How to Change the Icon of an App on Any Device

App icons are the visual shorthand your brain uses to navigate a screen full of software. Changing them — whether for aesthetic reasons, accessibility, or just to reduce the visual noise of a cluttered home screen — is more achievable than most people realize. But the process varies significantly depending on your operating system, device type, and how much customization you're willing to do.

Why People Change App Icons

The most common reasons are cosmetic: matching a home screen theme, replacing an ugly third-party icon, or organizing apps by color or category. But there are practical reasons too — replacing small or low-contrast icons for better visibility, or making frequently used apps easier to locate at a glance.

Some users also change icons to disguise apps, either for privacy or to create a distraction-free setup. The approach that works for you depends almost entirely on your platform and skill level.

How App Icon Changing Works on iOS (iPhone and iPad)

Apple introduced a native (if indirect) method for changing app icons through the Shortcuts app. Here's how it works in practice:

1. Open the Shortcuts app
2. Create a new shortcut that opens the target app using the "Open App" action
3. Tap the shortcut's settings and choose "Add to Home Screen"
4. Tap the icon thumbnail to select a custom image from your photo library
5. Name it whatever you want and add it to your home screen

The original app icon can then be hidden in the App Library so only your custom icon is visible.

The key limitation: these are shortcuts, not the actual app. That means there's a brief redirect through the Shortcuts app each time you tap one — a small but noticeable delay. Notifications and badges still appear on the original app icon in your App Library, not on the custom shortcut.

Some third-party apps like Widgetsmith and various icon pack apps have built on this workflow to make the process faster and more visual. These don't bypass the Shortcuts mechanism — they just streamline it.

How App Icon Changing Works on Android

Android gives users considerably more direct control. 🎨

Using a Third-Party Launcher

The most powerful approach on Android is installing a custom launcher — an app that replaces your default home screen. Popular options include Nova Launcher, Niagara Launcher, and others. Most launchers let you:

• Long-press any app icon and select an option like "Edit" or "Change icon"
• Browse installed icon packs (downloaded separately from the Play Store)
• Use any image from your gallery as a custom icon

Icon packs are collections of consistently styled icons, often designed around a visual theme. They're applied globally or selectively through the launcher settings.

Without a Custom Launcher

Some Android manufacturers — particularly Samsung (One UI) — build icon customization directly into the system. On Samsung devices, you can access icon shapes and themed icon packs through Settings > Wallpaper and Style without installing anything extra.

Google's Pixel phones support "Themed icons" in Android 12 and later, which automatically recolor supported app icons to match your wallpaper palette. This isn't manual control over individual icons, but it's system-level visual cohesion without third-party tools.

Changing App Icons on Windows and macOS

Desktop operating systems handle this differently — and less intuitively.

Windows

On Windows, you can change the icon of a shortcut (not the underlying .exe itself) by:

1. Right-clicking the shortcut
2. Selecting Properties > Change Icon
3. Browsing to an .ico file or selecting from system icon libraries

For apps pinned to the taskbar, you'd need to unpin and re-pin the modified shortcut. Changing the icon of a Start Menu tile or a Microsoft Store app is more restricted and often requires third-party utilities.

macOS

On a Mac, icon swapping is more straightforward for traditional apps:

1. Find a replacement icon image (.icns format works best, though .png is often accepted)
2. Open Get Info on the app (Command + I)
3. Drag and drop the new icon image onto the small icon preview in the top-left of the Get Info window

This changes the icon system-wide for that app. It can be reversed by clicking the custom icon in Get Info and pressing Delete to revert to the original.

Note: App icons changed this way may revert after a major app update or macOS system update, so it's worth keeping your custom icon files saved somewhere accessible.

Variables That Determine Your Options

What You Won't Be Able to Change Easily

Not every icon is fair game. System apps on iOS cannot be changed at all through official means. On Android, system-level apps (dialer, settings, etc.) may resist launcher-based changes depending on the ROM. On Windows, certain Microsoft Store apps store their icons in protected locations.

On all platforms, changes made through unofficial or workaround methods carry a common risk: they can be overwritten by updates, either to the app or to the OS itself.

The Skill and Setup Question

The right method depends on a combination of factors that vary from one user to the next — which platform you're on, how comfortable you are with third-party tools, whether you want to change one icon or overhaul your entire home screen, and how much friction you're willing to tolerate for the result. A casual iOS user and a developer running a custom Android ROM are working in entirely different environments, even if they're asking the exact same question.