I replaced Google's core apps with the open source Fossify suite for a bloat-free Android setup

Published Nov 4, 2026, 3:00 PM EST Jon Gilbert is a technology journalist with five years of experience covering mobile technology. He's covered smartwatches, tablets, smartphones, and Android accessories. He's attended CES to explore unique hardware like the Pebble Round 2 or Mudita Kompakt. His daily mobile tech life revolves around Pixel devices, which he has used since the Pixel 2 XL. Jon loves exploring the latest Android features, but is highly sceptical of anything related AI. My favorite part of using a Google Pixel phone is the excellent UI. Google forgoes OneUI's feature bloat for an easy-to-understand launcher with a distinct design language. Google's apps share the same design, so if you stick with them, you get an unparalleled Android experience. It's why I've stuck with Pixel phones and apps, despite Google's increasingly heavy-handed approach to integrating Gemini into its apps. I regularly try out alternative apps, but none have held up to Google's suite. That was true for years, until I tried the Fossify suite of apps. While they're not all winners, I've finally found a suite of core apps for my phone that gives me the Google experience without the bloat. Fossify offers a bloat-free suite of Material You-inspired apps Simple and useful Fossify launched its suite of apps in early 2024. As of January 2026, the suite includes seven fully released apps and nine in open beta testing. These apps are designed to fulfill all the core apps, that is, the ones that are preinstalled on your phone. Fully released Beta Gallery Voice Recorder File Manager Notes Messages Clock Phone Calculator Contacts Keyboard Calendar Camera Music Player Launcher Documents Paint Fossify was established as an open source community fork following the acquisition of Simple Mobile Tools (Simple Apps) by ZipoApps. Simple Apps' library offers straightforward and open source apps at the cost of a clunky UI and limited features. Fossify's apps maintain this legacy, but with a vastly improved UI and better features. They are inspired by Material You, but while Google has burdened its apps with unnecessary features, Fossify keeps its apps trim. Left: Fossify Clock, Right: Google Clock Fossify Clock is the best example of why I love these apps. Compared to Google's Clock app, it has no weather integration, no bedtime mode, and no screensaver. In return, you can check the time and set alarms, stopwatches, and timers without feature bloat getting in your way. It's a refreshing experience and worth the exchange for losing access to features I didn't use. All Fossify's apps follow the same language, but their benefits are more than a clean UI Simple privacy and security features As you might expect from a suite of apps built on Simple Apps' code, Fossify's apps have no ads, no tracking, and are open source. They also do not require an internet connection to work. While Fossify doesn't explicitly state this, you can switch to its apps without an AI chatbot living in plain sight and taking up space. Fossify's apps are also more secure. You can secure apps that store sensitive data (for example, Messages and Gallery) behind a PIN, pattern, or biometric lock. You can hide folders or lock photos behind individual PIN codes. It's not as sleek as Google Photos' Locked Folder, but it's just as effective. Fossify's apps aren't perfect, but you don't need to use all of them You will have to sacrifice some features if you switch from Google to Fossify I've replaced every Google app I could with a Fossify app, with mixed results. While Fossify Clock, Calculator, Keyboard, Calendar, and Contacts have replaced their Google alternatives, others are missing crucial features. For example, while I would prefer to switch to Fossify Gallery, the lack of a dedicated backup and poor search functionality means I'll stick with Google Photos. Others, like the Fossify Launcher and Voice Recorder, are straight up inferior to Google's apps. I've become reliant on Google Recorder's fantastic transcription feature since it launched, and Fossify Recorder offers only a bare-bones recorder that saves recordings as M4A files. Left: Fossify Calculator, Right: Google Calculator Fossify's suite also lacks key apps, such as an email client, a weather tracker, and a mapping application. However, these are more complex and are not currently in development. Proton offers secure email, a password manager, and cloud storage apps, but they don't offer the same beautiful simplicity as Fossify's suite. Fossify is also working on a launcher, but while it seemed like a viable alternative to the Pixel Launcher (no At a Glance bar, hooray!), I found it to be frustratingly buggy to use. I'll wait until it's fully released to try it again. Fossify's apps are the perfect replacement for people who love Google's apps Using Fossify's suite of apps opened my eyes to how much bloat Google was stuffing into its apps. I'm not just talking about Gemini; I'm talking about all the unnecessary data Google throws my way. I don't need my clock app to tell me the date, my weather app to tell me the air pressure, or an irrelevant line of widgets on my keyboard. I've worked with Google apps for over a decade, and I've come to appreciate their excellent design. But it's been years since Google made any notable improvements, and newcomers like Fossify are worthy successors. While features like syncing, online backups, and online storage would be appreciated, I respect the offline-only intent behind Fossify's apps. If you're keen to replace Google's apps, I recommend trying the entire Fossify suite.