Wallpaper Apps for Android: Backgrounds and Ringtones

What a wallpaper app is good for

A wallpaper app is a catalog: it gathers images, live backgrounds and often ringtones in one place, so you do not have to hunt through search results. The value is in the library and in how easily you can set an image on the home screen, the lock screen or both. If you want a quick refresh of your phone without installing a full launcher, this is the lightest way to do it.

What is in this selection

• ZEDGE MOD APK (Subscription Unlocked): a large catalog of wallpapers and ringtones, offered here as a MOD build with the subscription features unlocked.

This tag is small, so we do not pretend to offer a long list. Instead, here is how to judge any app of this type so you can compare it with other options you find.

How to choose a wallpaper app

Look first at the resolution. A background that looks sharp on a small screen can be blurry on a large, high density display, so check that the app offers full size downloads that match your phone. Next, look at the categories: abstract art, nature, minimal and anime styles suit different tastes, and if you like cartoon art, the anime tag is worth a look too. Then think about battery and storage. Animated or live wallpapers keep drawing on the screen and can use more power than a still image, and a cache of thumbnails may grow over time.

If you want to go further than a picture, a themes or customization app changes icons and fonts too. Browse personalization and customization apps for that, or edit your own pictures with a photo editor.

Before you install

Check the Android version on the page and expect to grant storage or media permission so the app can save images. Browsing needs the internet, but a wallpaper that you already set stays on the phone. A MOD of a subscription app typically removes ads or opens premium sections, but it is an unofficial build, so features that depend on the developer's servers, such as sign in or sync, can fail. Content in such catalogs is uploaded by users, so respect the rights of artists if you reuse images. Browse more tools on the apps page.