Uninstall Microsoft SwiftKey on Samsung Galaxy One UI 9

Galaxy phones running One UI 9.0 can now fully uninstall Microsoft SwiftKey rather than just disabling it, according to SamMobile's hands-on test on a Galaxy S26 Ultra running Beta 5. Anyone who has wanted to uninstall Microsoft SwiftKey on a Samsung Galaxy One UI 9 phone now has a straightforward path, at least on the device SamMobile checked directly.

That test covers one phone on one beta build. Android Authority and Android Headlines both describe the change as available across One UI 9.0 more broadly, but the supplied reporting doesn't include a statement from Samsung or Microsoft specifying which models, regions, or stable-release builds carry it. The S26 Ultra Beta 5 result is the confirmed baseline; the wider claim rests on outlet reporting rather than a company announcement.

For years, the base SwiftKey package stayed lodged in internal storage no matter what a user picked, leaving millions of Galaxy owners unable to remove an app they never asked for (Android Authority). On One UI 8.5 and earlier, the most anyone could do was disable SwiftKey or strip its updates, since the core app permanently occupied system storage either way (SamMobile; Android Headlines).

Reddit users running the same Beta 5 build on Galaxy S26 devices have separately reported being able to delete SwiftKey, adding informal user-side corroboration to SamMobile's hands-on test (Android Authority).

What follows covers how to check a specific phone for the option, what removing SwiftKey actually changes, and a handful of new Galaxy devices that skip the app entirely.

How to check for the Samsung One UI 9 SwiftKey uninstall option

Checking is simple. Open the SwiftKey Keyboard app's info screen and look at the button next to its name.

If it reads "Uninstall," the phone has the new option, and tapping it fully purges the app (SamMobile; Android Authority; Android Headlines).

If the only choices are "Disable" or "Uninstall updates," the phone is still running the older restriction that keeps the base package locked into internal memory no matter what's selected (SamMobile).

That's the extent of what's been verified. The supplied reporting doesn't cover a workaround for phones still showing "Disable," and none of the outlets give a timeline for when those phones might pick up the new option.

What removing SwiftKey actually gets you

SamMobile measured the reclaimed space at about 55MB on its test phone. Android Headlines and Android Authority also report a roughly 55MB recovery, though SamMobile is the outlet that measured it directly (SamMobile; Android Headlines; Android Authority).

SamMobile frames the change primarily as a matter of control, noting that Samsung Keyboard remains the default input method and that relatively few Galaxy owners end up using SwiftKey in the first place (SamMobile).

Anyone who has switched to SwiftKey as their active keyboard should confirm another input method is set up before removing it, since deleting an active default keyboard could interrupt text entry. That specific scenario isn't addressed in the current reporting.

Deleting SwiftKey doesn't close the door on it. The app can be downloaded again through the Google Play Store or the Galaxy Store (Android Headlines).

New Galaxy phones are already shipping without SwiftKey

Some Galaxy devices aren't waiting for an uninstall button at all. SamMobile's hands-on check found the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra don't ship with SwiftKey preinstalled, a finding Android Headlines reports as well (SamMobile; Android Headlines).

The budget-tier Galaxy A57 follows the same pattern, launching without SwiftKey out of the box, a detail all three outlets confirm (SamMobile; Android Authority; Android Headlines).

Android Authority reports the same for the Z Fold 8 and the A57 but doesn't specifically mention the Z Fold 8 Ultra, so that device's SwiftKey-free status currently rests on SamMobile and Android Headlines alone (Android Authority).

The Galaxy Z Flip 8 sits in a different category. SamMobile says the Flip 8, which ships with One UI 9.0 from launch, likely follows the same pattern, but flags this as an inference based on its software version rather than a device it actually tested (SamMobile).

SwiftKey's presence on Galaxy phones traces back to a years-long agreement between Samsung and Microsoft, which also brought Office, OneNote, Microsoft To Do, and OneDrive onto Galaxy devices as preinstalled apps (Android Authority; Android Headlines). Samsung has separately dropped native OneDrive integration from its stock Gallery app, a change Android Headlines reports independently of the SwiftKey shift (Android Headlines).

Both outlets read the SwiftKey pattern as a signal about that broader arrangement, though they hedge differently. SamMobile says the Microsoft deal "appears to be ending" (SamMobile), while Android Headlines describes the bundling arrangement as reaching "a natural close" (Android Headlines). Neither statement comes from Samsung or Microsoft directly, so both readings stand as informed speculation rather than confirmed fact.

Three newer devices shipping without SwiftKey, alongside older devices only now gaining an uninstall toggle, adds up to a pattern of newer Galaxy devices shipping without SwiftKey rather than a confirmed Samsung-wide policy. No source has established that the two developments share a single cause.

What's still unresolved

Whether the uninstall option reaches every Galaxy phone once One UI 9 leaves beta remains an open question, as does whether it extends to other bundled Microsoft apps like OneNote or To Do. The supplied reports don't settle either point, and until Samsung or Microsoft addresses the bundling arrangement directly, the scope of the change beyond the S26 Ultra Beta 5 build stays an open question rather than a settled fact.