How to change your wallpaper on iPhone
Updated 2026-07-09
Changing your iPhone wallpaper takes about thirty seconds once you know where the setting lives — and iOS lets you set the lock screen and home screen separately, shuffle a whole album, and lift your subject in front of the clock with the depth effect. Here's the full walkthrough, plus where to get free 4K wallpapers and how to make yours actually move.
- 1
Pick a wallpaper
Grab a free 4K wallpaper from the 2Live app (every one in the For You feed is free), or use any photo already in your library.
- 2
Open Settings → Wallpaper
On your iPhone, open Settings, tap Wallpaper, then tap “Add New Wallpaper.”
- 3
Choose a source
Pick Photos to use your own image, or choose a suggested category, a color or a gradient. Tap the image you want.
- 4
Frame and style it
Pinch to zoom and drag to position. Swipe left or right to try photo styles, and pinch out on a portrait to turn on the depth effect so your subject lifts in front of the clock.
- 5
Set the pair
Tap Add, then “Set as Wallpaper Pair” to use it on both screens — or “Customize Home Screen” to give the home screen a different look.
Set the lock screen and home screen separately
When you save a wallpaper you can tap “Customize Home Screen” to blur it, swap in a different photo, or drop to a solid color — so your widgets stay readable while the lock screen keeps the full image.
To edit later, press and hold the lock screen, tap Customize, and you'll see the Lock and Home cards side by side.
Shuffle a whole album automatically
In Add New Wallpaper, choose “Photo Shuffle” to rotate through an album on a schedule — on tap, on lock, hourly or daily. Point it at a 2Live folder and you get a fresh 4K wallpaper every day with zero effort.
Make your wallpaper move
iOS can play a moving wallpaper on the lock screen, but only from a Live Photo — not a regular video. The 2Live app turns any clip into a 4K Live Photo on-device, then you set it exactly like above and press and hold to watch it play.
See the full walkthrough in our guides on setting a live wallpaper on iPhone and making a Live Photo wallpaper from a video.
Frequently asked questions
How do I change my wallpaper on my iPhone?
Open Settings → Wallpaper → Add New Wallpaper, choose Photos or a category, position the image, then tap “Set as Wallpaper Pair.” You can also press and hold the lock screen and tap the + to add one.
Why can't I change my iPhone wallpaper?
If the option is greyed out, check that Low Power Mode isn't limiting motion, that Screen Time content restrictions aren't blocking it, and that you're editing the correct Focus's lock screen. Restarting the phone clears most stuck states.
How do I get free wallpapers for my iPhone?
The 2Live app has 1,200+ original 4K wallpapers, free to download with no watermark — a new hand-picked set lands every week in the For You feed.
Can I make my iPhone wallpaper move?
Yes — set a Live Photo as your lock screen and press and hold to play it. 2Live converts any video into a Live Photo wallpaper on-device, so nothing is uploaded.
Related collections
Get thousands of free 4K live wallpapers