People love customizing the look of their Android devices and one of the best ways to do that is by changing the theme. Themes typically give you the ability to change the wallpaper, icons, and certain UI elements (like the notification shade and Quick Settings) to suit your own personal taste.
Themes have become more common in Android devices but really only found inside manufacturer versions of the OS. Samsung, LG, Huawei, and Sony all feature themes and some of them even have their own device specific “Theme Stores,” making it easy to browse themes created by the community just like you would the Google Play Store.
How to change theme Android
Of course, the steps to apply a theme vary greatly between devices but since Samsung is by far the most common, we’ll show you how you an change your theme below. Here’s how you do it:
- Long-press on any blank space on the home screen
- Tap Wallpapers and themes
- Go to the Themes tab
- Scroll down to explore themes
- Find a theme you like, select it, and tap DOWNLOAD
- After it installs you can tap APPLY
While “stock” versions of Android (as found on Nexus, Pixel, and Android One devices) don’t feature the robust themeing options found on some of these other manufacturer devices, the Google Pixel and Pixel 2 does have a light/dark theme that changes based on how dark or light your wallpaper is.
Simply change the wallpaper and watch as the notification shade/Quick Settings panel changes to a dark gray as well as app folders and app drawer.
Download a 3rd party launcher
If you have a version of Android that doesn’t feature built-in themeing, you can still customize the look of your home screen by downloading a 3rd party home screen app. Our favorite is Nova Launcher. Why? Because it features nearly endless customization options, including the ability to apply 3rd party icon packs. It’s about as close as you’re going to get to a system wide theme, so it’ll have to do. Here are the steps:
- Download an icon pack from the Google Play Store (example: Pixel Icon Pack 2)
- Download Nova Launcher and make it your default home app
- Long press a blank area of the home screen
- Tap on Settings
- Tap on Look & feel
- Tap on Icon theme
- Choose an icon pack from the list
For more on choosing the best 3rd party launcher (home screen app) for your Android phone, check out the link down below. There you’ll not only find Nova Launcher, but a handful of other apps with boat loads of customization options that allow you take your Android themes to the next level.
Read more: 10 Best Android Home Screen Apps
