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To change which tiles appear, swipe down twice from the top of the screen to open the expanded Quick Settings panel, tap Edit, add or remove tiles from the available list, and drag them into the order you want. The steps are the same across most current Android phones, though the exact labels and layout depend on your manufacturer and software version. Google’s own help page describes this flow, and a small set of well-chosen tiles can save you repeated trips into menus for the actions you perform most often.
Add, remove, and reorder tiles on a standard Android phone
Google’s instructions for Android cover the editing process below. Some steps apply only to Android 13 and later, so if your menus look different, check your version under Settings before assuming something is missing.
- Swipe down twice from the top of the screen to open the expanded Quick Settings panel.
- Tap Edit.
- Choose tiles from the available list to add them, or remove an active tile to take it off the panel.
- Drag a tile to a new position to reorder it. Place your most-used tiles where you can reach them without scrolling.
- If a tile supports resizing, drag its right edge left to show only the icon, or right to show the icon with its label. Smaller tiles let more fit in a row.
When the panel holds more active settings than it can display, a dot may appear to indicate that some icons are hidden. Adding more tiles than you can see at a glance usually defeats the purpose, so keep the most useful ones in the first view and leave the rest for the expanded panel.
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Samsung publishes its own guidance for Galaxy phones. Its editor is Samsung-specific rather than a universal Android gesture, and Samsung notes that available screens and settings may vary by carrier, software version, and model. If your steps differ from the standard flow above, follow the Samsung support page for your device.
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On newer Galaxy devices that support the revised Quick Settings layout introduced with One UI 7, you can also choose whether notifications and Quick Settings appear together. That option affects how much room the panel has, so it is worth checking if your tiles seem cramped.
Choose tiles that earn their place
The most important decision is not how to add a tile but whether it should exist at all. Start with the actions you repeat during the day and the situations where you need them immediately. Google’s developer guidance puts the principle this way:
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“We recommend creating tiles for specific functionalities that you expect users to either access often or need fast access to (or both).”
Before you add a candidate, check it against these questions:
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- Frequency: Do you need this action several times a week or more?
- Urgency: Does a tile save meaningful time compared with opening the app or the relevant Settings page?
- Action: Does the tile perform something useful, such as toggling a setting, or does it merely open an app?
- Availability: Does the tile exist on your Android version and manufacturer interface?
- Placement: Does it belong in the first view of the panel, or is it an occasional tool that can live in the expanded panel?
Google’s developer documentation sorts tile types by how well they fit the tile format:
| Candidate type | Google’s guidance |
|---|---|
| A specific function you use often or need quickly | Suited to a tile |
| A tile whose only purpose is to launch an app | Advised against; use a launcher or shortcut instead |
| A one-time action | Advised against |
| Non-interactive information | Advised against; a widget is a better fit |
The same guidance recommends no more than two tiles per app. A panel full of tiles from one program usually reflects a poor choice of what belongs there.
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Third-party tiles from apps
Some apps can add their own tiles. Android Developers describes these as custom tiles built with TileService. Installing or creating such an app does not place the tile in your panel; you still add it yourself through the Edit flow above. Starting with Android 13, an app can request a system prompt to add its tile, but you can decline it.
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The API is designed for a specific, useful action, not a general shortcut to open an app. The Android Open Source Project’s Quick Settings documentation for Android 16 QPR2 describes the same arrangement: SystemUI discovers third-party tiles that apps provide through TileService. Manufacturers can modify the panel, so an app’s tile may look or behave slightly differently on your phone.
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Troubleshooting when a tile is missing or the panel looks wrong
- Edit is not visible: Confirm the panel is fully expanded. The two-swipe gesture opens the expanded view; a single swipe shows only the compact panel.
- A tile you installed an app for doesn’t appear: Open Edit and look in the available list. The app must offer a tile, and you must add it yourself.
- A step in this guide doesn’t match your phone: Check your Android version first, since some steps require Android 13 or later. On Galaxy devices, use Samsung’s support instructions for your model.
- Icons are hidden: Remove a tile you rarely use or resize tiles so more fit in a row.
What the four-tile story does and does not show
The headline describes one person’s setup: four basic tiles that became a more productive panel. It does not name the phone, the Android version, or the specific tiles involved, and the time it took is not measured. The general method works on most Android phones, but the particular tiles and results in that story are the author’s own experience, not a benchmark. If you want to reproduce something similar, start with the tiles you use every day, follow the steps above, and judge the result by how often you actually reach for them.
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