Tutorial: How to change the app icon name & image on Android

[Andy Burnelli]

Photo Tutorial: How to change the app icon name & image on Android
<https://i.postimg.cc/pLLD28Ny/icon01.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/HLJXMgkg/icon02.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/kG72T3qD/icon03.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/zvkgND0n/icon04.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/Z5s60RZH/icon05.jpg>

I am writing up this photo tutorial to help so all always benefit
from my value-added posts to increase knowledge on the Android ng.

Please add value where you can.

Tested on a variety of phones (as I've been doing this for years), all
unrooted, all using the Nova free app launcher.

STEP 1:
Choose any app whose app icon & homescreen name you want to change.
Check that this app shows up when you swipe upward to obtain the "app
drawer" results.

Note that I chose the "Google" search app
<com.google.android.googlequicksearchbox> which was in my homescreen "web"
folder because that's an app that everyone has, and it can't be deleted so
it's proof what any phone can do.

STEP 2:
On your Android homescreen, long press on the app whose icon you wish to
change.

This will bring up a menu which may depend on your Android version &
launcher.

On Android 12 with Nova launcher, press the "pencil" icon to begin the
editing process.

STEP 3:
In that "Edit shortcut" GUI, change the "App label" (I changed "Google" to
"I hate google".

Long press on the icon which will bring up another standard app-icon
editing GUI.

STEP 4:
That standard app-icon editing GUI will allow you three choices for app
icons:
a. Built-in
b. Gallery apps
c. Get more themes

Note: There are plenty of free "icon packs" available on the Google Play
Store repository.
And it's trivial to create your own app icons if you want to customize them
further.

STEP 5:
I selected a specific icon out of the built-in icons already on my phone.
Then I pressed the "Done" button in the standard app-icon editing GUI.

Voila!

Note that you can place these two apps side by side (as a test) if you
like.

Note the app icon & app icon name are only changed in the placement on the
homescreen.

A subsequent search in the app drawer and in app managers shows the
original icon & name.

Please add value so others benefit from every post.
--
Posted out of the goodness of my heart to disseminate useful information.

[Wendelin Uez]

It's always easy to describe an existing function especially if it's self
explaining, but the question is what do do if long pressing an icon would
not show an edit entry like a pencil as it does on my Samsung Android 11
phone?

[Andy Burnelli]

Good qustion.

AFAIK, all Android phones can edit the app icon but we can only get
specific about your phone if you tell us the model & Android version & App
launcher that you're using (if it's not the stock app Samsung launcher).

As I had stated in the OP, I tested this on _many_ phones, but almost all
(if not all) would have been using the Nova free launcher since that's what
I put on any new phone that I get.

What do you get when you long press on any given app icon by way of GUI?

<https://i.postimg.cc/pLLD28Ny/icon01.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/HLJXMgkg/icon02.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/kG72T3qD/icon03.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/zvkgND0n/icon04.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/Z5s60RZH/icon05.jpg>

Just post a screenshot so we can see what you see and work from there to
help you change the icon and the name even if the phone is not rooted.

[Andy Burnelli]

Andy Burnelli wrote:

>> Samsung Android 11

>
> AFAIK, all Android phones can edit the app icon but we can only get
> specific about your phone if you tell us the model & Android version & App
> launcher that you're using (if it's not the stock app Samsung launcher).

Oops. You already told us that it's Android 11 and a Samsung,
so we can safely assume it's probably this OneUI app launcher...
*Samsung One UI Home* by Samsung Electronics Co.,Ltd.
Version: 12.1.01.15 (2021.02.22)
<https://galaxystore.samsung.com/prepost/000005483570?appId=com.sec.android.app.launcher>

And you correctly caught me providing a too-simple solution which wasn't
generic enough to encompass all Android phones out there using freeware.

While I used the Nova free launcher to change the app icons, I'm confident
you will have no problem changing your app icons using the stock launcher.
*How to Change The Icon of Any Android App? [Without Root]*
<https://www.viralhax.com/change-android-app-icon/>

As I've used _many_ methods in the past to change shortcut icons & names:
<https://i.postimg.cc/59PS5qWM/icon01.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/284sC5C0/icon02.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/760FbPgP/icon03.jpg>
<https://i.postimg.cc/X7T7DX9H/icon04.jpg>

For example you might want to look at my more detailed tutorial on this:
*Tutorial: How to easily change Android app shortcut icons & app names [sans root]*
<https://groups.google.com/g/comp.mobile.android/c/3bu27OTTdGY/>
Where I outlined the following tools used for those screenshots:
*Website Shortcut*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.deltacdev.websiteshortcut>
*Shortcut Maker*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=rk.android.app.shortcutmaker>
*QuickShortcutMaker*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sika524.android.quickshortcut>
*Shortcut Creator*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.alextern.shortcuthelper>

Where you can make your own icons or get zillions of them in free packs:
*Monoic Icon Pack, by KD Pixels*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.kdpixels.iconpacks.monoic>
*Viral - Free Icon Pack, by DrumDestroyer Themes*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=vintage.icon.pack.ddt>
*Whicons - White Icon Pack, by Randle*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.whicons.iconpack>
*Minma Icon Pack, by Rohit S Shetty*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.minma.icon.free>

Running a specific search for you using that app launcher on Android 11
<https://duckduckgo.com/?q=android+11+change+app+icon+oneui+samsung>

The first hit is for Android 12, OneUI 4.0 <https://youtu.be/934JYCQNBQI>
but the second hit points to a free general purpose solution for any
Android phone which is always the type of solution that I love to promote.
*How to change app icons on any Samsung Galaxy Smartphone*
<https://youtu.be/mgWte2WZBkA>

Watching videos for what can be text drives me nuts so the punch line is
that he points to a free "Shortcut Maker" app that works with his tutorial.
<https://sakitechonline.com/2021/03/24/powerful-icon-maker/>
I'm not sure why he jumps you to his web site but he then points you to:
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=rk.android.app.shortcutmaker>
Which is an app that I've been using for years to create shortcuts myself.
*This app can create a shortcut on android homescreen for anything
you want from your android."

While I have tutorials for doing more complex things with ShortcutMaker:
*WIP Tutorial: Opening Android intents & activities, working syntax & beginner examples*
<https://groups.google.com/g/comp.mobile.android/c/dj1OYyp6FOI/>

What he does with Shortcut-Maker is simply change the icon & name:
a. He opened the free shortcut maker app he downloaded
b. He pressed the "Apps" icon
c. He choose the "Blockchain Wallet" app
d. And then he changed the label (he shortened it to "B Wallet")
e. Then he tapped on the "Icon" set of options
f. Then he changed the icon, shape, color, size, style, etc.
g. Then he shows how you can change it to any image you want

What I love about your question is you IMPROVED the tutorial because the
method I use, while easy, works with Nova Free Launcher, but the method you
helped me document (which I had known about but had forgotten about), is
more GENERAL PURPOSE which is what I love about writing these tutorials!

The only problem with the more general purpose solution is the detail
required scares people off, so I was hoping the simpler solution sufficed.