iOS 26.3 has a bug, where wallpapers randomly appear black in color, on both the Home Screen and Lock Screen. However, in the Settings app, the correct image appears. Several users have reported this problem after updating to iOS 26.3.
It persists despite multiple restarts, wallpaper changes, or creating a new wallpaper combination. Reports online confirm that this issue isn’t isolated to one model, and almost all supported iPhones are affected. Since iPadOS shares a similar codebase, iPads are affected as well. That’s not to say you will absolutely face the issue, but the report pool is large.
The selected wallpaper appears normally in the preview, but switches to a black background after applying it. On a weird note, Color and Gradient wallpapers are affected the most, and this leads us to believe it’s a rendering issue. It does not affect Photo wallpapers as much. Some users also report that the system forces a darker paired style, reducing readability.
There’s no one workaround that fixes it. You can turn off Reduce Transparency from Accessibility in the Settings app, and this restores the wallpaper for a lot of people. If you want to use the feature, you can just toggle it back on after the wallpaper reappears.
Another fix you can try is changing the active Focus Mode. Then you can try to create a new Lock Screen pair as a temporary solution. Alternatively, switching your Liquid Glass style to ‘Clear’ also helps with this issue.
We don’t know the exact cause of the issue, and this isn’t the first time. We’ve had such problems since iOS 16, when lockscreen customization was first introduced on iOS.
According to reports from people testing the iOS 26.4 Beta, there are problems with existing wallpapers, as well as some wallpapers completely showing a black color. This is seemingly a stock iOS bug. iOS 26.4 includes other changes as well, such as making the existing wallpaper packs an optional download, instead of pre-installed.
We have already reported this problem via the Feedback app, and if you’re on the iOS 26.4 Beta, we encourage you to do the same. It’s not just wallpapers that have become weird on iOS, even third-party apps like Spotify are seemingly crashing when using basic features. You can read more about that here.
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Dwayne Cubbins
1426 Posts
For nearly a decade, I've been deciphering the complexities of the tech world, with a particular passion for helping users navigate the ever-changing tech landscape. From crafting in-depth guides that unlock your phone's hidden potential to uncovering and explaining the latest bugs and glitches, I make sure you get the most out of your devices. And yes, you might occasionally find me ranting about some truly frustrating tech mishaps.
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