How to make a live wallpaper on Android or iPhone

Live wallpapers may be heavy on the battery, but they sure are fun! Especially if you learn how to make your own. This is why we’ll show you how to make a live wallpaper on Android and iPhone.

Editor’s note: Steps in this guide were put together using a Google Pixel 7 running Android 13 and an iPhone 12 Mini running 16.4.1. Some steps may differ, depending on your hardware and software.

How to make a live wallpaper on Android

Android has no native way to turn a video into a live wallpaper. You’ll have to find a third-party app on the Google Play Store to take care of the job. There are plenty on the Play Store. Perform a simple search, and you’ll be bombarded with options.

You can pick whichever you want, but we happen to like Video Live Wallpaper Maker. It’s mighty expensive if you pay to use its premium features, at $19.99 a month. That said, the free version lets you easily create live wallpapers from videos. You just have to put up with a bunch of ads whenever you use it, which shouldn’t be too often, anyways.

How to create a live wallpaper using Video Live Wallpaper Maker:

1. Go to the Google Play Store and download Video Live Wallpaper Maker.
2. Launch the app.
3. The main page will show you a gallery of the videos on your device. Pick the video you want to use.
4. You’ll get a couple of options. You can choose whether to Turn on audio and Scale to fit the screen. Make your choices.
5. Once you’re ready, tap on Set as launcher wallpaper.
6. Tap on Set wallpaper.
7. Select whether you want to set it on your Home screen, or Home screen and lock screen.
8. Done!

Creating a live wallpaper on Samsung devices

We know many of you are rocking Samsung phones. It is the most popular Android smartphone manufacturer, after all. Samsung has its own method for creating live wallpapers. These are much funner; you can add text, stickers, effects, and more. Take a look at our guide on how to make your live wallpaper on a Samsung Galaxy phone to learn more.

How to make a live wallpaper on an iPhone

Warning: Apple removed the live wallpaper feature with iOS 16. So anyone with the latest software is out of luck.

If you’re still rocking an older iOS version, making your own live wallpaper is relatively easy. For starters, those with anything older than iOS 16 can use any Live Photo as a live wallpaper.

Using a Live Photo:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Go into Wallpaper.
3. Select Choose a New Wallpaper.
4. Hit Live Photos.
5. Pick a photo and make sure.
6. Select Set.
7. Pick between Set Lock Screen, Set Home Screen, or Set Both.
8. You’re done!

You can also find a third-party app that allows you to turn videos into wallpapers. The Apple App Store is full of them, but we like intoLive. Again, it’s quite a pricey app if you subscribe, but you can use it for free and keep most features.

How to use intoLive:

1. Go to the Apple App Store and download intoLive. Then launch it.
2. Select New Project.
3. Find the content you want to use.
4. Tap on Add.
5. You can now make all kinds of edits. These include cropping, cutting, adding more content, making exposure and color changes, and more.
6. When you’re done editing, tap on the Share button in the top-right corner.
7. Under File Type, select Live Photo.
8. Pick your Resolution and FPS preferences.
9. Hit Save to Photos.
10. Follow the steps to use a Live Photo. These are listed above.

FAQs

Have you decided you want to stick with a normal wallpaper instead? We have a post with all our favorite Android wallpapers, as well as a guide on how to change your wallpaper.