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See how you can customize your iPhone lock screen

The new iOS release has given iPhone users a lot more freedom as to how to customize their phones to their personal experiences. See how you can easily personalize your lock screen with the new widgets.

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The new iOS 16 offers a series of widgets for you to take charge of your phone!

iphone lock screen
Learn how you can customize your iPhone lock screen with widgets. Source: Apple.

Apple released its latest operating system for iPhones last week, and quite a few third-party apps followed suit. Once the iOS was out, many developers launched new versions of their beloved apps on the same day. One of the biggest new features for these apps in the new iOS is the ability to improve the iPhone lock screen functionality by customizing it. 

Thanks to the new release, you can tweak the iPhone lock screen as you please. Now, you can change the background, colors and fonts. Plus, you can add new widgets that will remain on your screen even after you’ve locked your phone. Two kinds of widgets will sit below the displayed time, while a third kind should appear above the clock.

You can add built-in software widgets to your iPhone lock screen, like News, Calendar and Weather. But there’s also the possibility of adding a series of third-party widgets from all of your favorite apps. Read the content below to learn some of the nicest apps that provide cool new widgets for the new iPhone lock screen with the new iOS update.  

Design your own widgets with these apps

Widgetsmith

Widgetsmith first launched in 2020 with the iOS 14, which allowed users to add widgets to their home screen. With the app, you can create and edit your own widget. After the iOS 16 release, the developer upgraded its widget personalization to the iPhone lock screen as well. 

With the app, you can create and customize the three available types of lock screen widgets and add weather updates, photos, texts and more. 

ScreenKit

Another option to create and customize your iPhone lock screen widgets is ScreenKit. The company also updated its features with the iOS release and features a series of aesthetic features and custom icons to choose from. 

With ScreenKit, you can create your own lock screen widget from the start and add your customization settings by tweaking with the colors, decorations and background. 

Apps that work by triggering iOS built-in apps

Launcher

This is a well known app amongst iPhone users and it’s been around for many years now. It allows you to quickly access your bookmarks, top contacts, music player and more by creating shortcuts in the home screen. Now you can also have access to most of these functions in your iPhone’s lock screen. 

Launchify

This is a new app that came out the same day the iOS 16 was released. The app allows users to add shortcuts to their lock screens that direct them straight to their favorite apps or bookmarks. Launchify also lets you import custom icons you’ve made, but you can use the ones found in its library as well.

There’s a free version which allows you to add two widgets to your iPhone lock screen. If you’d like more options, you can subscribe for $2 a month, unlock more widgets and add whatever apps you want, including ones that are not in Launchify. 

iOS apps that offer iPhone lock screen widgets

iphone lock screen
See how you can customize your favorite apps in your lock screen. Source: Apple.

Flighty

iPhone’s most popular flight-tracking app has been updated shortly after the new iOS came out to include lock screen widgets. Now instead of unlocking your phone to check on flight details, you can just glance at your iPhone lock screen to get the latest news about them. 

Flighty also allows you to add a series of other widgets like a countdown to your next vacation, the weather. Plus, an in-flight progress that will tell you how long it’ll take for you to get there. You can also get details about your flight, like where you’ll seat, the gate number and more. 

Facebook

On the same day that the iOS 16 came out, Facebook surprised its users with a new update to include two types of widgets to the iPhone lock screen. If you’ve updated your software, you can now add top updates from friends and birthdays to look at a glance. 

The notifications widget only comes in a wide rectangular widget, However, you can choose a circular or rectangular version for the birthdays widget. 

Dark Noise

This is a popular app among iPhone users who like to have white background noise for when they are trying to focus or sleep. Dark Noise also updates its features after the new iOS release and now you can access them directly through your iPhone lock screen. They have all three kinds of widgets included for all the sounds you can find in the app.

Reddit’s Apollo

Reddit users will get a kick out of the new iPhone lock screen widgets included in the latest third-party app’s update. The developer behind this app for the popular online forum website already has a bunch of new lock screen widgets out for its users to enjoy. Now you can check on all of your Reddit activity just looking at your screen. 

It’s possible to add new widgets to inform you on how your posts are doing, and if you have new direct messages. You can also check on new trending posts and your updated karma points, plus a lot of new options to explore. 

WaterMinder

This health-focused app is exclusive to iPhones and was created to help you stay hydrated throughout the day. Now you can get little reminders about your water intake directly from your iPhone lock screen. There’s been a recent update with more than eight different styles of widgets to choose from. 

Things

This personal task manager for iPhones allows you to make to-do lists and check on your progress. The new iOS update helps make things easier by adding Things to your iPhone lock screen as well. 

There are three new widgets available that lets you see the tasks you have to complete on your to-do-list. You can quickly add new errands and track their progress without even unlocking your phone.

Parcel

One of the most useful apps for iPhone, Parcel lets you track the progress from your deliveries. It’s available for more than 300 services, including the U.S. Postal Service, FedEX and UPS. With the new iOS update, Parcel now allows you to track specific deliveries from your iPhone lock screen. 

Some iOS 16 features won’t be readily available

iphone lock screen
Learn which apps are not yet available with the new iOS update. Source: Apple.

Earlier this year, Apple unveiled all of its iOS 16 features at their annual conference called WWDC. However, some of the most anticipated apps weren’t included in the new software release last week. Follow the link below to learn which ones. 

iOS 16

Some iOS 16 features won’t be readily available

Apple promised a host of new features with their newest iOS update. However, not all are yet available. Check out which ones didnt't make the initial cut.

About the author  /  Aline Barbosa

Aline Barbosa is an editor, writer and learning-enthusiast. Passionate about music, books and human behavior. Curious about the unknown. Believer that learning is a life-long process.

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