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On most Android phones, swipe up to open the app drawer, touch and hold an app, drag it to the home screen, and release. For a specific in-app action, touch and hold the app first, then drag the action from its shortcut menu. Websites and widgets use different procedures.
Choose the right home-screen item
| What you want | Use | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Open an app normally | App icon | Launches the app’s main screen. |
| Start a particular action | App shortcut | Can open a new message, incognito tab, contact, destination, playlist or similar app-provided action. |
| See information or controls without opening an app | Widget | Shows live or interactive content such as weather, calendar or music controls. |
| Open a favorite website | Website shortcut | Launches the URL in the browser used to create it. |
| Keep related items together | Folder | Groups apps and shortcuts in one home-screen location. |
Android launchers and apps work together: an app must provide a shortcut, and the launcher must expose it. Android describes this framework in its platform documentation.
Add a regular app icon
- Go to the home screen and swipe up from the bottom to open all apps.
- Touch and hold the app.
- Drag it to the desired home-screen page.
- Lift your finger to place it.
This adds a launcher icon; it does not install a second copy. The app remains in the app drawer. These are the standard steps in Google’s Android Help.
Add a shortcut to a specific app action
- Touch and hold the app icon in the app drawer or on the home screen.
- Wait for the pop-up list of actions.
- Touch and hold the action you want.
- Drag it to an open home-screen location and release it.
Only actions supplied by the app appear. If no useful list appears, the app may not publish launcher shortcuts, the launcher may not expose them, or the app may need updating. Reinstalling cannot create an action the developer has not supplied.
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Add a website shortcut in Chrome
- Open Chrome and visit the webpage.
- Tap More (the three-dot menu).
- Tap Add to home screen. On some sites or Chrome versions, the label is Install and create shortcut.
- If prompted, tap Create shortcut.
- Edit the name if needed, then tap Add.
Chrome may create a simple URL shortcut or offer an installable web-app flow; not every site becomes a full app. A shortcut bearing the Chrome logo opens in Chrome, according to Chrome Help. This phone home-screen feature is separate from shortcuts on Chrome’s New Tab page, which Google documents at Chrome’s New Tab help.
Add a widget instead
- Touch and hold an empty area of the home screen.
- Tap Widgets.
- Find the relevant app and tap it to see its widgets.
- Touch and hold a widget, then drag it to the home screen.
- Release it. If resize handles appear, drag them to change its size.
Widgets are the better choice when you need information or controls visible at a glance rather than a launch icon. On Galaxy phones, Samsung documents the same general flow—touch and hold the home screen, tap Widgets, choose one and add it—in its Galaxy widget guide.
Pixel, Samsung and other launchers
Google Pixel
Pixel Launcher uses the app-drawer drag-and-drop method above. Pixel-specific home-screen controls are available by touching and holding an empty area, choosing Wallpaper & style, selecting the home screen and then Layout. Pixel’s At a Glance element is not movable like an ordinary widget. See Google Pixel Phone Help.
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- NEED MORE STORAGE? WE HAVE YOU COVERED: With an improved 2TB of expandable storage, Galaxy A17 5G makes it easy to keep cherished photos, videos and important files readily accessible whenever you need them.³
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Samsung Galaxy
One UI can use different labels and layouts from Pixel or stock Android. Touch and hold an empty area and look for Widgets; do not assume Pixel’s Wallpaper & style wording exists on Galaxy.
Third-party launchers
A replacement launcher can change icon placement, folders, gestures, widget presentation, backups and whether app or website shortcuts can be pinned. Because launchers participate in Android’s shortcut and widget experience, switching launchers can require recreating items. A different launcher is optional, not required for ordinary shortcuts.
Move, organize or remove items
Move an item
Touch and hold an app, shortcut, widget or folder, drag it to another location, and release. Drag it to a screen edge to move it to another page. If there is no room, continue toward the right edge to create a new home-screen page.
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Create a folder
Touch and hold an app or shortcut and drag it on top of another one. Android creates a folder; drag additional items into it and rename the folder if desired.
Remove without uninstalling
Touch and hold the item and drag it to Remove. This only clears the home-screen placement. Uninstall deletes the app from the device, so choose it only when that is what you intend.
Troubleshoot missing or broken shortcuts
There is no app shortcut menu
- The app may not provide launcher shortcuts.
- The launcher may not support or display them.
- The app or launcher may be outdated.
- The action may only be available from inside the app.
Use the normal app icon or a widget as a fallback; a third-party launcher is not guaranteed to add missing app actions.
Rank #4
- YOUR CONTENT, SUPER SMOOTH: The ultra-clear 6.7" FHD+ Super AMOLED display of Galaxy A17 5G helps bring your content to life, whether you're scrolling through recipes or video chatting with loved ones.¹
- LIVE FAST. CHARGE FASTER: Focus more on the moment and less on your battery percentage with Galaxy A17 5G. Super Fast Charging powers up your battery so you can get back to life sooner.²
- MEMORIES MADE PICTURE PERFECT: Capture every angle in stunning clarity, from wide family photos to close-ups of friends, with the triple-lens camera on Galaxy A17 5G.
- NEED MORE STORAGE? WE HAVE YOU COVERED: With an improved 2TB of expandable storage, Galaxy A17 5G makes it easy to keep cherished photos, videos and important files readily accessible whenever you need them.³
- BUILT TO LAST: With an improved IP54 rating, Galaxy A17 5G is even more durable than before.⁴ It’s built to resist splashes and dust and comes with a stronger yet slimmer Gorilla Glass Victus front and Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer back.
“Add to home screen” is missing in Chrome
- Confirm that you are viewing the webpage in Chrome, not another app or browser.
- Check for the alternate Install and create shortcut label.
- Update Chrome.
- The site may already be installed or already have a shortcut.
- A work or school administrator, launcher, or device policy may restrict placement.
The app is not in the drawer
Search the drawer by name, then check Settings > Apps and any work, private or secure profile. The app may be disabled, hidden, installed in another profile or uninstalled. Menu names vary by manufacturer; enabling or reinstalling the app, or restarting the launcher or phone, may restore it.
The shortcut opens the wrong place
For an app shortcut, remove and recreate it, update the app, and check that the referenced contact, playlist or destination still exists. For a website, recreate it from the current URL and confirm that the browser used to create it is still installed and enabled.
The shortcut disappeared
A launcher reset, restore that excluded home-screen layout, app removal, browser-profile change, launcher replacement or accidental removal can erase it. Recreate the item with the relevant method above.
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There is no empty space
Move another item, create a new page, place the item in a folder, remove unused icons, or use the app drawer instead.
What Android cannot guarantee
Stock Android does not provide one universal method for pinning every file, settings page or arbitrary action. Availability depends on the app, launcher, Android version and manufacturer. Lock-screen shortcuts and controls are separate, device-specific features and are not the same as home-screen shortcuts.
Quick Recap
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