iOS 18 Lets You Hide App Labels on Your iPhone Home Screen

As part of its Home Screen customization overhaul, iOS 18 lets iPhone users hide the labels on app icons for a cleaner look.

hide app labels ios 18
Turning off the labels causes the icons to expand and take up the space where the text usually appears underneath. Here's how it currently works in the iOS 18 Developer Beta.

  1. On the Home Screen, press and hold on an empty area.
  2. Tap Edit in the top-left corner.
  3. Tap Customize.
  4. In the customization menu that appears, tap the Large button.
  5. Tap anywhere on the Home Screen to save your preference.

Home Screen

As things stand, it's not possible to hide labels and keep app icons small, but this could change in succeeding beta versions.

In addition to hiding app labels, other new Home Screen customization options in iOS 18 include the ability to place app icons anywhere, and a dark tint option for app icons.

Read our iOS 18 announcement coverage for more details about the update, which is now available in beta for members of the Apple Developer Program.

Related Roundups: iOS 18, iPadOS 18
Related Forums: iOS 18, iPadOS 18

Popular Stories

iphone 16 display

iPhone 17's Scratch Resistant Anti-Reflective Display Coating Canceled

Monday April 28, 2025 12:48 pm PDT by
Apple may have canceled the super scratch resistant anti-reflective display coating that it planned to use for the iPhone 17 Pro models, according to a source with reliable information that spoke to MacRumors. Last spring, Weibo leaker Instant Digital suggested Apple was working on a new anti-reflective display layer that was more scratch resistant than the Ceramic Shield. We haven't heard...
apple watch ultra yellow

What's Next for the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3

Friday April 25, 2025 2:44 pm PDT by
This week marks the 10th anniversary of the Apple Watch, which launched on April 24, 2015. Yesterday, we recapped features rumored for the Apple Watch Series 11, but since 2015, the Apple Watch has also branched out into the Apple Watch Ultra and the Apple Watch SE, so we thought we'd take a look at what's next for those product lines, too. 2025 Apple Watch Ultra 3 Apple didn't update the...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Reaches Key Milestone Ahead of Mass Production

Monday April 28, 2025 8:44 am PDT by
Apple has completed Engineering Validation Testing (EVT) for at least one iPhone 17 model, according to a paywalled preview of an upcoming DigiTimes report. iPhone 17 Air mockup based on rumored design The EVT stage involves Apple testing iPhone 17 prototypes to ensure the hardware works as expected. There are still DVT (Design Validation Test) and PVT (Production Validation Test) stages to...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Blue

20th Anniversary iPhone Likely to Be Made in China Due to 'Extraordinarily Complex' Design

Monday April 28, 2025 4:29 am PDT by
Apple will likely manufacture its 20th anniversary iPhone models in China, despite broader efforts to shift production to India, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In 2027, Apple is planning a "major shake-up" for the iPhone lineup to mark two decades since the original model launched. Gurman's previous reporting indicates the company will introduce a foldable iPhone alongside a "bold"...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Air Launching Later This Year With These 16 New Features

Thursday April 24, 2025 8:24 am PDT by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the ultra-thin device. Overall, the iPhone 17 Air sounds like a mixed bag. While the device is expected to have an impressively thin and light design, rumors indicate it will have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, a...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 13 New Features

Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iPhone 17 Pro on Desk Feature

All iPhone 17 Models Again Rumored to Feature 12GB of RAM

Tuesday April 29, 2025 3:36 am PDT by
All upcoming iPhone 17 models will come equipped with 12GB of RAM to support Apple Intelligence, according to the Weibo-based leaker Digital Chat Station. The claim from the Chinese leaker, who has sources within Apple's supply chain, comes a few days after industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that the iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max will all be equipped with 12GB of RAM. ...

Top Rated Comments

kirky29 Avatar
12 months ago
I mean, they could have let us make the icons smaller, so we can fit more on a row AND remove labels, not exactly difficult I'm sure. :-/
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nortonandreev Avatar
12 months ago
Has Apple fired their designers, LMAO. What is this...
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
shenfrey Avatar
12 months ago

Has Apple fired their designers, LMAO. What is this...
This, is called choice. It's a great thing.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sunapple Avatar
12 months ago
My Home Screen has looked like this for the past year or so. Clean enough for you?



Attachment Image
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jonnysods Avatar
12 months ago
100% using this!
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Fuzzball84 Avatar
12 months ago
This was a feature first proposed during an internal ideas meeting at Apple for iOS 4.

The person was told to keep it up their sleeve for iOS18

? Joking, but amazing how such simple ideas can take so many versions of an OS to make an appearance.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)