Deleting the app is the last step, not the first. Do it out of order and you can be left with apps still blocked and nothing to unblock them with.
The right order
- Turn off Hard Mode on every rule that uses it, and end any running focus session. While Hard Mode is on, iOS won't let you delete the app at all. If you're locked out, use the emergency break.
- Switch off or delete your blocking rules, so nothing is left blocked.
- Open iOS Settings → Screen Time and remove Tethered's access. This is the step people skip, and it's the one that clears the restrictions.
- Delete the app.
Why the extra step
Tethered blocks apps through Apple's Screen Time system rather than by doing anything to the apps themselves. Those restrictions belong to iOS, and iOS keeps them until they're lifted — it doesn't clear them just because the app that set them was deleted.
That's the same design that stops a blocker being defeated by deleting it, so it can't be worked around. It just means removal has one more step than most apps.
Your data
Everything Tethered stores stays on your iPhone, so deleting the app removes it. There's no account to close. If you want to clear it without uninstalling, Settings → Account → Delete account wipes your local data.
Subscriptions
Deleting the app does not cancel a subscription. Cancel it in iOS Settings → your name → Subscriptions, or from the App Store.