How often do you find yourself confusing your iPhone for someone else’s? How many iPhone-only group chats are you in? When was the last time you received a text that came up green on your screen?

About 90 million people in America own an iPhone, and many of them encounter situations like these every single day. It’s hard to know which phone is yours when you leave it sitting out. But, it is nice having a phone that makes communicating with friends and loved ones so easy and exciting.

At the end of the day, all the pros and cons of being an iPhone owner come down to one thing: what you make of it!

It’s time you look into iPhone customization. The more you personalize the way your phone and how different functions work, the better your overall iPhone experience will be.

Here’s everything you need to know to learn how to customize your iPhone from the inside out.

How to Customize Your iPhone with Unique Settings and Apps

It’s easy to do a simple wallpaper switch or to invert the colors of your iPhone screen. This is as far as most people go to customize their iPhone. But, it only takes a little more effort to completely transform how your phone looks and feels.

The next time you find yourself scrolling through Instagram or playing a game on your phone, exit out and head to the Settings app. Spend some time getting to know everything it can do for you. Then, download a few extra special design apps to truly make your phone unique.

Get to Know Your Phone

Before you get into specific settings that can upgrade your iPhone, make sure you’re using all the basic functions available to you. This is especially important for iPhone X users who may be trying to use their new and improved model as if it was an older-generation device.

The iPhone X allows you to scroll left and right from all your apps without ever having to “double-tap” to the home screen first. If you love Face ID, but hate how it can lag sometimes, turn on your phone’s “Raise to Wake” feature.

Additionally, explore how you like the Reachability function. This makes the control center at the top of the screen more accessible. To feel like you have your home button back, turn on Assistive Touch.

Download Special Design Apps

Once you’ve realized everything the upgraded iOS system can do, explore the App Store. It only takes one or two special design apps to completely transform the look and feel of your phone.

These apps allow you to play with different features such as the color and size of your keyboard and the way your apps are arranged. They’re the closest thing you can get to jailbreaking your phone, but without taking on all the risks of this old-school customizing approach.

How to Customize Your iPhone with Cases

The next step in customizing your iPhone is to explore all the external options available to you! Take a look at the case you’ve been using and ask yourself what’s missing. Maybe it’s time to purchase one with a bold, eclectic pattern or even invest in a custom iPhone case.

Simple and Chic Covers

The main downside to having a super-creative iPhone case is that many other people have them, too! These days, you may be better off with a simple and chic cover.

Having a case that doesn’t draw too much attention to your phone may actually make it easier to identify among other belongings. Not to mention, it reduces the chances that someone else may mistake your phone for theirs.

Plus, many cases with a seemingly simple design actually do a lot to upgrade the functions of your phone. Some cases make your iPhone water durable or scratch-resistant, while others, like Plus Cases, double as an external battery.

Big, Bold Creations

A phone case is not something you have to seriously commit to. You can have one phone case for everyday use and another for fun adventures and special occasions.

When such events come up on your calendar, you need a bigger, bolder case. There are iPhone cases in the shapes of unicorns and forest animals. There are cases that convert into purses and those that have gemstones and pom poms all over them.

These are not your average protective device design. They may be just what you need to finally make your phone stand out.

Custom iPhone Cases

Don’t want something too big or clunky to cover your phone? Interested in a simple case, but still want to make it your own? Sounds like you need to look into custom iPhone cases.

You can customize your iPhone case to have a picture of your family or your dog. You can monogram it with your initials or write out one of your favorite life quotes as a simple, yet constant reminder.

Whatever you do, customizing a standard case is sure to make it feel more like your own. Take some time to explore all the customizing options available to you before you decide on a new case! Don’t forget it may be worth purchasing a few different kinds of cases, too.

Add-on Accessories to Make Your iPhone Stand Out

Even when you’ve found the perfect case and customized all your iPhone’s settings and functions, there’s still more you can do to create a truly personalized iPhone experience. Consider investing in some iPhone accessories.

Here are a few of the most popular accessories to choose from.

PopSockets and Assorted Finger Grips

PopSockets are popping up on the phones of teenagers, college students, and busy professionals alike. They’re small attachments that connect to the back of your iPhone’s case and pop in and out.

People of all ages and interests love how this simple accessory has completely revolutionized the way we use our phones. PopSockets provide a more comfortable and more secure way to use a phone.

When fully extended, this accessory allows you to hold your phone by the round attachment rather than the sides of the phone. It puts less strain on your wrist and fingers and provides all kinds of different uses. A PopSocket can also be used as a rest for a phone if you want to watch a video horizontally.

These aren’t the only kinds of special grips out there, though!

In addition to PopSockets, there are many unique finger slips sold individually and combined into certain iPhone case designs. These allow you to slide your pointer and middle finger under a piece of fabric to hold and support your phone. They come in all sorts of fabrics, colors, and sizes.

iPhone Lanyards

If you’re the person who’s already replaced more iPhone screens than you’d like to admit, you may want to look into an iPhone lanyard.

These accessories are sold to help you better keep track of and protect your phone. They allow you to go about your day without worrying about where you’ve left your device or what condition it’s in.

Camera Customizations

Sometimes, the best way to customize an iPhone is to take the functions it can already perform and make them even better. Such is the case with iPhone camera accessories!

Although the new camera technology provided by the iPhone X is impressive, there are still some limitations. Depending on where you are and what image you’re trying to capture, your lighting possibilities will always be limited. Not to mention, it’s hard to take a wide-angle photo with a standard smartphone lens.

This is where camera customizations truly shine. Different camera accessories allow you to put a spotlight on anything you’re taking a picture of whether it be through your regular camera or the front lens. Others give you the ability to take photos with a fisheye angle and to distort an image in different ways, too.

The possibilities are endless — you just need the right camera accessory!

More Tech Insights and Ideas

It’s one thing to read about all the ways to customize your iPhone and another to finally have the phone you’ve been dreaming of. Clearly, the standard version of an iPhone is a pretty good piece of technology to have. But, imagine how much better your experience could be if you took the time to tweak a few things.

Once you figure out how to customize your iPhone, everything changes. From texting and calling to scheduling and gaming, all the functions of your iPhone become that much better when you know they’ve been tailored to your unique needs.

For more interesting iPhone insights and tips, click here.