iOS 27 lets you create your own custom iPhone wallpapers

Apple introduces new iPhone wallpapers every year, and you can download the iOS 27 additions here. But iOS 27 also adds the ability to create your own custom wallpapers. Here’s how.

Here’s how you can create custom wallpapers in iOS 27

This year, as part of iOS 27’s overall theme of major AI improvements, Apple revamped its Image Playground app.

Image Playground now offers more powerful image generation capabilities and far fewer restrictions than before. It also allows you to create images that are the perfect size for the background.

But you don’t even need to open the Image Playground app to create wallpapers.

iOS 27 lets you create your own iPhone wallpapers directly from the wallpaper picker.

Go to Settings ⇾ Wallpaper ⇾ Add New Wallpaper or long-press the lock screen and press the “+” button to open the iOS 27 wallpaper gallery.

New to the gallery this year, you’ll see Image Playground as an option in the top row. iOS 27 also automatically adds some AI-generated images to the Featured Wallpapers section.

For example, you’ll see suggested wallpapers based on your photos, but in a new style.

During my testing on iOS 27, without any effort on my part, my iPhone prepared beautifully stylized versions of some of my favorite photos that look fantastic as wallpapers.

Wherever you see an AI-generated background in the gallery, Apple’s new Image Playground icon appears next to it. This way it is always clear where the image comes from.

If you like one of Apple’s suggested AI wallpapers, you can choose it and be good to go.

But iOS 27 also lets you create completely custom wallpapers by pressing the Image Playground button in the top row. Image Playground will ask you to describe your image and will optionally let you choose a style or base it on an existing photo or person.

Once the image is created, it will automatically be the perfect size for an iPhone wallpaper.

Have you tried iOS 27’s new wallpaper creator tool? Let us know in the comments.