How To Change the Colour of the App Icons on Your Home Screen iOS 18

We may earn compensation from reviewed products. Learn about our editorial policies.

Customising your iPhone home screen is one of the most satisfying ways to make your device feel truly yours, but figuring out how to change app icons (and their colours) can be confusing the first time around. Between Shortcuts, icon packs, widgets, and theme settings, there’s a lot to take in.

✅ Related: How to increase storage on your iPhone

If you’re wondering how to change the colour of your apps, or how to give your screen a fresh, aesthetic look, you’re in the right place. As Apple product experts, we’ve done all the testing and experimentation so you don’t have to. This guide will walk you through every step, from setup to troubleshooting, so you can customise your iPhone with ease.

What You’ll Learn in This Article

By the end of this guide, you’ll know:

• How to use the Shortcuts app to customise app icons
• Where to find and how to use icon packs or custom images
• How to change app colour on iPhone using widgets
• Built-in ways to adjust app appearance without third-party apps
• How to design a consistent aesthetic home screen layout
• The best free and paid resources for icons and themes
• Troubleshooting tips if your icons stop working
• The difference between how to change app icon colour and widget styling
• Why some changes only affect visuals, not the original app icons
  

ℹ️ Help: How to tell if an iPhone is locked to a network

Need-to-knows before you change anything

Before diving into personalisation, let’s cover a few important things:

• Your iPhone should be running iOS 14 or later (iOS 18+ recommended for the latest design tools)
• You’ll need the Shortcuts app (pre-installed on most iPhones)
• Changing icons with Shortcuts doesn’t replace the original app icon—it simply creates a custom launcher shortcut
• The original apps will still live in your App Library
• Tapping a custom icon briefly opens Shortcuts first before launching the actual app

🔢 Opinion: Full iPhone 16 review

Checklist before you begin:

• ✅ Update to the latest version of iOS
• ✅ Ensure Shortcuts app is installed
• ✅ Download any icon images or packs you want to use
• ✅ Organise your home screen space for your new layout
  

How to change app icons using the Shortcuts app

The Shortcuts app is Apple’s built-in way to create custom workflows—including launching apps with your own icons.

Here’s how to change app icons using Shortcuts:

1. Open the Shortcuts app
   
2. Tap the + in the top right corner to create a new shortcut
   
3. Tap Search Action, then search for and select “Open App”
   
4. Tap Open App and then tap “App” to choose the app you want to customise

5. Tap the i (info icon) in the toolbar

6. Select Add to Home Screen

7. Choose whether to use an icon or photo for the shortcut

8. Choose Take Photo, Choose Photo, or Choose File to upload your custom icon

9. Rename the shortcut (this becomes the new app name)

10. Tap Add

Repeat this process for each app you want to customise.

How to upload custom images or icon packs

Now that you know how to change icons, let’s talk about what you’ll use for those icons.

ℹ️ Help: How to turn on AirDrop

You can download icon sets from:

• Etsy (search for iPhone icon packs)
• Pinterest (search “aesthetic iPhone app icons”)
• Design marketplaces like Gumroad or UI8
• Free sites like Flaticon, Canva, or Icons8

Once you’ve found your icons:

• Save the files to Photos or Files (you’ll need access from Shortcuts)
• For best results, use transparent PNGs (no background)
• Choose a style that fits your desired theme – minimal, pastel, neon, monochrome, etc.
• Make sure the icons are square and at least 512×512 pixels for clarity

How to change app colour on iPhone using widgets

If you want to go beyond app icons and change the look of your home screen, widgets are your best friend.

💡 Tip: How to create custom ringtone on iPhone

Using Widgetsmith or Color Widgets

Apps like Widgetsmith, Color Widgets, and Brass let you:

• Add calendar, weather, battery, clock, and custom image widgets
  
• Choose background colours, fonts, and sizes
  
• Match widgets to your icon colours or wallpaper

You can even layer different widgets using stacks to rotate between styles.

Matching widgets to your app themes

To create a consistent aesthetic:

• Choose 2–3 main colours for your theme
  
• Match widget background and text colours to your app icon pack
  
• Use the same font style across all widgets
  
• Stick to a layout style: grid, stacked, or spaced

Popular themes include:

• Pastel neutrals
• Black and white
• Seasonal (fall, winter, spring palettes)
• Neon
• Retro iOS 6-style icons

👉 Basics: How to copy and paste on a Mac

How to change app colours without third-party apps

Want to customise without downloading anything else?

Built-in iOS options for app tint or theme

While Apple doesn’t currently let you fully change an app’s colour, there are a few built-in appearance tweaks:

• In Settings → Accessibility → Display & Text Size, you can enable Colour Filters or Reduce Transparency for a stylised effect
  
• Focus Modes can create customised Home Screens with different widgets and app layouts
  
• Some built-in apps (like Calendar and Reminders) offer limited colour themes inside the app

These options offer subtle personalisation if you don’t want to use external tools.

How to create a consistent aesthetic home screen

A cohesive layout makes all your icon and colour choices pop. Here’s how:

• Use widget stacks to combine multiple widgets in one space
  
• Leave intentional blank space using clear widgets (available in apps like Transparent Widgets)
  
• Keep your layout to 1–2 pages for clarity
  
• Use wallpaper that complements your icon pack
  
• Align apps in colour-coded rows or by category
  

Style inspiration:

• Gradient tones
• Monochrome black & white
• Beige / soft neutral
• Vintage or film-style
• Y2K / Chrome aesthetic
  

Best free and paid resources for icon customisation

Looking for a great icon pack or theme to start with? Here are our top picks:

Free:

• Flaticon – thousands of free icons
  
• Canva – design your own icons from scratch
  
• Pinterest – tons of user-curated themes
  

👉 More: Read our Mac buying guide

Paid:

• Etsy – unique icon packs by theme and colour
  
• Gumroad – minimal and artistic sets by indie designers
  
• Colour Widgets Premium – includes themed packs with widget layouts

What to do if your new app icons stop working

Sometimes, custom app icons stop functioning after an iOS update or file change.

Fixes to try:

• Reopen Shortcuts and confirm the correct app is assigned
• Re-upload your custom image if it’s broken or missing
• Delete and recreate the shortcut, then re-add it to your home screen
• Ensure your image isn’t moved or deleted from Files or Photos
• Restart your iPhone if shortcuts aren’t responding

Wrapping up

Now you know exactly how to change app icons, how to change app colours, and how to create a fully personalised home screen, from shortcuts to widgets and curated icon sets. It’s a fun way to make your iPhone stand out from the crowd and give it some differentiation from the white bricks most people own. Enjoy!