4 CarPlay settings I alter to right away make it higher

Reflecting a bit, I believe Apple downplays the significance of CarPlay manner an excessive amount of. The tech did get affordable consideration at WWDC 2025, together with the launch of CarPlay Ultra, nevertheless it performs an out-sized function within the lives of iPhone homeowners. Many people depend on it not only for music and podcasts after we’re driving, however to get the place we have to safely and on-time. That may be true even while you’re accustomed to an space — lately, development lowered a serious freeway to at least one lane in my metropolis at an hour when there was nonetheless loads of visitors. The primary time I bumped into this, a 20-minute journey instantly ballooned to about an hour. Popping open Apple Maps throughout a subsequent drive allowed me to take a posh detour and make it residence in affordable time.

If want be, CarPlay is usually fantastic to make use of instantly after you set it up. However in order for you one of the best expertise, there are a selection of settings it’s best to change, each in your iPhone and your automotive’s dashboard. The tweaks under are those I contemplate important as of iOS 26. Your personal preferences might fluctuate, though I encourage you to not less than contemplate these concepts.

Deleting and rearranging residence display apps

Effectivity issues on the street

That is my most necessary change. For simplicity’s sake, CarPlay defaults to loading each suitable iPhone app while you set it up to your automobile. The issue with that is that the majority sprint shows cannot match greater than eight or 10 icons, and every part else will get shoved into further residence display pages.

There’s additionally no prioritization past pre-installed apps, so in the event you use Google Maps or Waze as a substitute of Apple Maps, you might need to swipe to a second or third residence display each time you wish to navigate someplace. That is annoying sufficient while you’re parked, and a dangerous distraction while you’re on the street.

Earlier than you get behind the wheel once more, clear up CarPlay by going to Settings > Common > CarPlay > [your car] > Apps in your iPhone. Drag the triple-line icons on the suitable to rearrange their precedence. As a rule, the apps you utilize most frequently ought to occupy the highest eight spots. That manner, they’re going to at all times be on the primary residence display web page.

Use the pink icons to take away as many pointless apps as doable. Don’t fret — you are not uninstalling these out of your iPhone, simply CarPlay. You’ll be able to at all times add them again later by returning to the underside of the Apps web page and tapping on the suitable inexperienced icons. You will have to do that whereas your automotive is off too, however while you reconnect your iPhone, any modifications will sync routinely.

Choosing Darkish and/or Clear look choices

Mild might have its benefits, typically

For a lot of customers, one of the best look settings — present in CarPlay’s in-vehicle Settings > Customise Icons menu — would be the Default icon set, and Auto for switching between Mild and Darkish themes. This could maintain every part discernible in shiny daylight, however then flip the theme over to Darkish as soon as the solar goes down. That is much less straining on the eyes, particularly while you’re gazing a navigation app.

Personally, although, I discover the Default icons boring to have a look at, and infrequently favor Darkish mode’s distinction at any time of day. If you wish to comply with go well with, simply faucet each Darkish choices.

New to iOS 26 is the power to decide on Clear icons. These are visually slicker than the darkish ones, in my view, however they don’t seem to be for everybody — there’s even much less distinction than the default, so some drivers might discover themselves searching too lengthy for the suitable icon. Your alternative of wallpaper might have an effect right here (see under). As I write this, I am experimenting with clear icons and the Auto theme mode to check if these may be higher than all-dark, on a regular basis.

Selecting wallpaper

Full your customization

Wallpaper would possibly seem to be a trivial factor, however with iOS 26, it could go a great distance in the direction of making your automotive really feel like your individual. That is as a result of the replace’s Liquid Glass aesthetic turns quite a lot of the interface clear, bringing out the colour of your wallpaper, significantly in the event you pair it with clear icons (see above).

In my case, I am utilizing a gold-tinged wallpaper that matches the “desert titanium” of my iPhone 16 Pro. You also needs to be capable of discover ones that match the colours of the iPhone 17 lineup, or in the event you’re fortunate, the inside of your cabin. Go to Settings > Wallpaper while you’re within the driver’s seat.

Whereas I am right here, I ought to gripe that Apple nonetheless has but to permit customized wallpapers in CarPlay. That is in all probability as a result of the corporate is anxious about legibility, decision, and total visible enchantment — that picture of your companion or pet might sound good in your iPhone, nevertheless it may change into an outright mess on a 10-inch panorama show. If that is going to vary in iOS 27 (or another future launch), Apple will want a system to routinely crop and scale pictures added to CarPlay, at a minimal. Some form of monotone filter choice would possibly assist with extra chaotic pictures.

The more cash you may have, the extra helpful it’s

One of many side-benefits of Apple’s work on CarPlay Extremely is that a few of its extra superior widgets have slid into the usual UI. These enable issues like checking the climate, viewing your upcoming calendar appointments, or accessing smart home controls with out having to cease first. I think about that for some individuals, the power to lock a door or flip off lights once they’re miles away from their storage will probably be an actual time saver. On most sprint shows, you’ll be able to entry any widgets you may have configured by swiping to the left of your house display.

To get began, you will must go to Settings > Common > CarPlay > [your car] > Widgets in your iPhone. Should you add a number of widgets, you’ll be able to rearrange their order, and/or activate Sensible Rotate to let your iPhone select what to prioritize based mostly on the time of day. Regardless, you’ll be able to swipe up or down in your in-car widget stack(s) to vary what you are taking a look at.

That leads me to an necessary notice, which is that on larger shows, you will see a number of widget stacks directly. This makes the expertise inherently higher in costlier automobiles. I am fantastic with that in my very own automotive — the one widgets I’ve added are Climate, Batteries, and Calendar, and the one one I care about more often than not is the primary one. I must know if I will be coping with rain, snow, or freezing temperatures frequently, however checking my Apple Watch’s energy can in all probability wait till I’ve arrived at my vacation spot.

One other notice is that whereas a shocking variety of third-party widgets can be found, many of those are in all probability going to be ineffective while you’re driving. Nobody actually must know who’s reside on Twitch once they’re cruising down the freeway, for instance.