How To Set Home Screen On Android

If you've had an Android telephone for whatsoever length of fourth dimension, it'southward easy to get used to living with, well, chaos. If you're annihilation like me, you're constantly calculation new apps, deciding they're okay but not bully, adding another, so on. Then, a few months subsequently, as you're scrolling through your app drawer, you're surprised to run into several apps that yous forgot most and perhaps don't even remember what they're used for.

In a very short fourth dimension, information technology can become a mess. And if you're really an app enthusiast, it tin can start taking up more space than you lot can spare. (Here, we tin accept as written the obligatory KonMari reference.)

In that location are essentially 2 steps to making sense of all of those Android apps: find a way to organize them (and there are a variety of ways, depending on what yous're comfortable with) and periodically remove all of the actress apps that you've accumulated and no longer utilise. Here are a few tips to help you do both. If you're new to Android, this may aid you stay organized from twenty-four hour period one; if you lot're an experienced user, you might pick up a few tips.

As you go through these suggestions, continue in mind that not all Android interfaces are the aforementioned. This how-to was created using a Pixel 6 running Android 12, but your interface may be slightly unlike, depending on the model of your phone and which Android version you lot're running.

Get organized

At the nearly basic (and anyone who'southward had an Android telephone for more than a calendar week or two can skip down a flake), you lot can just utilize the app drawer, which is accessed either by swiping upwards from the bottom of the phone or by pressing on the apps icon at the bottom center of your display. Identify the apps you use the most on ane or more of your homescreens by long-pressing them while in the app drawer.

The app drawer is (thankfully) organized in alphabetical lodge, with your last-used apps on top. You can swipe upwards to get through the apps; you tin also swipe down on the side to become through the alphabet (which could exist faster). A search bar at the superlative lets yous type in the name of your app if yous wish.

However, once yous start accumulating apps, you may want to save some time by creating a more than structured organization.

Make full the Favorites Tray

Y'all can quickly access your most-used apps by putting them Favorites Tray, the bottom row of apps that is always at that place no matter which homescreen you've swiped to. The tray is already filled? No trouble.

Long-printing on the app you no longer want to keep in the Favorites Tray. Move it to another identify on the dwelling house page, or move information technology up until you run into the Remove and Uninstall choices at the top of the screen. Cull one and move the app there.
Long-press on an app from the homescreen or from the app drawer and movement it into the tray.

Create folders on your homescreen

A good way to organize your apps is to use folders. For example, yous can put all of your music and podcast apps into a folder chosen "Listen," or all your social media apps into a folder called "Social." It's simple to create a folder.

It's easy to create a folder by dropping one app on top of another. — *It's like shooting fish in a barrel to create a folder past dropping one app on acme of another.*

Put the first two apps you desire to include on your homescreen.
Long-press i and movement information technology on elevation of some other. This will create a new folder.
Android may give your binder a proper name. If yous want to give it a unlike name, tap on the folder, tap on the proper noun just below the apps, and blazon in your new proper name.
Add together more than apps to a binder past long-pressing on the app and moving it into the folder.
Remove an app from a folder by reversing that process: long-printing on the app and motility information technology from the folder to the dwelling folio.
To remove the folder, but pull all the apps out of it.

Get rid of unused apps

Sometimes when I install a new app, I'll know immediately that it'south not for me, and I uninstall it and so and in that location. More than ofttimes, unfortunately, I'll try out an app, decide that I may want to utilise information technology sometime in the future, and I leave information technology there. Where it sits. For months. Or years.

Once you lot start accumulating apps, it's incredibly piece of cake to forget about the ones that you no longer need. Simply assuasive old apps to remain on your phone may non be as harmless equally information technology seems. Non only are they taking up useful storage infinite, but they may be unnecessarily collecting data (assuming you gave them the permission to). And if they're working in the background, they could be draining your battery.

Equally a result, it doesn't injure to check out what apps you oasis't used recently and remove them from your phone. There are several ways to do this.

Apply the app drawer

Yeah, this is the obvious one, but information technology has to be said. Spend a trivial fourth dimension cleaning out your app drawer: open it upward, and see what's in there. You may exist surprised by what you've forgotten and what you may no longer need. Anything yous don't need, swipe up to uninstall.

Visit the Play Store

It'southward not as unproblematic equally going to your App Drawer or as efficient equally Files past Google, but if you happen to be in the Play Shop and desire to become rid of a few unnecessary apps in club to install some new ones, there's a mode.

Once in the Play Shop, tap on your personal icon in the upper right corner and choose "Manage apps & device."
Tap "Manage" on top of the page. You should be on the "Installed" tab; if not, it's the first tab on top.

Tap on the parallel lines to the correct of "Apps & game," and you'll be able to sort according to the least-used apps. Yous tin tap on the small pointer to the correct of any app'southward name to see if there's anything new. For any app you no longer want, merely tap the box to the right of the arrow, tap the trash can icon at the top correct, and select "Uninstall." (Don't worry about accidentally uninstalling an important system app — or an app that your phone's manufacturer thinks is important. You'll just be told you can uninstall updates but not the app itself.)

If you lot delete an app and and so later on think, "I shouldn't take washed that," or you of a sudden recall an app you once used that you'd similar to use again, you lot can detect and restore your previous apps from the App Store (including ones y'all deleted from before devices that were using the aforementioned business relationship).

Return to the "Manage apps & device" page. Tap on the "Installed" tab so that it now reads "Non installed."

Bank check the box for whatever app you desire to reinstall and select the download icon on the top right. If you know you'll never want to even expect at that app again, side by side to that, at that place is a trash can with an "ten" in it that will permanently delete the app from your list. (You can still install them from the Play Store.)

Utilise your voice

If yous're walking downwards the street and don't have a spare hand, don't forget almost Google Assistant. Activate it (past long-pressing your power button or saying "Hey Google"), and say "Open up AppName" or "Detect AppName," and your telephone volition open the app.

Endeavour Files by Google

Files by Google is a surprisingly handy app that, amidst other things, helps you get rid of unneeded files that are taking up space. If you determine to install Files (or if your telephone came with it already installed), this is how yous can use it to go rid of unused apps.

If it'southward not already selected, tap on the "Clean" icon on the lesser of the screen.
Roll down until you find the section labeled "Delete unused apps." Tap on "Select apps."
At present y'all tin see how much space each app is taking upwards and the date information technology was final used. You tin sort the list past oldest to newest, largest to smallest, or in alphabetical order.
Tap on the circle on the correct of each app to select whatever you want to uninstall.

Utilise another app

There are a variety of Android apps available in the Play Store besides Files past Google that can aid. To begin with, at that place are other file managers that tin can make it easier to rail and administer the contents of your telephone. (There are, in fact, several apps called "File Manager" in the Play Store.)

Some create overlays to aid you organize your homescreen. Jina, for example, lets you create a sidebar that pulls out from the side of your screen and gives you a compact list view of all your apps. Taskbar puts a configurable Windows-like beginning menu on your brandish.

If you want even more than command over your Android environment, at that place are launchers such as Nova and Activeness Launcher that permit you to more thoroughly customize your app drawer and homescreen with icons, animations, and unlike layouts.

Update March 2nd, 2022, 9:20AM ET: This article was originally published on March 6th, 2022 and has been updated to account for Android OS and app updates.