How to Choose Your iPhone 17 Wallpaper (With Examples)

Wondering why Apple jumped straight from iOS 18 to iOS 26 this year? Announced at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June, the latest operating system is a nod to the upcoming year and brings many updates to the new iPhone 17. 

One major update to iOS 26 is more customization and control for iPhone 17 users, particularly on the Home screen. The new Liquid Glass software design makes some of these features possible, creating a translucent user interface that behaves like real glass!

iOS 26 also brings more clarity to the iPhone’s navigation, meaning you don’t have to go to settings to access this Home screen customization — including wallpapers. In this article, we’ll cover all you need to know about the impressive range of new iPhone 17 wallpapers and how they can be customized to suit your aesthetic.

Which iPhone 17 Wallpapers Are Available?

Like every new iPhone, the iPhone 17 comes with a selection of pre-made wallpapers, revealed at this year’s “Awe-Dropping” iPhone release event. 

While you can select your own image for the Home screen, these stunning wallpapers are specially designed to complement the device’s sleek aluminum frame and new glass window back. They also shift dynamically, reacting to system interactions and movements.

We’d recommend choosing a wallpaper based on your iPhone model:

iPhone 17

The base model’s wallpaper selection features a vibrant floral kaleidoscopic design that pairs perfectly with the new dynamic ProMotion display. Whether you've chosen the classic black or beautiful new Mist Blue shade, it looks incredibly sleek and stylish against the phone’s frame.

These wallpapers also represent the iPhone 17’s two rear cameras. The 48-megapixel Main and Ultrawide lenses are now housed on a redesigned camera bump, which has changed from a large square bump to a simple oval.

iPhone Air

The iPhone Air wallpapers offer the most minimalistic design of them all, featuring simplistic, clean gradients. As Apple’s slimmest device yet, these wallpapers perfectly represent the iPhone Air!

The wallpapers reference the camera plateau on the back, which holds the single 48-megapixel rear camera and 18-megapixel front-facing lens. They also match the Air’s color options, including:

• Sky Blue

• Light Gold

• Cloud White

• Space Black

iPhone 17 Pro

The iPhone 17 Pro and larger Pro Max models have wallpapers with slightly more dramatic and abstract designs.

Like the iPad Pro’s selection, these high-contrast wallpapers spell “PRO” vertically and look great on the 17 Pro’s brighter 3000-nit display.

How to Change Your iPhone 17 Wallpaper

Changing your iPhone 17 wallpaper through iOS 26 is much easier than in previous operating systems. Rather than going to Settings, Wallpaper, and adding a new wallpaper (or customizing your current one with various widgets and styles), simply follow these steps:

1. Choose any empty space on the Home Screen. Touch and hold.

2. Tap ‘Edit’ when the option appears in the top left-hand corner.

3. Select ‘Edit Wallpaper.’

4. Choose your favorite wallpaper option.

It’s important to note that ‘wallpaper’ refers to the background behind your app icons. Any changes made won’t necessarily affect your Lock Screen, unless you choose the ‘Pair’ option that we’ll discuss in the next section. This means you can have a completely separate style for both the Home and Lock Screens if you prefer!

How to Customize Your iPhone 17 Wallpaper

Customize the Home screen on your iPhone 17 device and create your perfect wallpaper by choosing one of several personalization options. After selecting ‘Edit Wallpaper,’ simply choose from:

• Pair: Wallpaper will match your Lock Screen.

• Color: Choose one color from a menu of swatches.

• Gradient: Blends two colors together.

• Photo: Choose a photo from your library and it will be cropped to fit the screen.

• Blur: Adds a softer effect to the edges of your chosen image.
  

Does the iPhone 17 Offer Any New Wallpaper Customization Options?

If you’re unsure what aesthetic to choose, the iPhone 17’s fresh new wallpaper customization options can help to spark some creativity.

After selecting one of the pre-made designs or a photo from your library, each wallpaper can be configured to match either the device’s color or your iPhone case. The Liquid Glass display also offers a unique customization option to elevate your iPhone 17, which we’ll explore below.

iPhone Color and Matching App Icons

iOS 18 introduced Tinted icons, which apply a color filter over apps and widgets. iOS 26 builds on this with its new color-matching feature, which matches the app icons with the actual shade of your iPhone 17!

It does this with a unique identifier that precisely matches the color profile to your iPhone model. The contrast and saturation are automatically adjusted to match the iPhone’s chassis, while ensuring the icons remain visible.

Activate the color-matching feature by:

1. Find an empty space on your iPhone’s Home screen and long-press.

2. Tap ‘Edit’ in the top left-hand corner, then choose ‘Customize.’

3. Select ‘Tinted’ from the option panel. 

4. Tap the iPhone button on the far left underneath the two horizontal color sliders.

5. Choose from ‘Light,’ ‘Dark,’ or ‘Auto.’

iPhone Case and Matching App Icons

App icons can also be matched to the color of your iPhone 17 case. Rather than tapping the far-left iPhone icon, choose the button immediately to the right.

The downside is that this feature only works with an official Apple MagSafe case. But the good news is that Ghostek’s stylish iPhone 17 cases come in a range of colors that are designed to match both your iPhone screen and personal style anyway!

Liquid Glass 

If you like a layered, translucent aesthetic for your iPhone 17 wallpaper, you’ll love Liquid Glass's new Clear app icon style. This layered glass look makes widgets, app icons and folders, the search bar, and the dock transparent on your Home screen, giving these features more dimension.

However, there’s also a new option to turn these glass icons “Clear” for the full glass effect, adding a third visual style to the ‘Tinted’ and ‘Dark Mode’ options introduced in iOS 18. There are currently three versions to choose from:

• Light Mode: App icons are semi-transparent, which makes the wallpaper beneath them slightly darker. 

• Dark Mode: Icons are slightly transparent but more visible, since the background is even darker.

• Auto Mode: Dynamically adapts icons to the current appearance of your iPhone.

Activate these options by:

1. Long-pressing an empty space on your Home screen until it begins to jiggle.

2. Tapping ‘Edit’ in the top left-hand corner, then selecting ‘Customize’ from the pop-up menu.

3. Choosing ‘Clear from the bottom panel, followed by ‘Light,’ ‘Dark,’ or ‘Auto’ mode.
   

Customization Beyond Your iPhone 17 Wallpaper

The iPhone 17’s dynamic wallpaper options offer a great opportunity to customize the device to your chosen color and personal aesthetic. Another simple way to do this is with a stylish iPhone 17 case, combining sleek design with premium shockproofing for guaranteed durability.

Find the ideal case to match your new iPhone 17, 17 Pro, 17 Pro Max, or Air wallpaper at Ghostek today!