For years, one of the benefits of choosing Android over iOS was that you could move away from the rigid grid of app icons you had used for your iPhone home screens: Handsets with Google’s mobile operating system on board let you play around with different layouts, drop in interactive widgets, and even revamp the whole interface with a launcher . See iPhone 16 at Best Buy See iPhone 16 Pro at Best Buy The customization gap has been closing recently, and it’s smaller than ever with the release of iOS 18 . The new software rolling out now to millions of iPhones adds to the existing customization options to bring you even more control over how the interface looks—and there are three separate areas to look into.
Customize the home screens You’re going to be spending a lot of time looking at your home screens, so it makes sense to get them looking the way you want them to. Recent versions of iOS have seen the introduction of home screen widgets and the option to hide some of your home screen from view (with the App Library holding everything you’ve got installed), but iOS 18 takes home screen customizations even further. You can now leave gaps wherever you like in the home screen grid—no workarounds or third-party apps are required.
Long press on a home screen shortcut until all the icons start shaking, and you can remove an app shortcut by tapping the – (minus) icon and choosing Remove from Home Screen . You can then drag icons around to leave gaps, and iOS won’t a.