The quickest way to change your iPad lock screen

Open Settings, tap Display & Brightness, then tap Lock Screen. You'll see your current lock screen image at the top. Tap it to choose a new wallpaper from your photo library, or select one of Apple's built-in options. Once you pick an image, tap Set and confirm whether you want it on the lock screen, home screen, or both.

If you're running iPadOS 16 or later, you have more control over what appears on your lock screen — you can customize the clock style, add widgets, and choose which notifications show. Older iPad models use a simpler lock screen that mainly shows the time and date, with fewer customization options available.

Key Takeaways

  • The lock screen wallpaper is changed through Settings > Display & Brightness > Lock Screen on all current iPad models.
  • You can use your own photos, screenshots, or Apple's pre-loaded wallpaper collections as your lock screen image.
  • iPadOS 16 and later let you customize the clock font, add widgets, and control which app notifications appear on the lock screen.
  • If you want the same image on both lock screen and home screen, you can set it to both during the wallpaper selection process.

Using photos from your library as your lock screen

When you tap the lock screen image in Settings, the first option is Photos. This opens your photo library so you can browse pictures you've taken or saved. You can scroll through recent photos, search by date, or tap All Photos to see your entire library organized by album.

Once you select a photo, you'll see a preview of how it looks on your lock screen. The image will be cropped to fit the iPad's screen shape, and you may see the time and date overlaid on top. If the preview looks good, tap Set at the bottom right. You'll then choose whether to explore it to the lock screen only, the home screen only, or both screens.

If your photo is too dark or the text is hard to read, you can go back and pick a different image. There's no penalty for changing it again — you can update your lock screen wallpaper as often as you like.

Choosing from Apple's built-in wallpaper collections

If you don't want to use your own photos, tap Featured, Suggested Photos, or one of the other collection names in the Lock Screen menu. Apple provides themed wallpapers organized by category — nature scenes, abstract designs, colors, and seasonal options. Each collection contains several images you can preview before selecting.

These built-in wallpapers are designed to look good with text overlaid, so they tend to work well even if your lock screen shows notifications or widgets. You can switch between collections as often as you want without any cost or limit.

Customizing the clock and notifications on iPadOS 16 and later

If your iPad is running iPadOS 16 or newer, you can change the clock style, color, and font on your lock screen. In the Lock Screen settings, look for Customize below your wallpaper preview. Tap it to see options for the clock — you can choose different fonts like serif, rounded, or monospaced, and change the color to match your wallpaper.

You can also add widgets to your lock screen to show information like weather, calendar events, or reminders without unlocking your iPad. Tap the plus icon (+) at the bottom of the lock screen customization screen to add a widget. Not all apps support lock screen widgets, but common ones like Weather, Calendar, and Reminders do.

To control which notifications appear on your lock screen, go to Settings > Notifications and adjust the settings for each app. You can choose to show notifications on the lock screen, hide them, or show them only in the notification center.

What to do if your lock screen won't change

If you tap the lock screen image but nothing happens, or if the change doesn't stick after you restart your iPad, try closing Settings completely and reopening it. Sometimes the app needs a fresh start to load the wallpaper options properly.

If you're using a photo that's very large or in an unusual format, your iPad may have trouble processing it. Try using a different photo, or take a screenshot of the image and use that instead. Screenshots are usually smaller and more reliable.

If the problem continues, restart your iPad by holding the power button until the shutdown slider appears, then slide to power off. Wait a few seconds, then hold the power button again until the Apple logo shows. After the restart, try changing your lock screen again.

Syncing your lock screen across devices

If you have multiple Apple devices and want the same lock screen on all of them, you'll need to set each one individually — there's no automatic sync feature for lock screen wallpapers. However, if you use iCloud Photos, any photo you take or save on one device will show up in your photo library on all your devices, so you can use the same image on each one.

Lock screen customizations like clock style and widget choices also don't sync across devices. Each iPad, iPhone, or Mac stores its own lock screen settings separately.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use a live photo or video as my iPad lock screen?

No. iPad lock screens only support still images. If you want to use a live photo, you'll need to save a single frame from it as a regular photo first, then use that image as your wallpaper.

What happens to my lock screen if I delete the photo I used?

If you delete a photo from your library after setting it as your lock screen, the wallpaper will disappear and your lock screen will go blank or revert to a default image. To avoid this, keep photos you use as wallpapers in a dedicated album or folder.

Can I set a different lock screen for different times of day?

iPadOS does not have a built-in feature to automatically change your lock screen based on the time of day. You would need to change it manually if you want a different image in the morning versus evening.

Why does my lock screen look different after I set it?

The lock screen preview in Settings may look slightly different from how it appears when your iPad is actually locked, because the time, date, and notifications will be displayed on top of the image. This is normal and expected.