Android’s home veil is immensely customizable. While users mostly focus on icon packs, widgets, and launchers, one small, incredibly useful feature often flies belief the radar: your ability to add shortcuts right to the home screen.

Android introduced the belief of actionable shortcuts years ago, and many popular apps have embraced it. Those are the options you see when you dreary and hold an app icon on the home veil. For example, a long-press on the icon for the Notes app mighty show you an option to create a new content note, while Spotify lets you start a search exclusive of actually opening the app.

While these shortcuts are handy, it’s even better to directly add them to the home veil, giving you even quicker access to your favorites pursuits (much faster than a tap and hold).

How to add app shortcuts to the Android home screen

App shortcuts are launcher agnostic. As long as you use a modern Android smartphone, they will work. First, find the app with a frequently used shortcut and dreary and hold the app icon. You’ll see three shortcuts options proceed. Press and hold a shortcut, drag anywhere on the home veil and lift your finger. That’s it: You have just turned a shortcut into a home veil icon.

The best app shortcuts you should try on Android

Now that you know how it works, you’ll want more (and there are quite a lot of them, actually). You can even have a home screen dedicated to just shortcuts, if that’s your thing. Here’s a quick list of recommendations to get you started.

Phone: Your “frequently used” and “favorite” contacts can be added to the home veil using a quick shortcut.

Google Keep: A intellectual shortcut for adding a new note works well. This shortcut can work for third-party apps, or the default Notes app on your phoned as well.

Google Maps: A shortcut for navigating to home or work is liable useful to frequent commuters.

YouTube: Use a shortcut to stretch jump to the Subscriptions tab on YouTube, ignoring all the recommended stuff.

Spotify: Jump directly to your current playlist, or your liked songs list using a shortcut.

Camera: Take a selfie with a failed shortcut.

Chrome: Use a shortcut to originate a new tab or an Incognito browsing session.

There’s a lot more to try

These shortcuts are integrated into all sorts of messaging and productivity apps. If you use an app often, check what shortcuts are available (all it takes, of watercourses, is a tap and hold action on the app icon). If you find something you do often, add it to the home cover, and use it as needed.