Customise the icons of your apps is possible

Sometimes when you’ve downloaded lots of apps to your smartphone, it can be hard to find the one you’re looking for. It’s not rare for publishers to change logo or colour in a way that can feel discomforting. Two icons may look strangely similar, creating a degree of confusion. These minor annoyances can disrupt the user experience, leading to frustration that we could do without.

Not many people know, however, that they can change the appearance of the icons shown on their smartphone screen.

Customise your apps with Android 13

Under the previous version of the operating system, Android 12, users already had the option of changing the appearance of Google app icons. The new version, Android 13, has extended this possibility to all other apps.

Change the appearance and colour of your icons on Android
On your mobile’s home screen, press and hold a blank space to gain access to the Wallpaper & Style interface. Then scroll down the options until you reach “Themed icons”. By activating this, the icons adjust to the style of wallpaper selected.

You then have the option of modifying the icons’ colour by changing the wallpaper style in the “wallpaper colours” tab, or selecting a plain colour in the “basic colours” section.

Adjust the size of your icons with Android

Beyond their appearance and colour, you can also change the size of your icons. To do this, tap an empty space on the home screen. Then select the “Home screen settings” option. Then press “Home screen grid”. Several options are provided: 4x5, 4x6, 5x5 or 5x6. The sizes of the icons will change according to the option chosen. The 4x5 option gives the biggest icons. The 5x6 selection gives the smallest icons.

Customise your icons on an iPhone

It is also possible to customise your icons in iOS. The process is a little more complex, but the customisation possibilities are greater.

To do this, you need to use the “Shortcuts” app, which should be installed on your iPhone by default.

Among the possibilities offered by this little tool is the ability to create icons to your own taste, replacing your current app icons with others of your choosing.

How to customise your icons in iOS

• Open the Shortcuts app.
• Then click on the “+” sign in the top-right of the screen.
• Press “Add Action” in the middle of the screen.
• Press “Scripts”.
• Then scroll down the list of options until you see “Open App” in the “Apps” section.
• By tapping “App” (next to “Open”), you will be able to select the app whose icon you wish to change.
• Once you’ve selected the app, tap the blue icon in the top-right of the screen (just next to the cross). Then tap “On home screen”.
• On this new screen, you will be able to rename the app (or to be more accurate the shortcut that will take you to the app) and change the icon’s appearance. To do this, click on the new logo shown automatically (a version of the shortcut logo on a plain background). You will then be able to replace this logo with an image from your photo library.
• To complete the process, then tap “add” in the top-right of your screen.

Bear in mind that the new, customised, shortcut does not replace the native app. You will have to hide this away so that it doesn’t appear directly on your home screen.