How To Fix Black Screen Wallpaper on iPhone and iPad

  • iPhone wallpapers may turn black due to software glitches, especially when selecting images directly from the Photos app.
  • To fix the black wallpaper issue, restart your iPhone, download the image from iCloud, or set the wallpaper through iPhone Settings.
  • This issue predominantly affects custom photos, not in-built wallpapers, and may require an update or support from Apple in rare cases.
iPhone wallpaper turning black

iPhone offers a ton of optimization when it comes to wallpapers and themes. The latest iOS lets you customize the clock, home screen widgets, choose Lock Screen Wallpaper, Focus Mode and more. However, sometimes, the iPhone wallpaper keeps turning black. No matter which wallpaper or home screen you choose, it reverts to a black background. Let us dive deep and understand how to fix the iPhone wallpaper turning black.

Why Is My Background Black on My iPhone?

I had faced this issue a few months back. Randomly, the iPhone wallpaper used to turn black screen. When this happened, I had to restart my device. Unlike most other errors, this one happens only once in a while. This problem occurs when we change current lockscreen/wallpaper to a new wallpaper, especially when you select wallpaper directly from the Photos app.

At the outset, the black backdrop is most likely an iOS software issue. It is not possible to pinpoint the exact reason. However, I have curated the simple steps to fix the iPhone blank backdrop issue.

How Do I Get Rid of Black Background on iPhone?

Below is a list of troubleshooting steps. Carefully follow each one. In the end, the iOS wallpaper disappearing should be fixed.

1. Restart Your iPhone

If you are in a hurry, restart your iPhone. This should fix the problem, at least temporarily. If you are feeling lazy, use Siri to restart iPhone. However, I would recommend a permanent fix. Read on to know more about the fix.

2. Save the Image From iCloud

Typically, iCloud backs up photos at regular intervals. The Photos App deletes the local copies to make space for newer photos. That said, the photos on the cloud appear as a thumbnail. When you click them, the image loads from the cloud server. Sometimes, the disappearing wallpaper issue occurs when we keep an old iCloud photo as wallpaper. Thus, I recommend downloading the picture before keeping it as a wallpaper.

1. Open the photo which you want to keep as wallpaper. Tap the three vertical dots on the top right corner.

2. Tap and select the Download button from the pop-up menu.

download photos from cloud before assigning it as wallpaper

3. Once downloaded, you can assign the photo as a wallpaper. Using this method, the iPhone wallpaper will not appear as a black screen.

3. Set Wallpaper From the Wallpaper Settings

As mentioned earlier, the glitch mostly occurs when you set wallpaper directly from the Photos app. The best way to avoid this is by selecting wallpaper via iPhone Settings.

Time needed: 3 minutes

. Follow the steps below to set wallpaper using the Settings app.

  1. Open Settings and select Wallpapers.

    select iPhone wallpaper settings

  2. Swipe left to choose from native iOS wallpapers. Else, tap “+Add New Wallpaper” to create a new one.

    add custom wallpaper on iPhone

  3. Select the Photos option to pick wallpaper from the Photos app.

    Add photos as iPhone wallpaper

  4. Below the search bar, tap the All button. Furthermore, you can use filters like Live Photo, People, and Featured to refine your search.

    choose photo wallpaper on iPhone

  5. Tap the desired photo. You can add widgets, change fonts, or crop the photo using pinch zoom if needed.

    setting custom iPhone wallpaper

The iPhone wallpaper will not disappear or turn screen black when you set it this way. Assigning screen background photos directly from the Photos App is convenient; however, it could cause problems later.

Furthermore, I have noticed that the disappearing issue is unique to custom photos and not in-built wallpapers. All said and done, I hope Apple fixes this issue in upcoming builds. In rare cases it could be an hardware issue and only way out is to contact Apple Support. 

Have something to add? Please drop us a comment below.

FAQ

How do I turn off dark wallpaper?

Follow the steps above to turn off dark wallpaper. You can also disable dark mode to turn off dark wallpaper. Head over to Settings> Display & Brightness> Light.

What causes wallpaper to fade?

Low-quality wallpapers can end up being stretched or blurry. This can also happen when you decrease transparency in settings.

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