The quickest way to change your iPad lock screen
Open Settings, tap Display & Brightness, then Lock Screen, and choose a new wallpaper or photo from the options shown. If you want to add widgets or customize the appearance further, tap Customize on that same screen. The whole process takes less than a minute, and your new lock screen appears the next time your iPad locks.
Your lock screen is separate from your home screen wallpaper, so you can have different images on each. The lock screen is what you see when you first wake your iPad; the home screen is what appears after you unlock it.
Key Takeaways
- Go to Settings > Display & Brightness > Lock Screen to reach the lock screen customization menu.
- Choose from Apple's built-in wallpapers, your own photos, or dynamic options like weather and astronomy views.
- Tap Customize to add widgets, change text color, or adjust the appearance of the time and date display.
- Lock screen changes take effect when ready and do not affect your home screen wallpaper.
Finding the lock screen settings on your iPad
Start by opening the Settings app—it is the gray icon with gears on your home screen. Scroll down and tap Display & Brightness. On the next screen, you will see Lock Screen near the top of the list. Tap it to open the lock screen editor.
If you do not see Lock Screen in Display & Brightness, your iPad may be running an older version of iPadOS. Devices running iPadOS 16 or later have this menu; if your iPad is older, you can still change the lock screen wallpaper through Settings > Wallpaper instead.
Choosing a wallpaper or photo for your lock screen
Once you are in the Lock Screen menu, you will see thumbnails of available wallpapers at the bottom of the screen. Tap any thumbnail to preview it full-size. Apple includes several categories: Dynamic (animated backgrounds that change throughout the day), Stills (single images), Weather, Astronomy, and Collections (themed sets of images).
To use one of your own photos instead, tap the photo library icon at the bottom left of the preview. Navigate to the photo you want, tap it, and then tap Add. Your photo will now appear as an option in the Lock Screen menu. You can have multiple lock screens saved and switch between them by tapping different thumbnails.
Adding widgets and customizing the appearance
After you choose a wallpaper, tap the Customize button to add widgets or change how the time and date look. Widgets show information like weather, calendar events, or battery percentage directly on your lock screen without unlocking your iPad. Tap the plus icon to add a widget, choose which app you want information from, and select which data to display.
You can also adjust the color and style of the time display by tapping the time itself. Some wallpapers let you change the text color to match the image better. When you are finished, tap Done to save your changes.
Managing multiple lock screens
iPad lets you create and save multiple lock screen setups, each with different wallpapers, widgets, and text styles. When you add a new wallpaper in the Lock Screen menu, it becomes a separate lock screen you can switch between. Swipe left or right on your current lock screen to cycle through them, or long-press the lock screen to see all your saved versions at once.
To remove a lock screen you no longer want, long-press it and tap Delete. You must keep at least one lock screen, so you cannot delete all of them. This setup is useful if you want different information displayed at different times—for example, a calendar widget during work hours and a weather widget in the evening.
Troubleshooting lock screen changes that do not appear
If you change your lock screen but the new wallpaper does not show up when your iPad locks, try restarting your iPad. Press and hold the top button and either volume button until the power-off slider appears, then drag it to turn off your iPad. Wait a few seconds, then press and hold the top button again until the Apple logo appears.
If the problem persists, check that you are running the latest version of iPadOS. Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install any available updates. Older iPadOS versions sometimes have bugs with lock screen customization that newer versions fix.
Differences between lock screen and home screen wallpaper
Your lock screen and home screen are two separate surfaces, and changing one does not affect the other. The lock screen is what you see when your iPad is locked or first wakes up. The home screen is the grid of app icons you see after you unlock it. You can have a photo on your lock screen and a completely different image on your home screen, or use the same image on both.
To change your home screen wallpaper separately, go to Settings > Wallpaper > Add New Wallpaper. Choose whether you want the image on the lock screen, home screen, or both. This gives you full control over what appears where.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use a live photo as my lock screen wallpaper?
Yes. Go to Settings > Display & Brightness > Lock Screen, tap your photo library, and select a live photo. When you long-press your lock screen after it is set, you can press and hold to play the live photo animation. Not all wallpaper types support live photos, but photos from your library do.
Why does my lock screen look different on my iPad than on my iPhone?
iPad and iPhone have different screen sizes and layouts, so lock screen customization options differ between them. iPad lock screens cannot include some widgets that work on iPhone, and the text positioning is different. Each device has its own lock screen settings in the Display & Brightness menu.
Can I set a different lock screen for different times of day?
iPad does not have automatic scheduling for lock screens the way some phones do. You can create multiple lock screens and switch between them manually by swiping or long-pressing, but you cannot set one to appear automatically at a specific time. You would need to change it by hand when you want a different one.
What happens to my lock screen if I update iPadOS?
Your lock screen customization is saved during updates. After you update iPadOS, your wallpaper, widgets, and text styles remain the same. Occasionally a major update introduces new wallpaper options or customization features, but your existing setup will not be lost.