Alexis Kestler
Hey there! Looking to make the most of your Android device?
One of the best ways is to take advantage of widgets – those tiny applets that bring information and quick actions right to your home screen.
Widgets help you customize your device, boost productivity, and streamline workflows. As an Android power user myself, I‘ve experimented with hundreds of widgets over the years.
In this guide, I‘ll walk you through the basics of Android widgets – what they are, why they‘re useful, and how to add them.
Then I‘ll share my 12 favorite widgets across different categories, along with tips for maximizing their potential. Let‘s dive in!
What Exactly Are Android Widgets?
Simply put, widgets are mini-apps that surface information from within full apps. They provide quick snapshots and fast access without needing to launch apps.
For example, your calendar widget shows your daily agenda, your mail widget displays inbox alerts, and your music widget offers playback controls.
Widgets sit right on your home screen panels alongside your regular app icons and shortcuts. You can tap and interact with them to view more details or access app functions.
They come in all shapes and sizes – some are simple icons while others take up large strips complete with images and scrollable content.
Under the hood, a widget runs code from its parent app to populate its content. But it shows up independently as a standalone home screen element.
Why Use Widgets on Android Devices?
Here are some of the biggest reasons to use widgets:
Convenience
Widgets save you from digging through apps to find information or tools. Key data is instantly glanceable and functions readily accessible.
Time-Saving
You can perform tasks faster with quick one-tap interactions instead of having to launch and dig through full apps.
Customization
Tailor your home screen with widgets that surface the information you care about for your usage needs.
Notifications
Get alerts for new emails, messages, events, and other real-time notifications through widgets.
Efficiency
Streamline workflows by chaining together widgets that feed into one another.
Visual Appeal
Choose visually appealing widgets to add flair to your home screen aesthetic.
Fun Factor
Interactive widgets like slideshows, music players, and games add an element of fun!
As you can see, widgets provide a lot of utility value. Let‘s look at how to start adding them.
How to Add Widgets to Your Android Home Screen
The process of setting up widgets is quick and easy:
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Press and hold an empty spot on your home screen.
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In the pop-up menu, tap on Widgets.
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Browse the list and locate a widget you want to add.
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Tap and hold the widget, then drag it to your preferred home screen location.
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Let go to place the widget. Resize if needed and you‘re done!
Repeat the process to add multiple instances of the same widget or populate your home screen with different widgets.
Now comes the fun part – exploring the vast variety of Android widgets available! I‘ve handpicked some of my absolute favorites across different categories:
Best Weather Widget: Overdrop
Let‘s start with weather widgets, which are my personal favorites.
A well-designed weather widget is like having a meteorologist on call 24/7 right on your home screen!
Overdrop is my hands-down pick for the best weather widget on Android.
It really stands out with gorgeous skeuomorphic designs ranging from mini 1×1 widgets up to full 5×2 strips.
Overdrop widgets surface all kinds of important weather data at a glance:
- Current temperature
- Feels-like temperature
- Conditions
- Precipitation chances
- Wind speed/direction
- Humidity
- Cloud cover
- Sunrise/sunset times
- Air quality index
- Weekly forecasts
- Severe weather warnings
- Radar with storm tracking
- And more!
Overdrop gets its weather data from trusted sources like AccuWeather and Dark Sky for accuracy. The full app provides even more detail like maps, graphs, and wearable support.
While free to use, Overdrop offers subscriptions for $1.99-$2.99/month to remove ads and unlock more features. I gladly pay the small fee because the widgets add so much utility!
Best Notes Widget: Google Keep
Jotting down quick notes is a task I perform constantly. And I much prefer widgets over full note-taking apps for speed and convenience.
Google Keep‘s stellar note widgets have become central to my workflow.
They come in various sizes and layouts to match your needs:
- Large note widget
- Checklist widget
- Voice notes widget
- Small note preview
Thanks to Keep‘s widgets, I can quickly:
- Capture thoughts and ideas
- Add items to my shopping list
- Dictate voice memos
- Glance at recent note previews
…all without opening the Keep app!
The widgets sync seamlessly with Keep across devices. And it‘s free to use with your Google account.
If quick note-taking is important in your workflow, you‘ll love Google Keep‘s widgets.
Best Calendar Widget: Business Calendar 2
As a busy person juggling work, family, and friends, a calendar is my secret weapon for staying sane!
While Android‘s default Calendar widgets are decent, Business Calendar 2 offers more advanced calendar widgets.
The key widget for me is the beautiful 5-day agenda display:
- Shows current day events + 4 days
- Meeting titles, times, locations
- Color-coded events (customizable)
- Tap events to see details
It keeps me effortlessly on top of my upcoming schedule and meetings.
Other widget formats include:
- Month view
- Week view
- List view
- Mini-calendars
All provide tremendous utility for planning. And the full Business Calendar 2 app is loaded with features too!
