When you set up a new iPhone, it'll feature a default, generic wallpaper. While this pick works, you may want to change the wallpaper on your iPhone to personalize it and freshen up its appearance. Fortunately, there are multiple ways and sources to change the wallpaper on iOS. However, depending on your OS version, the steps may differ, and we will be breaking them all below. So, whether you're running iOS 17 on an iPhone 15 Pro Max or are using iOS 15 on an older model, the listed steps should work.
How to change the default wallpaper on iOS 15 or earlier
Like any other phone, every iPhone comes with a set of default wallpapers you can choose from. A lot of default wallpapers on the iPhone have different variations depending on what theme you've set on iOS. If you're on the light theme, wallpapers have brighter colors, and if you're on team dark mode, the wallpapers also have a slightly dimmer tone to match the overall aesthetic. You even have the option to pick live wallpapers if you like seeing changes on your Home Screen from time to time.
Here's how you can access all the default wallpapers on iOS and change the look of your Home Screen and Lock Screen:
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone and scroll down to find the Wallpaper option.
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Tap on it and then select Choose a New Wallpaper.
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You will now see three options at the top — Dynamic, Stills, and Live. You can go through all the wallpapers under these three options to see which one you like.
- Once you find the wallpaper you want to apply, tap on it and select the Set option in the bottom right corner of your screen.
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Select whether you want to apply the wallpaper to your Home Screen, Lock Screen, or both, and your wallpaper will be changed.
How to change the default wallpaper on iOS 16 or later
With the launch of iOS 16, Apple overhauled the wallpaper selection process when it introduced the customizable Lock Screen. There are tons of new options, and we've detailed them all in a dedicated guide.
How to change the iPhone wallpaper using the Photos app
If you've clicked a nice picture or have an image stored on your iPhone that you want to use as your wallpaper, the process is quite simple.
- Open the Photos app on your iPhone and navigate to the album where the photo you want to use is saved.
- Tap on the photo to open it and then select the Share button in the screen's bottom left corner.
- This will open the iOS Share Sheet where, if you scroll down, you can see an option that says Use as Wallpaper.
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Tap on it, and you will see a preview where you need to tap on Set and choose whether you want to apply the wallpaper to your Home Screen, Lock Screen, or both. Once you select the relevant option, your wallpaper will be changed.
How to apply wallpapers obtained from third-party apps
If you don't like the built-in wallpapers that iOS has, and none of the pictures you have can be set as wallpapers, there are several third-party apps you can download from the App Store that offer lots of wallpaper options. Vellum and Backdrops are two apps we highly recommend for some great quality wallpapers.
- Download whichever app you prefer, and navigate through the different options to choose which wallpaper you'd like.
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Once you've landed on a wallpaper you like, hit the Download button, or save it onto your iPhone.
- Next, head over to the Photos app on your iPhone and follow the steps we mentioned in the previous section regarding how to change the wallpaper from the Photos app.
Changing the wallpaper on iPhone is easy
As our guide reflects, changing the wallpaper on iPhone isn't a complex process after all. You can now easily customize your device's inner appearance whenever you get bored with it. This could be through the default wallpaper selection, your own photos, or third-party apps. Just make sure you're following the correct set of steps, as the process differs depending on the iOS version you're running.