How to Change Your CarPlay Wallpaper

When it comes to CarPlay, Apple doesn’t let you modify much of the in-car infotainment system’s appearance. Thankfully, as long as you’re running iOS 14 or higher on your iPhone, you can change the CarPlay wallpaper. Here’s how.

Start by plugging your iPhone into your vehicle that includes CarPlay using a USB to Lightning cable (unless your car or truck supports wireless connections). Once CarPlay launches on your infotainment display, tap the App Grid button found in the bottom-left corner. This step is only necessary if viewing the overview screen or an open app.

Next, select the “Settings” app. You might have to swipe between home screens to locate the application.

From the Settings menu, tap the “Wallpaper” option.

You will now be presented with several wallpapers, which change in appearance when CarPlay is in dark or light mode. Choose one of the available wallpapers to see a live preview on your head unit.

Select the “Set” button if you like the wallpaper’s appearance. If not, tap the “Cancel” button and choose a different wallpaper.

Unfortunately, at the time of writing, you can’t use your own photo as a wallpaper in CarPlay. But don’t worry, changing the wallpaper on CarPlay won’t alter your iPhone’s background.

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