How to organise your phone home screen so it is easier to use every day

Helpful Guide

If your phone feels busy, confusing, or harder to use than it should, the problem is often not the phone itself. It is usually the home screen. Too many apps, too many pages, and too many things in the wrong place can make a simple daily task feel tiring.

The good news is that you do not need to be technical to fix it. A few small changes can make your phone calmer, easier to read, and much quicker to use for the things that matter most.

Why a tidy home screen helps

A clear home screen can make everyday phone use feel much less frustrating. It can also reduce mistakes, especially when you are in a hurry.

• You find important apps faster, such as Phone, Messages, Camera, WhatsApp, and email.
• You tap the wrong thing less often, because there is less clutter on screen.
• Your phone feels calmer, especially if too many app icons or widgets are competing for attention.
• Family members can help more easily, because the layout becomes simpler to explain.

This is especially useful if you already use our guides on making text bigger on your phone, tablet or laptop or making your phone easier to read and hear. A tidier layout works well alongside those changes.

Start with a simple plan before you move anything

Before you begin, think about which apps you actually use most days. For many people, that short list is enough:

• Phone
• Messages
• Camera
• WhatsApp
• Email
• Photos
• Internet browser
• Banking or shopping app if you use one often

Everything else can be moved to another page, placed in a folder, or simply left in your app library or app drawer until needed.

A good layout to aim for

You do not need a perfect design. You just need a layout that feels obvious.

1. Keep the first home screen for daily essentials only.
2. Place the most important apps where your thumb reaches easily.
3. Use one or two pages, not five or six, unless you really need them.
4. Create only a few folders with plain names such as “Messages”, “Photos”, or “Travel”.
5. Avoid too many widgets unless they genuinely help you.

If you like, keep the bottom row for the apps you reach for most often. That way they stay in the same place even when you move between pages.

How to organise your iPhone home screen

Apple lets you move apps, make folders, add widgets, and remove apps from the home screen without deleting them. The wording may vary slightly depending on your iPhone model and iOS version, but the general steps stay similar.

Move your main apps into better positions

1. Go to your Home Screen.
2. Touch and hold the background or an app until the items begin to move.
3. Drag an app to a better place on the same page, to the Dock at the bottom, or onto another page.
4. Tap Done when you finish.

A sensible first screen might include Phone, Messages, Camera, WhatsApp, Photos, and your email app.

Create simple folders

1. While the apps are moving, drag one app onto another.
2. Your iPhone will create a folder automatically.
3. Add more apps to that folder if they belong together.
4. Rename the folder with a clear label if needed.

Try folders such as Travel, Shopping, Health, or Utilities. Avoid making too many folders, because that can become another kind of clutter.

Remove apps from the Home Screen without deleting them

If an app is in the way but you still want to keep it installed, your iPhone may offer Remove from Home Screen. That hides it from the page while leaving it available in the App Library.

This is useful for apps you want to keep but do not need to see every day.

Use widgets sparingly

Widgets can be helpful, but too many can make the screen feel crowded. Keep only the ones you genuinely use, such as weather, calendar, or reminders. If a widget makes the page feel busier rather than clearer, remove it.

How to organise an Android phone home screen

Android phones differ slightly by brand, so Samsung, Motorola, Google Pixel, and other models may look a little different. Even so, the main ideas are much the same.

Move your most-used apps to the first screen

1. Open the app list or app drawer if needed.
2. Touch and hold the app you want.
3. Drag it to an empty space on your home screen or into your favourites row.
4. Repeat for the apps you use most often.

Google says you can also change what appears in your favourites row at the bottom of the screen. That is a good place for everyday apps such as Phone, Messages, Camera, or WhatsApp.

Create folders for related apps

1. Touch and hold an app already on the home screen.
2. Drag it on top of another app.
3. Lift your finger to create the folder.
4. Add more apps to the folder if useful.

Keep folder names short and obvious. A folder should make life easier, not leave you wondering what is inside it.

Keep widgets helpful, not crowded

Widgets can show useful information quickly, but they also take up space. Choose one only if it saves you time. If a widget is large and you never look at it, removing it usually makes the whole screen easier to manage.

What to move off the first screen

Most phones become easier to use when the first page contains only the essentials. Good candidates to move elsewhere include:

• Apps you use only once in a while, such as airline, hotel, or parking apps
• Games you do not want to open by mistake
• Shopping apps you use occasionally
• Tools that came with the phone but do not help you day to day

That does not mean these apps are bad. It simply means they do not need to live in the most visible part of your phone.

A simple home screen setup many people like

If you want an easy starting point, try this approach:

• First screen: Phone, Messages, Camera, WhatsApp, Photos, Email, Internet, Settings
• Bottom row: Phone, Messages, WhatsApp, Camera
• One folder: shopping, travel, and occasional apps
• Second page: everything you want available but not visible all the time

This kind of setup is easier to remember and easier to explain if a family member is helping you.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Trying to tidy everything at once. Ten minutes is often enough for a useful improvement.
• Keeping every app on the first page. That usually makes the phone harder to use, not easier.
• Creating too many folders. A few simple folders are helpful; lots of them become confusing.
• Adding widgets because they look nice. Keep them only if they genuinely help.
• Tapping delete too quickly. Read each option carefully before you confirm.

If your phone also feels noisy because of alerts, our guide on turning off unwanted notifications without missing important calls is a useful next step.

If you feel nervous about changing the layout

That is completely normal. Many people worry they will lose an app or break something important. In most cases, you are only changing where things appear, not removing the phone’s core features.

If it helps, move just three or four apps to better places and stop there. Even that small change can make a real difference.

When patient support is useful

Sometimes a home screen needs more than a quick tidy. You may want help deciding what should stay, making text bigger, turning off unwanted alerts, or setting up the phone so it feels simpler every day.

Simply Tech Support helps independent clients and families with one-to-one phone and tablet support at home, including practical setup, safer settings, and patient explanations in plain English. You can read more on the Simply Tech Support services page.

Sources

• Apple Support: Move apps and widgets on the iPhone Home Screen
• Apple Support: Organize your apps in folders on iPhone
• Apple Support: Organize the Home Screen and App Library on your iPhone
• Android Help: Change what is on your Home screen on Android
• Android Help: Add apps, shortcuts and widgets to your Home screens