Apple brought widgets to the iPhone Home screen with iOS 14. They're an evolution of the widgets from the Today View screen. Here's how to add and remove widgets from your iPhone Home screen.
How to Add Widgets to the iPhone Home Screen
While widgets still appear on the Today View screen, which you can access by swiping right on the Home screen and Lock screen, you can now add widgets to the Home screen as well. These widgets must be designed specifically for iOS 14 or later and behave differently from the widgets you're used to.
They are built using a new WidgetKit framework, which gives them a fresh design. But it limits interaction. The new widgets introduced in iOS 14 are designed for “looking at” rather than interacting with.
Apple created a new process for adding widgets, directly from the home screen.
To get started, long-press any empty part of your iPhone's home screen to enter editing mode. Tap the “+” icon in the top left corner of the screen.
Now you will see a widget selection card sliding up from the bottom. Here, you will find featured widgets at the top. You can scroll down to see a list of all apps with supported widgets. From the top of the list, you can also search for a specific widget app.
Select an app to see all available widgets.
Swipe left or right to see all available widget sizes and versions. You'll typically find small, medium, and large widgets.
Tap the “Add Widget” button to instantly add the widget to the page you are currently viewing on your iPhone.
You can also long-press on the widget preview to select it. You can then drag the widget to any page (or part of a page) you want. Other icons and widgets will automatically move to make room for the new widget.
Press the “Done” button to exit the home screen editing mode.
You can also create a Widget Stack with multiple widgets. Simply drag and drop one widget on top of another (like you do with apps to create a folder).
How to Customize Widgets on iPhone Home Screen
One of the features of widgets in iOS 14 and later is that they are customizable. To do this, all you have to do is long-press on a widget and select the “Edit Widget” option.
If you're already in home screen editing mode, select a widget to see the options.
The widget will “spin” and you’ll see all the available options. These options vary depending on the widget. For example, for the Reminders widget, you’ll see an option to switch to a different list.
Once you're done customizing the widget, simply swipe up from the Home screen or tap the area outside the widget to return.
How to Remove Widgets from iPhone Home Screen
With the redesign, you can remove the widget from your Home screen. You don't have to scroll to the bottom of the Today View screen.
Long press on a widget to reveal the options that will appear. Here, select the “Remove Widget” button.
If you are in home screen editing mode, tap the “-” icon from the top left corner of a widget.
From there, select “Remove” to delete the widget from your Home screen.
