Where to find and add widgets on your iPad

Widgets on iPad live in two places: the lock screen and the home screen. To add a widget, long-press on the area where you want it — either your lock screen or any home screen page — until a menu appears. On the lock screen, tap the plus button at the bottom left. On a home screen, tap "Edit Home Screen" or the plus button in the top left corner. Both routes open the widget gallery, where you can browse apps that offer widgets and choose which one to add.

The process is the same whether you're using iPadOS 16 or later. Once you've selected an app, you'll see size options — small, medium, or large depending on what the app supports. Choose your size, then tap "Add Widget." The widget appears in the location you started from. You can move it around afterward by dragging it to a new spot, or delete it by long-pressing and selecting "Remove."

Key Takeaways

  • Lock screen widgets appear above your wallpaper and show live information without opening the app.
  • Home screen widgets take up space on your pages and can be resized to small, medium, or large depending on the app.
  • Long-press the area where you want a widget, then tap the plus button to open the widget gallery.
  • Widgets update in the background, which uses some battery and data — disable widgets you don't actively check to improve battery life.

Lock screen widgets versus home screen widgets

Lock screen widgets are smaller and show only essential information — the weather, your next calendar event, or unread messages. They update without you unlocking your iPad, so you can glance at them when ready. Because they're limited in size and refresh rate, they use less power than home screen widgets. If battery life matters to you, lock screen widgets are the better choice.

Home screen widgets are larger and more detailed. They can display more data, update more frequently, and sometimes let you interact with them directly — you might check off a to-do item or play a song without opening the app. This convenience costs battery and data. If you add many home screen widgets that update constantly, your iPad will drain faster and use more background data.

Which apps offer widgets and what they show

Built-in iPad apps like Calendar, Weather, Reminders, Notes, and Stocks all have widgets. Third-party apps vary — some offer rich, interactive widgets while others offer nothing. To see what an app provides, open the widget gallery and search for the app name. If it appears, it has at least one widget option. If it doesn't appear, the developer hasn't built one yet.

Common widget types include weather (current conditions and forecast), calendar (your next event or a mini month view), to-do lists (your tasks for today), news (headlines from a source you choose), and fitness (steps, workouts, or rings). Before adding a widget, think about what you actually check regularly. A widget you never look at is just taking up space and draining battery.

Managing widget size and placement on your home screen

When you add a home screen widget, it occupies a grid of spaces on your page. A small widget takes up a 2×2 grid, a medium widget is 2×4, and a large widget is 4×4. If your page is full, you'll need to move other apps or delete them to make room. You can also create a new home screen page by swiping right past your last page, then adding the widget there.

To move a widget after adding it, long-press it and drag it to a new location. You can move it to a different page by dragging it to the edge of the screen. To remove it, long-press and select "Remove." If you want to change its size, long-press the widget, tap "Edit Widget," and choose a different size option if the app supports multiple sizes.

Smart Stack widgets and widget groups

A Smart Stack is a single widget space that holds multiple widgets and rotates between them automatically or when you swipe. Instead of taking up four separate widget spaces, you can stack them and flip through them with a finger swipe. To create a Smart Stack, add one widget, then long-press it and select "Edit Stack." Tap the plus button to add more widgets to the same stack.

Smart Stacks are useful when you want to see several pieces of information — weather, calendar, and news, for example — without filling your entire page with widgets. You can also set a Smart Stack to rotate automatically, showing a different widget every few minutes. Long-press the stack, select "Edit Stack," and toggle on "Smart Rotate" if the option appears.

How widgets affect battery life and background data

Widgets that update frequently — like weather, stocks, or news apps — check for new information in the background even when you're not using your iPad. Each update uses a small amount of battery and data. If you have many widgets updating constantly, the drain adds up. On a device you use for a few hours a day, the impact is usually small. On a device you leave plugged in, it's negligible.

If battery life is a concern, remove widgets you don't check regularly, disable Smart Rotate on Smart Stacks, and prefer lock screen widgets over home screen widgets. You can also check which apps are using the most background activity in Settings > General > Background App Refresh — if an app is draining battery and you don't need its widget, turn off background refresh for that app or remove the widget entirely.

Troubleshooting widgets that don't appear or update

If a widget isn't showing up in the gallery, the app may not support widgets yet, or you may need to update the app. Open the App Store, search for the app, and check for an "Update" button. If there's no update available and the app still doesn't appear in the widget gallery, the developer hasn't built widget support for it.

If a widget appears but doesn't update, check that the app has permission to use background data. Go to Settings > [App Name] and make sure Background App Refresh is on. Also check that you have an internet connection — widgets can't update without it. If the widget still doesn't refresh, try removing it and adding it again. If the problem persists, restart your iPad by holding the power button and sliding to power off, then turning it back on.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I put widgets on my lock screen and home screen at the same time?

Yes. Lock screen widgets and home screen widgets are separate, so you can have both. A lock screen widget shows information above your wallpaper, and home screen widgets sit on your pages. You might use a lock screen widget for weather and a home screen widget for your calendar, for example.

What happens if I delete an app that has a widget?

The widget disappears from your screen. If you reinstall the app later, the widget comes back and you can add it again. Your settings for that widget don't return — you'll need to reconfigure it if it had custom options.

Do widgets work if my iPad is in low power mode?

Widgets still appear and show their last cached information, but they update less frequently or not at all in low power mode. Once you turn off low power mode, they resume normal updates. This is by design to preserve battery.

Can I resize a widget after I add it?

Only if the app supports multiple sizes. Long-press the widget, tap "Edit Widget," and look for size options. Not all apps offer this choice — if you don't see size options, that app only comes in one size.