services using other apps not developed by Google.
By the way, if instead of uninstalling the whole app you want to uninstall an update and turn Google Play Services into its basic version, these are the steps to follow:
- Step 1: Enter your phone settings and select the Apps & notifications entry.
- Step 2: Go to App info.
- Step 3: In the list of installed apps, click on the icon with the three vertical dots in the upper right corner.
- Step 4: Select Show system.
- Step 5: locate Google Play Services in the list and enter this section.
- Step 6: Click on the icon with the three vertical points in the upper right corner and select the option Uninstall updates. Confirm the operation in the pop-up window.
