One of the best features of an Android phone is the ability to change and customize the home screen of the UI smartphone, which is always governed by an application called launcher or Startup App . Depending on the brand of the phone purchased, there will be a default startup application on which the way apps are organized and how the home screen looks. Launchers therefore include options for the number of home screens, shortcuts for favorite apps, widgets and the full list of apps. For this reason, every Android mobile phone may look different from another and, for example, those who buy a Huawei mobile phone, find the Huawei Home or EMUI launcher, the Samsung have the TouchWiz launcher, ZenUI on Asus phones and so on. The great thing about launchers is that if you find your favorite one, then it can be installed on any smartphone, always remaining with the same interface whatever the brand and model.
On all Android smartphones you can choose an app launcher instead of the default one, to change the way the phone appears on the main startup screen, more beautiful or more comfortable to use according to your tastes. There are dozens of app launchers in the Google Play store for Android smartphones and, in this list of Android launchers that we update often, we try to discover the best Start apps, those to customize the screen to the maximum, which give added value to the phone, free to download.
1) Let's start with the default launcher of Google Pixel smartphones, clean and fast, with a round design, translucent menu bar at the bottom, notification points, support for shortcuts, a favorites bar, tips for apps and of course quick access to Google search.
This launcher cannot be downloaded for non-Google phones, however it is possible to download the APK file for installation from the APKMirror site or use an app like CPL Launcher identical to the original Google launcher .
2) This is Lawnchair 2, which is still in development, but which can be tried for free without problems. The launcher therefore provides the same Pixel startup experience, with Oreo shortcuts, configurable app icon packs and various customizations.
3) Nova Launcher is one of the best Android launchers around, super customizable and always updated for the latest version of Android.
The icons can be changed by downloading packages from the store, there are options to customize the dock and the list of apps, you can see the frequently used apps, you can hide the top and bottom bars and then many others.
If you like the free version, it is absolutely convenient to Buy Nova Launcher Prime, which for years has been the best launcher ever for Android .
The reason for this appreciation lies in the mix of personalization, practicality and flexibility of Nova that has no equal.
4) The Microsoft Launcher for Android is not only to be tried because of Microsoft, but also because since 2017 it has become a bit of Microsoft's means of remaining in the mobile market after the failure of Windows Phones.
The Microsoft Launcher has been greatly improved with continuous periodic updates, integrates with other Microsoft apps such as Edge, Bing and Outlook and allows you to use the function that connects the phone to Windows 10.
5) Evie Launcher is an application highly appreciated in votes and comments, excellent especially for its search function. Simple and quick to use, it has several customization options, while maintaining a minimalist and elegant appearance. There is a sliding bar on the left side for quick access to all apps, a universal search function that allows you to write the name of an app to find it, support for animated backgrounds, customizable app dock and other features to optimize the home screen and the list of applications.
6) Little Launcher, by Xiaomi (but can be installed on all smartphones), practically the same as MIUI, very beautiful and modern, clean, essential and light, although with not too many customization options.
7) Square Home is the launcher that transforms the Android interface into that of Windows Phone smartphones (which no longer exist), with large buttons to open the apps and animated panels, very comfortable to facilitate the use of the mobile phone.
8) C Launcher is an app that allows you to customize Android graphics in a thousand different ways and you can therefore create icons, widgets and backgrounds or choose from the various templates already set and downloadable for free. C Launcher has an exclusive home screen personalization service with over 700, 000 themes and types loaded and shared by thousands of users. It has an app-locker and a RAM memory cleaner, support for gestures and animated screen effects that overlap on the chosen background, such as snow or falling leaves.
9) Apex Launcher is one of the most popular Android app launchers, full of features and aesthetically elegant. There are thousands of themes and icon packs that can be downloaded directly from the Play Store. It is a lightweight launcher optimized for smartphones and tablets that supports up to 9 customizable Home screens, with functions to hide the apps in the list and to sort them by title, installation date or how often they are used. The purchase of the pro version will unlock more gesture options and other customizations and features.
