How To Manage Widgets on Your iPhone for Easy Customization

Customizing Your iPhone with Widgets

Honestly, figuring out how to add or resize widgets on the iPhone can feel kinda confusing at first. Apple gives you all these options—home screen, lock screen, Today View—and each has its quirks. Once you get the hang of it, it’s pretty handy, but I’ve definitely spent more time than I’d like poking through menus trying to find the right stuff. Anyway, here’s what I learned from going down this rabbit hole.

Adding Widgets to Your Home Screen

Starting with the home screen: Usually, you press and hold anywhere until the icons start to wiggle—that’s your “jiggle mode.” The tricky part is, sometimes it’s not obvious you need to keep holding, or maybe press a bit harder in a specific area. Once you’re in that mode, look for the small ‘+’ icon or ‘Edit’ in the top corner—on my older iPhone, it was buried in Advanced menus but here it’s usually out front. Tap it, then select ‘Add Widget’. Now, from this list, pick the widget you want. Some apps offer multiple sizes and functions—don’t just tap first; swipe or scroll through options. When you find what you want, tap ‘Add Widget’, and it will appear on your home screen. You can then drag it around to position it how you like.

Resizing and Moving Widgets

This part was the biggest “wait, what?” moment for me. Some widgets support resizing right on the home screen—there should be a tiny draggable corner, but man, it’s usually really subtle. I had to hold the widget, then look carefully for the resize option or a drag handle in the corner. Dragging that corner makes the widget larger or smaller, which is helpful if you want more info visible. Moving the widget itself is just a matter of long-pressing and dragging it to a new spot. When you’re happy, hit ‘Done’ in the top right or just tap outside. If resizing or moving doesn’t seem to work right away, try restarting the phone or removing and re-adding the widget—they can sometimes get stuck or glitch out.

Customizing on the Lock Screen

Widgets aren’t just for the home screen, though. You can add ones that show info right on your lock screen—calendar, weather, activity rings. To do this, long-press on the lock screen until “Customize” shows up. Tap it, then choose your lock screen, and look for ‘Add Widgets’. Now, here’s where I got tripped up—sometimes these options are limited, or hidden in menus that aren’t super obvious. From here, pick your widgets and drag them into place. If you want to remove one, there should be a minus sign or delete icon you can tap. When done, hit ‘Close’ and then ‘Done’.Now your lock screen will display those details at a quick glance, which is super convenient—just be mindful about privacy. If you’re in public, those widgets can display sensitive info without unlocking your phone, so use this feature wisely.

Adding Widgets to Today View

The Today View—swiped right from the home or lock screen—is another good spot to keep handy info. To customize it, swipe right, then press and hold until everything jiggles. From there, tap ‘Edit’ and then ‘Add Widgets’.You’ll see a list of available options, and you can add the ones you use most often. Some support resizing directly in the Today View—just tap on them after adding, and an option might pop up. Rearranging is just dragging to reorder. When you’re done, tap ‘Done’ and your personalized info panel will be ready to go. It’s all about quick access, so spend some time tweaking it until it feels right.

Final Tips and Real-World Friction

Here’s where I got stuck for a bit: Widgets sometimes don’t want to resize or move smoothly, especially after a reboot or update. Some apps don’t support widgets at all, or only support certain sizes, which can be frustrating. Also, menus for adding widgets aren’t always labeled super clearly. I’ve accidentally removed widgets I wanted to keep or tapped the wrong options because things aren’t always obvious, especially in the settings menus. Supporting tips—make sure your iPhone’s iOS is up to date, because sometimes they add better widget support in updates. Also, some OEM or carrier-restricted devices may limit widget options, or you might need to use fallback methods like rearranging in older iOS versions or even switching to basic features if needed. For example, on some devices, widget support on the lock screen is limited or needs specific steps.

What finally helped was trying a few different approaches—restarting, removing and re-adding widgets, updating iOS, or even resetting settings. Keep in mind, some apps don’t support widgets well or at all, so don’t get too frustrated if certain ones are missing or stubborn. If you’re stuck, sometimes the best move is just a reboot or waiting for a system update that improves widget support.