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How to Add and Customize CarPlay Widgets

Manage CarPlay widgets for each vehicle in iPhone Settings. Add widgets, change their order, remove them, or turn on Smart Rotate and Widget Suggestions.
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Add and manage CarPlay widgets from your iPhone’s Settings app: select your vehicle under Settings > General > CarPlay, then open Widgets. You can add, reorder, or remove widgets there, and enable Smart Rotate or Widget Suggestions.

Before you begin

Make these changes while you are not driving. Widget settings are managed on the iPhone for each selected vehicle, rather than through CarPlay’s on-screen settings.

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Add widgets to a vehicle

  1. Open Settings on your iPhone.
  2. Tap General, then CarPlay.
  3. Select the vehicle you want to customize.
  4. Tap Widgets, then Add Widgets.
  5. Follow the on-screen instructions to add the available widgets. Apple’s iOS 26 guide documents this workflow.

Reorder or remove widgets

Return to the same vehicle’s Widgets screen in iPhone Settings. Drag a widget’s reorder control to change its position, or tap its remove control to take it off the list. Apple Support describes these controls.

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Turn on Smart Rotate or Widget Suggestions

In the selected vehicle’s Widgets settings, turn on Smart Rotate or Widget Suggestions if you want to use either option. Both are optional settings on that page.

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Why the widget display can differ by vehicle

The number of widget stacks displayed depends on the vehicle’s CarPlay screen, Apple says in its iOS 26 widget guide. Apple does not give one universal stack count or a model-by-model compatibility list in that guide, so the number you see can vary.

If the Widgets controls or expected options are missing, check your iPhone’s software and your vehicle’s CarPlay support against Apple’s and the vehicle maker’s documentation. The available guidance does not establish specific compatibility requirements for every vehicle.

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Widgets, wallpaper, and app icons are separate settings

CarPlay’s on-screen Settings includes controls such as appearance and wallpaper; it is separate from the iPhone’s widget-management page. See Apple’s guide to changing CarPlay settings.

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App icons on CarPlay Home are organized separately in iPhone Settings under Settings > General > CarPlay > [your vehicle] > Customize. That page is for arranging apps, not widgets. Apple’s CarPlay Home guide covers icon customization.

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