Change Icons on Your iPhone

This article teaches you how to change the displayed app icons on your iPhone. To do so, you'll need to download an app from the App Store. You can also use a jailbroken phone to change app icons, although jailbreaking your phone will void its warranty.

Steps

Using the "Iconical" App

  1. Open Iconical. It's a grey app with blue crossed lines. You'll first need to download it from the App Store if you haven't done so already; it costs $2.99.
  2. Tap Select App. It's near the top of the screen.
  3. Tap an app whose icon you wish to change. Doing so will bring up a page with the following options for the chosen app:
    • Camera icon - Take a photo of an object or upload a picture from your iPhone's Camera Roll.
    • Pencil icon - Add custom drawings to the app's icon.
    • Resize icon - Located in the bottom-right corner of the app's icon area, this option allows you to crop or zoom in on the app's icon.
    • You can also add a photo's web address in the field near the top of the screen.
  4. Tap the option best suited to your desired icon. If you're entering a URL, paste it into the field below the "Select App" link near the top of the screen.
    • Some options will require additional feedback; for example, tapping Camera Roll requires you to tap a photo and then tap Save in the top-right corner of the screen.
  5. Tap the "Enter Title" field. It's below the new app icon.
  6. Type in a name for your icon. You'll do so in the provided field. Consider using the original app's name for this icon to avoid confusion.
  7. Tap Create Home Screen Icon. This option is below the "Enter Title" field.
  8. Tap the "Share" button. It's the upward-facing arrow at the bottom of the screen.
  9. Tap your new app icon. It will appear in a pop-up window at the bottom of the screen.
  10. Tap Save. It's in the top-right corner of the screen. Doing so will save your new app icon to one of your iPhone's screens. When you tap the new icon, a Safari page will briefly open before opening your app.
    • This process will not replace the app for which you created the icon, but you can tap and drag the app into a folder to hide it.

Using the "App Icon Free" App

  1. Open App Icon Free. It's an app with a yellow smiling face. If you haven't yet done so, you'll first need to download it from the App Store.
    • App Icon Free covers significantly fewer apps than does Iconical.
  2. Tap Later when prompted. This window will ask if you want to purchase the full version, which costs $4.99; tapping Later will close the window and proceed to the app itself.
  3. Tap Create Icon. It's in the bottom-left corner of the screen.
  4. Tap App Icon. This option is at the top of the pop-up window at the bottom of the screen. Tapping it will bring up a list of installed apps with changeable icons.
  5. Tap an app whose icon you wish to change. The chosen app must currently be installed on your iPhone.
  6. Customize your app's icon. You can do so using by tapping the tabs at the bottom of the screen and selecting different attributes:
    • Skin - Applies a background color to your app icon.
    • Frame - Places a colored frame around your app icon's skin.
    • Decor - Places a preset icon in the middle of the app square.
    • Photo - Allows you to upload a photo (tap Library) or take one from scratch (tap Camera).
    • Choosing to take or use a photo will prompt App Icon to request access to your camera and photos, so tap Allow when prompted.
  7. Tap Create Icon. It's in the top-right corner of the screen. Doing so will save your newly created icon to the App Icon home page.
  8. Tap Install Icon. This option is in the bottom-right corner of the screen.
  9. Tap Install. It's in the top-right corner of the screen.
  10. Tap Allow when prompted. This will allow App Icon's custom setting to be introduced to your iPhone's Settings app.
  11. Finish installing your app icon. You'll do so by tapping Install several more times -- twice in the top-right corner of the screen and once at the bottom of the screen. After the installation process is complete, your new app icon will appear on one of your iPhone's screens. When you tap the new icon, a Safari page will briefly open before opening your app.
    • This process will not replace the app for which you created the icon, but you can tap and drag the app into a folder to hide it.

Using a Jailbroken iPhone

Warning: This method requires that you first jailbreak your iPhone, which will void your phone's warranty. Additionally, jailbreaking may not be possible on all versions of iOS.

  1. Ensure that you have a jailbroken iPhone. If you have a jailbroken iPhone, you can use tools from Cydia to change the icon of any app on your device, system, or otherwise.
  2. Download the necessary tools from Cydia. You can only use Cydia on jailbroken devices. If you don't have a jailbroken device, try one of the other methods in this article. Download the following tools from Cydia, all of which should be available in the main repo:
    • iFile
    • IconMaker
    • Terminal
  3. Copy the image you want to use for your icon to your iPhone. Copy the image to your iPhone by either sending it to yourself via email or by using iFile. You can also take images with your iPhone's camera.
    • You can download icon replacements from various websites like DeviantArt or you can create your own.
    • You can use any image you'd like and IconMaker will convert it to the proper size.
  4. Open IconMaker and load the image file. This app will convert your image file into the proper size and format. Tap the Camera button to pick an image that you have in your Camera roll. if the image is located somewhere else on your iPhone, use iFile to find it and then select "IconMaker" after opening it.
  5. Enable "Open in iFile" and "Save to .png File." These two settings are necessary to generate proper icon files.
  6. Tap Generate Icon to create the icon files. This will create five icon files.
  7. Tap Edit, tap all five files, and then tap the Clipboard. This will copy the newly-created icon files to your clipboard.
  8. Open the app folder in iFile for the app you want to change icons for. The location will vary depending on if the app was downloaded from the App Store or if it's a Stock or Cydia app. Navigate to one of the following locations in iFile and then select the app you want to change icons for:
    • Stock/Cydia - /var/stash/Applications.XXXXXX
    • App Store - /var/mobile/Applications
  9. Delete the existing icon files. There may be several icon files present. Either rename these files or delete them completely. Note that sometimes the file will have the app's name instead of "icon" in the file name:
    • icon.png
    • icon@2x.png
    • icon~ipad.png
    • icon@2x~ipad.png
    • iconClassic.png
  10. Tap Edit, tap the Clipboard button, and then tap Paste. This will paste the new icon files that you copied into the folder. They will already be named properly thanks to IconMaker.
  11. Open Terminal. Terminal will allow you to reset your UI so that you don't have to reboot to see your changes.
  12. Type UICache into Terminal and press Enter. After a few moments, your interface will refresh and you'll be able to see your new icon.[1]

Tips

  • You can use app icon changers other than the two listed in this article if you like.

Warnings

  • Deleting the program used to create your new app icons may also delete the icons or prevent them from working.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/iOSthemes/comments/1uajy0/guide_how_to_change_custom_icons_for_apps_ios_7/
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