What you can change about how apps look on your iPhone
You can change app icons, rename apps on your home screen, organize them into folders, and adjust the overall appearance of your home screen layout. iOS lets you swap out the standard app icons for custom ones using the Shortcuts app, hide apps from your home screen while keeping them installed, and arrange everything into themed folders. You cannot change the appearance of apps themselves — the buttons, menus, and text inside an app stay the same — but you can control what you see when you look at your home screen.
The methods differ depending on what you want to do. Some changes happen through Settings, others through the Shortcuts app, and some through direct home screen editing. All of these are built into iOS and require no additional purchases or downloads beyond what came with your phone.
Key Takeaways
- You can create custom app icons using the Shortcuts app, which replaces the standard icon with an image you choose or design.
- Organizing apps into folders groups them by category and reduces clutter on your home screen.
- Hiding apps removes them from your home screen but keeps them installed and searchable through Spotlight.
- Renaming apps on your home screen changes only the label you see, not the app's actual name in the system.
- Lock screen widgets and app library sorting let you customize what appears when you unlock your phone and how apps are grouped.
Creating custom app icons with the Shortcuts app
The Shortcuts app is the main tool for changing how individual app icons look. Open Shortcuts, tap the plus icon in the top right, and select "Add Action." Search for "Open App" and choose the app you want to customize. Name the shortcut (this becomes the label under the icon), then tap the icon area at the top of the screen. You can choose a photo from your library, take a new photo, or pick a color and symbol.
Once you have designed the icon, save the shortcut and add it to your home screen. When you tap the custom icon, it opens the app just like the original icon would. You can create as many custom icons as you want, each with a different appearance. The original app icon remains in your app library, so you are not replacing anything — you are creating a shortcut that looks different.
Custom icons work best when you design them as a set with a consistent style or color scheme. Many people read icon packs from design websites, screenshot them, and use those images as their custom icons. This takes more time upfront but creates a cohesive look across your home screen.
Organizing apps into folders
Folders group related apps together and reduce the number of icons on your home screen. Press and hold an app icon until a menu appears, then select "Move." Drag the app onto another app you want to group with it. iOS creates a folder automatically and suggests a category name based on the app types. You can rename the folder by tapping the name field at the top.
Add more apps to a folder by dragging them into it. You can fit up to nine apps per folder page, and folders can have multiple pages. Tap a folder to open it and see all the apps inside. Folders appear on your home screen just like regular apps, so organizing into folders is one of the fastest ways to clean up a cluttered screen.
You can also create empty folders and name them however you want — for example, "Games," "Productivity," or "Social." This lets you organize by how you actually use apps rather than by the categories iOS suggests.
Hiding apps from your home screen
Hiding an app removes it from your home screen and app library but keeps it installed on your phone. Press and hold the app, select "Remove App," then choose "Remove from Home Screen." The app disappears from view but remains in your phone's storage and can still be found through Spotlight search (swipe down from the top of your home screen and type the app name).
This is useful for apps you use occasionally but do not want cluttering your home screen. You can unhide an app at any time by searching for it in Spotlight, opening it, then adding it back to your home screen through the share menu.
Renaming apps on your home screen
You can change the label that appears under an app icon without changing the app's actual name in the system. Press and hold the app icon and select "Edit Home Screen." Tap the app name below the icon and type a new name. The change appears only on your home screen — the app itself keeps its original name everywhere else.
This is helpful if you want shorter names to fit more text under an icon, or if you want to rename apps to match a theme. For example, you could rename your email app to "Mail" or your weather app to "Weather," or use emoji to create a visual system.
Arranging apps and using the app library
Your home screen can have multiple pages. Swipe left or right to move between them, or press and hold an empty area to see all pages at once. You can drag apps between pages or delete pages you do not use. Most people keep their most-used apps on the first page and organize the rest by category on later pages.
The App Library, which appears at the end of your home screen pages, automatically sorts all your apps into categories like Productivity, Entertainment, and Utilities. You do not control this sorting directly, but you can search within it or tap a category to see all apps in that group. Many people hide entire home screen pages and rely on the App Library and Spotlight search instead, which creates a much cleaner look.
Adding widgets and customizing your lock screen
Widgets are small app windows that show information without opening the full app. Long-press your home screen, tap the plus icon, select an app, and choose a widget size. Widgets appear on your home screen and can also be added to your lock screen. Lock screen widgets are smaller and show live information like weather, calendar events, or reminders at a glance.
Customizing your lock screen changes what you see when you unlock your phone. Press and hold your lock screen, tap "Customize," and add widgets or change the clock style and background. This does not change how apps look, but it changes the overall appearance of your phone when it is locked.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do custom app icons work the same as the original icons?
Yes. Custom icons created through Shortcuts open the app exactly the same way. The only difference is appearance. The original app icon remains in your app library if you ever want to use it again.
Can I change the color of the built-in app icons?
Not directly through iOS settings. The standard app icons keep their original colors. You can only change appearance by creating custom icons through Shortcuts or by using a different home screen layout that hides the standard icons.
What happens to custom icons if I update iOS?
Custom icons you created through Shortcuts remain on your home screen after an iOS update. They continue to work the same way. If you delete the shortcut, the custom icon disappears from your home screen.
Can I organize my lock screen the same way I organize my home screen?
No. Your lock screen shows widgets and a clock, not app icons. You cannot create folders or arrange apps on your lock screen, but you can add widgets that open apps when tapped.
Is there a way to change how apps look inside their menus?
No. The buttons, text, and layout inside an app are controlled by the app developer. You can only change the icon that appears on your home screen and lock screen, not the app's internal appearance.