You can easily change the app icon shape on Galaxy S20, S10, or Note 10 when you are tired of the default squircle shape.
This guide shows you how to change the app icon shape on Galaxy S20, the available shapes, the limitations and caveats for the new icon shapes.
Samsung added the icon shape customization feature in all Galaxy phones with Android 10. So, this feature is also available on other Galaxy phones including Galaxy S10, Galaxy Note 10, Galaxy Note 9, Galaxy S9, and a few other models.
The limitations and caveats of changing icon shape on Galaxy S20
Before starting to change the icon shape on Galaxy S20, you should be aware of the following 5 caveats and limitations.
#1. The icon shape change is limited to app icons.
When you change the app icon on Samsung Galaxy phones like Galaxy S20, the change is limited to app icons on the Home screen, apps screen, and lock screen if app shortcuts are used.
The icons in the quick settings panel, or other system UI, will not be affected.
#2. Most of Samsung apps do not change icon shape.
Almost all Samsung apps (e.g., Phone, Messages, Gallery, Camera) were shipped with only one icon shape: squircle.
So, the icon shape will NEVER change for these apps on Galaxy S20.
#3. Some third-party apps may not change the icon shape for some shapes.
Except for apps from Google, some third-party apps may not support some icon shapes.
For example, a lot of third-party apps do not support the teardrop shape.
Please note, whether an app icon shape is supported or not is defined in the app (by the app developer).
#4. You need to enable developer options to change the icon shape on Samsung phones.
On Samsung Galaxy phones with Android 10, app icon shape customization is hidden in the theming section of Galaxy S20 developer options.
So, you need to enable the developer options before you can customize the icon shape.
#5. You need to reboot the phone to see the new icon shape.
After changing the icon shape on Galaxy S20, you cannot preview it. You need to reboot the phone to see the new icon shape.
On Pixel or some other Android phones, app icon shape customization is integrated into home screen settings, and therefore you can preview and apply it on-the-fly.
How to change icon shape on Galaxy S20 and S10?
You may follow these steps to customize the icon shape on Galaxy S20 and S10.
Step 1: Enable Developer options
You need to tap the Build number field 7 times to enable/unhide the developer options, as explained here.
You could skip this step if you enabled the developer options already.
Step 2: Scroll down the developer options
In the Developers options, as shown in the screenshot below, scroll down and tap Icon shape.
On Samsung Galaxy S20 and S10, the entry is under Theming. ANd it is the last one among the developer options.
For a detailed explanation of developer options, you may check this guide.
Step 3: Select the desired icon shape
Now, you can choose one desired shape for your apps.
Please note, the pop-out closes after you tap any shape (or anywhere). There is NO confirmation.
You can tap the icon shape again to check the setting.
For example, we change the shape fro the default (Squircle) to Square.
Step 4: Reboot the phone
After making the changes, you cannot see the new shape until you reboot the phone.
You can hold the Side key for more than 2 seconds to call out the Power off menu. Then choose Restart to reboot the phone.
You may check this guide on how to power off or reboot Galaxy S20.
Step 5: Check the new shape for your apps
After unlocking your phone with your PIN/password, you can now see the new shape for your apps.
On Galaxy S20, you cannot use your fingerprint or face recognition to unlock the phone after a reboot. If you forget your PIN/password, you can reset it in Samsunbg’s find my Mobile as explained in this post.
In this example, the home screens with the default icon shape and with the square icons are shown in the following two screenshots.
You can find that none of the Samsung apps changes the shape. As mentioned earlier, Samsung did this in purpose and defined only one shape for most of their apps.
Google apps, on the contrary, change their icon shapes accordingly.
For third-party apps, it depends on the icon settings inside the app.
The available icon shapes on Galaxy S20
On Samsung Galaxy phones, there are 4 shapes available for you to use:
- Squircle (the default). Samsung apps only support this shape.
- Square.
- Teardrop.
- Rounded rectangle.
Again, not all apps support all of them. Some may support two or three of them.
Most Google apps support all of them.
Do you have any questions on how to customize icon shape on Galaxy S10, Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra?
If you have any questions on customizing shape for app icons on Galaxy S20, S20+, S20 Ultra, and other Samsung Galaxy phones (e.g., Galaxy S10, Galaxy Note 10), please let us know in the comment box below.
The community will help you get the answer.
If you have any questions on Galaxy S20, you may check other Galaxy S20 guides:
- Galaxy S20 new features guides.
- Galaxy S20 how-to guides.
- Galaxy S20 camera guides.
- Galaxy S20 accessories guides.
- Official Galaxy S20 user manual in your local language.
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