10) Only Launcher allows users to refine the appearance of the launcher by choosing the theme and background and use a series of finger gestures such as pinching, swiping, double-tap, and more to manage the phone. The interface has the appearance of Google's material design while among the best functions there are also universal search and above all it remains light on the system resources.
11) Smart Launcher is one of the most minimal and light app launchers, for those who want minimal memory consumption, without losing design and graphics. According to the indications on the page, it uses artificial intelligence to search for apps, contacts and websites. The list of applications consists of a sidebar that divides the apps according to the category. During the initial installation process it asks for the default apps that are used so that you no longer have problems choosing them. The "smart shutdown" function automatically turns off the screen when the phone is placed on the floor.
12) The BlackBerry Launcher is the app of the new Android Blackberries, which works very well to manage received emails, messages and other notifications in a centralized point for quick access and response. ! This launcher can also be used on all Android phones, even non-Blackberry brands.
13) Action Launcher is one of the most popular launchers on the market, above all very fast and super customizable. The main and best functions of this application are: the ability to quickly change the background and theme of the screen, hidden folders, links to widgets and the alphabetical list of apps and hide some of them.
14) Go Launcher Ex is instead the most famous and (once) best application to change launcher and appearance of the Android phone.
Go Launcher Ex is completely free, in Italian, without paid versions. The appearance of the home screen is very nice, with redesigned icons and different themes to choose and download from the market. There is also the functionality to uninstall applications quickly from the home screen (as is the case on iPhones). Go Launcher also has different transition effects when changing screens and integrates different practical utilities.
15) Turning Android into an iPhone, the icons and menus so that they are identical to those of an iPhone and its iOS system is possible thanks to some launchers described in another article. This is just a copy of iOS of the iPhone that does not have an App screen but displays all your applications on the homescreen. Unfortunately, however, the program does not support widgets that cannot be used. You can create folders to organize applications, drag icons, uninstall applications just like you do on the iPhone.
16) ADW Launcher 2 is the successor of one of the oldest and most popular Android launchers, relaunched in a modern version with many customizations. It has a dynamic colored background-based interface, a collection of apps, transition effects, icon badges, app categorization and more.
17) AIO Launcher is a particular app that does not have colored icons, does not have animation effects and does not have a great variety of themes, but uses the space on the phone screen to show interesting and important information. For example it can show weather forecasts, RAM and internal memory usage, percentage of battery power, music playback control buttons, frequently used applications, frequent contacts, recently received SMS, emails, latest news from favorite sites, calendar, exchange rates and other information.
18) ASAP Launcher is one of the fastest app launchers to use, without advertising, with minimal graphics, without unnecessary functions that can weigh it down.
19) APUS Launcher, described in another article, is one of the most installed with 5 million installations, fast and light, full of customization options.
20) Holo Launcher is a good solution for those who have an older smartphone and do not want to mess up, while still keeping a launcher similar to the standard Google one.
22) Line Launcher is one of the simplest but best launchers ever, full of themes to choose from and options to customize it.
23) Window 10 launcher to add Start and desktop menus on Android, all to try.
24) Launcher to transform Android into a desktop system, to be used when connecting the smartphone or tablet to a monitor.
25) Phonotto to turn Android into an elderly phone
26) Wiser Launcher to make Android super simple and easy
27) CM Launcher, by the same authors of Clean Master, has become one of the most popular apps on Google Play because it is very flexible and, above all, light on the system, without taking up too much memory and remaining stable and fast.
28) Launcher 10 is another launcher for Windows Phone and Nokia Lumia nostalgics and for those who want graphics similar to that of the PC. The home screen has a "Metro" interface made from a mosaic of tiles that can be fully customized by the user with the most used apps, with great ease of use and organization.
To change the appearance of the screen you can not forget the best widgets for Android phones