Best News Widget: Google News
I like to stay on top of the latest news throughout my day.
The Google News widget keeps me informed with a quick digest:
It surfaces customizable headlines in categories like:
- Top stories
- Local news
- Tech news
- Business updates
- Sports scores
- And more
The widget refreshes with real-time updates and links out to full articles within the Google News app.
I appreciate the glanceable summaries so I can quickly decide what news to read in detail. The Google News widget helps me stay intelligently informed!
Best Music Widget: Spotify
Music is my constant companion while driving, exercising, working, and relaxing.
As a Spotify addict, their music widget is clutch for quick playback control:
It shows me at a glance what‘s currently playing:
- Album art
- Track title
- Artist name
And lets me control playback by tapping:
- Play/Pause button
- Skip track forward/back
- Like songs
Without leaving my home screen, I can queue up playlists, listen to tunes, and manage my jams. Much easier than digging through the full Spotify app!
Best Photos Widget: Google Photos
Scrolling through old memories in Google Photos brings me a lot of joy.
The Google Photos widget makes my favorite pics cycle automatically on my home screen:
It selects recent highlights, rediscovers old gems, and surfaces photos based on people, places, and topics I care about.
Tapping a photo opens it up in the Photos app so I can edit, share, or reminiscence.
The ongoing slideshow of curated photos gives me a nostalgia rush every time I glance at my home screen!
Best To-Do Widget: TickTick
As a productivity nut, to-do lists are my secret weapon against procrastination.
TickTick‘s task widgets keep my task list literally in my face:
Its compact 2×2 widget shows:
- Top 5 tasks sorted by due date
- Tasks marked important
- Click to complete tasks instantly
The expanded list widget reveals more tasks with additional options to:
- Reorder tasks
- Add new tasks
- View task details
Having my critical to-dos on my home screen motivates me to knock them out!
Best Weather Widget: Carrot Weather
I couldn‘t do a widget roundup without mentioning Carrot Weather.
Its snarky AI weather robot is an icon in the Android widget niche.
Carrot lets you choose layouts from minimalist to colorful. It surfaces data like:
- Current temps
- Conditions
- Precipitation
- Wind
- Graphs and maps
- Funny forecasts
And its premium Ultrapremium subscription has awesome advanced widgets like:
- Radar with real-time storm tracking
- Air quality visualization
- Fitness forecasts
- And more
Carrot Weather has some of the most fun, functional, and feature-packed weather widgets available. The full app experience is excellent too.
Best Crypto Widget: Crypton Pro
As someone who dabbles in cryptocurrencies, I need quick access to the latest coin prices.
Crypton Pro has awesome widgets for crypto tracking:
It offers ticker widgets that scroll through real-time crypto prices complete with:
- Price
- Percent change
- Coin icons
You can configure parameters like order, color theme, scrolling speed, and number of coins.
The expanded widgets add extra details like market cap, 24-hour trading volume, and price graphs. Everything I need to monitor my portfolio in a glance!
Best Calculator Widget: Calcularis
Crunching quick calculations is a frequent need for me.
Rather than launching a full calculator app, I prefer a widget for fast math on the fly.
Calcularis offers the perfect calculator widget:
It has all the standard calculator functions like:
- Addition
- Subtraction
- Multiplication
- Division
- Percentages
- Trigonometry
The widgets come in various sizes – I like the 2×2 version. Just tap it to overlay the calculator on your current screen for quick math!
Calcularis also includes scientific calculator widgets loaded with advanced functions which is great for students.
Best Clock Widgets: Clock + Timely
I like having visible clocks across my different home screens for quick time checks.
Android‘s default clock widgets are simple and stylish:
But Timely offers even more options:
Choose from analog, digital, flip, radial clocks and more across a variety of sizes. You can deeply customize colors, fonts, backgrounds – they really help personalize your home screen aesthetic.
Timely also has useful calendar and alarm clock widgets to supplement the core clock ones. Definitely check it out!
Best Calendar Widget: aCalendar
In addition to my main calendar widget, I like having a secondary monthly calendar view.
aCalendar has hugely customizable monthly calendar widgets:
You can:
- Adjust size from 4×1 up to full-width
- Change colors
- Add reminders
- Integrate tasks
- Click dates to create events
- Works with Google/Outlook/iCloud Calendars
It‘s perfect as a secondary calendar reference on my home screen. The full app packs a ton of features too.
Take Your Home Screen to the Next Level!
There you have it – my personal favorites across 12 of the most useful Android widget categories.
Widgets are a great way to amplify your device‘s productivity and streamline your day-to-day tasks.
Don‘t be afraid to experiment – try out widgets, tweak placements and layouts, find combinations that work for your workflow.
It takes a bit of trial and error, but putting together the perfect widget set up is worth it.
Soon you‘ll have an ultra-functional, customized home screen that supercharges your mobile experience! Let me know if you have any other widget recommendations. Enjoy!
