How to Add Widgets to Your iPhone Lock Screen on iOS 16/17

Screen widgets have been exclusive to Android phones for several years, and iPhones finally embraced this feature with the release of iOS 14. Then, iOS 16 extended this functionality to the lock screen in 2022, enabling iPhone users to glance effortlessly at information like weather updates, stock changes, upcoming appointments, and more without the need to unlock their devices. This guide will walk you through how to add widgets to your iPhone's lock screen, along with providing instructions on the process of removing them if you decide to no longer have them displayed on your lock screen.

What Widgets Can You Add to iPhone Lock Screen?

iOS allows you to add a variety of widgets to your iPhone home screen, lock screen, or Today View, including Apple's built-in apps and third-party apps. However, you should be aware that some third-party apps that have widgets for the home screen might not necessarily provide lock screen widgets.

Here are some common widgets you can add:

• Weather. The Weather app has several different widgets for the iPhone lock screen to display temperature, air quality, weather forecasts, etc.
• Clock. The Clock app provides lock screen widgets for current time, world clocks, alarms, timers, etc.
• Calendar. The Calendar widget offers a quick overview of your upcoming events and appointments.
• News. This shows headlines and updates from your preferred news sources in the Apple News app.
• Photos. It rotates through your photo library, showcasing different images.
• Notes. The Notes widget displays your recent notes.
• Reminders. It shows your upcoming tasks and to-do list.
• Fitness. It tracks your health and fitness data, such as step count and workout summaries.
• Music. The Music widget offers playback controls and information about the currently playing song.
• Batteries. It keeps track of the battery levels of your devices and usage statistics.
• Stocks. The Stocks widget offers a quick overview of the price quotes and tracks the performance of a watchlist or a symbol in the stock market.
• Health. It provides information about your moods and emotions and allows you to quickly view your medication reminders.
• Home. The Home app contains multiple different widgets that let you control your entire HomeKit Home.
• Tips. It offers quick tips for how to take better advantage of your iPhone.
• Shortcuts. It allows you to quickly run one of your shortcuts on your iPhone.
• Third-party widgets. The widgets available can vary based on the apps you have installed. Some popular iPhone lock screen widgets include Google Maps, FaceBook Messenger, Gmail, ChatGPT, and many others.

How to Add Widgets to the Locks Screen on Your iPhone

Before you add widgets to the lock screen on your iPhone, make sure your iPhone is running iOS 16 onwards. To check what iOS version you are using on your iPhone, go to Settings > General > About. If your iPhone uses an older iOS version, update your iPhone to iOS 16 or iOS 17 by navigating to Settings > General > Software Update.

Then the following steps will guide you through the rest of the process of how to add widgets to the iPhone lock screen.

How to add widgets to your lock screen on iOS 17:

Step 1. From your iPhone lock screen, press and hold on any blank space and the "unlock to edit" text will appear.

Step 2. Press and hold on any blank space on the iPhone lock screen again and this time it will prompt you for the screen passcode, Face ID, or Touch ID to unlock your iPhone.

Step 3. Enter your correct screen passcode or use Face ID/Touch ID and get into lock screen editing mode.

Step 4. Tap the Customize button at the bottom of the screen.

Step 5. Select Lock Screen on the left side.

Tips: Alternatively, you can enter the lock screen editing interface by going to Settings > Wallpaper. Then tap the lock screen on the left.

Step 6. Tap the ADD WIDGETS box to bring up the widgets selector, which contains some suggested widgets you can quickly add to your iPhone lock screen and the apps on your iPhone that support widgets for the lock screen.

Step 7. Tap the widget in the suggestion or the app in the list to add it to the widget tray. You can also drag the widget to the widget area. If there are several widgets available for an app, you can swipe right to choose the most desired option. You can only add up to four small widgets, two large widgets, or one large widget and two small ones.

Step 8. After you have finished arranging your widgets, tap the X button in the top right corner of the widgets selector to close it.

Step 9. Tap the Done button in the top right corner of your iPhone screen.

Step 10. Tap the current lock screen wallpaper to let the change take effect.

How to Remove Widgets from Your iPhone Lock Screen

If you want to replace some widgets on your iPhone lock screen with different ones, you need to remove them first to make room. Deleting lock screen widgets from your iPhone is as simple as adding them.

Step 1. Use the same process to enter the lock screen editing mode.

Step 2. Select the widget tray, and the available widgets will show up.

Step 3. Tap the minus sign (-) in the top left corner of the widget you would like to remove. Or you can drag the widget out of the widget area to delete it.

Step 4. Exit the widget picker by tapping the X button and tap Done from the top right to finish editing.

The Final Word

The widgets featured on your iPhone lock screen offer a convenient way to access timely information from your favorite apps without the need to unlock your device. Hopefully, the steps outlined in this article can help you effortlessly add widgets to your iPhone lock screen and rearrange them as needed.

FAQs About Adding Widgets to Lock Screen iPhone

The following frequently asked questions and their answers can provide more information.

How do I customize my iPhone lock screen?

In iOS 16 and iOS 17, the customization of your iPhone lock screen is incorporated into the settings for your lock screen wallpaper. This means that to personalize your iPhone lock screen, you'll need to navigate to the wallpaper settings in the Settings app.

How do I add a blank widget to my iPhone lock screen?

Apple doesn't offer native a blank widget to the iPhone lock screen, so if you would like to add a blank widget to your iPhone lock screen you need to seek a third-party app.

Will removing the widgets delete the app from my iPhone?

No, when you remove a widget, you're only removing the widget itself from the home screen, lock screen, or today view. The actual app and its data remain intact on your iPhone.