How to Change the Lock Screen Clock and Shortcuts on a Pixel Phone for Fall

A new season is a good excuse to refresh your Pixel's lock screen, and the clock is the biggest thing on it. On Android 16 and higher, Pixel lets you pick a clock style, color and size, and choose the two shortcuts at the bottom. Pair that with an autumn wallpaper and the whole phone feels new. This guide follows Google's Pixel Phone Help page.

Change the clock style (Android 16 and higher)

1. On your phone's home screen, touch and hold an empty space.
2. Tap Wallpaper & style.
3. Swipe right to Lock screen.
4. To find lock screen settings, swipe up.
5. Tap Clock.
6. At the bottom, choose what to change:
   • Style: choose among preset clock styles. Use the slider to adjust the clock width.
   • Color: change the clock color manually or match it with your wallpaper theme. Use the slider to adjust the shade.
   • Size: toggle Large on or off.
7. Tap Apply.

Fall tip: matching the clock color to your wallpaper theme picks up the oranges and browns of an autumn image without any guesswork.

Set the lock screen shortcuts

1. Touch and hold an empty space on the home screen and tap Wallpaper & style.
2. Swipe right to Lock screen, then swipe up.
3. Tap Shortcuts.
4. At the bottom, tap Left shortcut or Right shortcut.
5. Tap the shortcut you want, then tap Apply.

Google lists these as available shortcuts: Do not disturb, Home, QR code scanner, Wallet, Camera, Flashlight, Mute and Video camera. With shorter days after the time change on November 1, Flashlight earns a spot.

Control notifications on the lock screen

1. Open Wallpaper & style > Lock screen, then swipe up.
2. Tap Notifications on lock screen.
3. Turn notifications on or off, then choose Compact View or Full list.

You can also choose whether to show viewed notification icons, silent notifications and sensitive content.

More lock screen settings

Under More lock screen settings, Google lists options to:

• Add a line of text with Add text on lock screen. A short "Happy Thanksgiving" works.
• Turn on Dynamic clock, so the clock size changes based on what's on the lock screen.
• Show info on songs playing nearby with Now Playing.
• Turn on Use device controls.

A sample fall setup

• Wallpaper: a warm, simple autumn image with clear space behind the clock.
• Clock: a bold style, color matched to the wallpaper.
• Shortcuts: Camera on one side, Flashlight on the other.
• Text: a short seasonal message.

Troubleshooting

• No Clock option: these steps are for Android 16 and higher; update your phone.
• Clock hard to read: try the Large toggle or a darker wallpaper.
• Shortcut missing: only the shortcuts Google lists are available.

Going further with ScreenLux

ScreenLux is the wallpaper app I built, with 4K video wallpapers for Android 8.0 and up. The app installs a live wallpaper service that plays the video loop on the Home Screen. The fall styles are at customphonewallpapers.com. All artwork is created with generative AI tools.

ScreenLux is free to download and preview; subscription unlocks the full catalog and removes ads.

My team specializes in advanced generative AI art and video, and WatchLux and ScreenLux are where we apply it to the watch and the phone.

• Android: ScreenLux on Google Play

Sources checked (official help pages, Oct 20, 2026): Google Pixel Phone Help, "Customize the lock screen on your Pixel phone" (support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/16520562)

Sean McCue, Founder, WatchLux and ScreenLux