7 Widgetable alternatives worth trying in 2026
Widgetable packed a lot into one app: virtual pets you raise with friends, mood bubbles, distance widgets, sleep sharing, mood jars, plant widgets, and the Pin It feature for sending little screen surprises. It is also one of the heavier apps in this category, and the constant location, sleep, and notification permissions add up fast. If you want one or two of those vibes without all the rest, there are leaner picks.
Here are seven Widgetable alternatives we tested, each focused on a specific reason people install a friend widget app in the first place.
| App | Best for | Free plan | Starting price | Standout feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Locket Widget | Photos from one bestie to another | Yes | Free, paid tier available | Live photo widget on the home screen |
| Noteit | Sending little drawings | Yes | Free, premium upgrade | Doodle-to-widget canvas |
| BeReal | Honest daily moments | Yes | Free | Two-minute daily window with both cameras |
| Bondee | Avatar-based group chat | Yes | Free | 3D room with up to 50 friends |
| Color Widgets | Aesthetic home screen | Yes | Free, premium upgrade | Templates and live data widgets |
| Photo Widget | Simple photo grids on the home screen | Yes | Free | Multiple photo widgets in different sizes |
| Snapchat | Friends who already use one app for everything | Yes | Free | Bitmoji widget and Snap Map |
Why people leave Widgetable
Too many permissions for one app. Sleep data, location, contacts, notifications, gallery access. Widgetable asks for all of it because each tiny feature needs its own slice. If you only want the photo widget, you still get prompted for the rest.
Heavy battery footprint. The widget refresh cycles, distance calculation, and background sync drain power. Reviewers regularly mention noticeable drops compared with lighter widget apps.
Paywall on the cute stuff. Plenty of the trendy themes, AI wallpapers, and extra widgets sit behind the Widgetable Plus subscription, so the free experience feels intentionally thin.
Friend invites are friction-heavy. Each new feature (pets, mood, sleep) needs a separate invite flow. If your bestie does not accept all of them, parts of the app go silent.
The 7 best Widgetable alternatives
Locket Widget, best for photos from one bestie to another
Locket Widget is the app that started the whole bestie-widget trend. The premise is simple: you take a photo, your friend sees it on their home screen seconds later as a live widget. No feed, no chat, no game layer. Just the most recent shot from each person you have added.
For users who want the core Widgetable feeling (a little window into a friend's day) without the pets and the mood jar, Widgetable versus Locket is a straight simplification win. Locket also runs cleanly on iOS, which matters when your closest friend is on the other phone.
Where it falls short: No video, no group chat, no extra widget types. The free tier limits widget size and the number of recent photos kept.
Pricing:
- Free: widget, send and receive photos with friends
- Locket Gold: bigger widget, more saved photos, video, custom backgrounds
- vs Widgetable: comparable free tier; Locket wins on focus, Widgetable wins on feature variety
Migrating from Widgetable: Install Locket, send invites to your closest friends, add the widget to your home screen. Old Widgetable content does not transfer.
Bottom line: Pick Locket if your favourite Widgetable feature is photo sharing with a couple of friends.
Noteit, best for sending little drawings
Noteit takes Widgetable's "send something tiny to a friend" idea and narrows it to drawings and quick notes. You doodle on a canvas, hit send, and the note appears on your friend's home screen widget. The hand-drawn vibe makes it feel more personal than a photo or a sticker.
For pairs of friends or couples who like the small-gesture side of Widgetable but want less ambient surveillance, Widgetable versus Noteit is a clean step toward intentional, low-volume sharing.
Where it falls short: No location, no shared pet, no calendar. Two-person setup; it is not built for big group dynamics.
Pricing:
- Free: send drawings, basic widget
- Premium: extra colors, larger canvases, brush tools
- vs Widgetable: comparable free tier; Noteit wins on intimacy, Widgetable wins on feature breadth
Migrating from Widgetable: Install, invite one friend by phone number, place the widget. Total time is a few minutes.
Bottom line: Pick Noteit if drawing little notes to one friend is the whole vibe you want.
BeReal, best for honest daily moments
BeReal approaches the friend-update problem from a different angle. Once a day, at a random time, everyone in your circle gets two minutes to post a dual-camera photo of whatever they are doing. The widget on your home screen surfaces the latest BeReals from friends.
For users who like the daily-glimpse rhythm of Widgetable's mood and sleep sharing but want it scaled back to one honest moment per day, Widgetable versus BeReal trades constant micro-updates for a single intentional one. It is calmer.
Where it falls short: The random-time prompt is a love-it-or-hate-it design choice. There is no game layer, no shared pet, no mood widget.
Pricing:
- Free: full feature set
- vs Widgetable: free for both; BeReal wins on signal-to-noise, Widgetable wins on variety
Migrating from Widgetable: Install, follow friends, wait for the daily notification. No data transfer.
Bottom line: Pick BeReal if one honest photo a day beats constant feature-bubbles. Skip it if the random-time prompt sounds annoying.
Bondee, best for avatar-based group chat
Bondee swaps Widgetable's flat icons for a 3D virtual room where each friend has a customizable avatar. You can decorate your space, drop by a friend's room, set a status, and chat. The widget surfaces friends' current status and room.
For groups who want the social game side of Widgetable (status bubbles, shared spaces, light role-play) but more visually expressive, Widgetable versus Bondee is a clear style upgrade.
Where it falls short: Group size is capped, and the 3D scene is heavier than a flat widget. The hype cycle has cooled since launch, so your friends may need a reason to come back.
Pricing:
- Free: avatar, room, status, chat with a small group
- Paid: cosmetic items and decorations
- vs Widgetable: comparable free tier; Bondee wins on visual play, Widgetable wins on widget variety
Migrating from Widgetable: Install, build an avatar, invite the same group. The friend list does not transfer; you re-add.
Bottom line: Pick Bondee if you and your friends will actually come back to a virtual room. Skip it if you want a passive widget.
Color Widgets, best for aesthetic home screens
Color Widgets is for users who installed Widgetable mostly to make their home screen look better. Hundreds of widget templates, live clock and weather widgets, and theme packs let you build a coordinated home screen without any of the social layer.
For solo users or anyone whose besties never accepted those friend invites, Widgetable versus Color Widgets removes the friend dependency entirely. The aesthetic is the point.
Where it falls short: No friend features at all. The trendiest widget packs need a subscription.
Pricing:
- Free: a starter set of widgets and themes
- Premium: full template library, exclusive packs, no ads
- vs Widgetable: comparable free tier; Color Widgets wins on visual polish, Widgetable wins on shared features
Migrating from Widgetable: Install, pick widgets, drop them on the home screen. No friends to invite.
Bottom line: Pick Color Widgets if you mostly cared about the aesthetic side. Skip it if you wanted the friend layer.
Photo Widget, best for simple photo grids
Photo Widget is the no-frills version of the photo half of Widgetable. Pick photos, drop one or more widgets on the home screen in different sizes, set a rotation interval, done. The whole app is built around one job and does it without permissions creep.
For users who used Widgetable mostly as a wallpaper-of-the-day for their bestie's face, Widgetable versus Photo Widget is the cleanest swap. You lose nothing of substance.
Where it falls short: No friend sync, no live photo updates. You manually pick what goes in.
Pricing:
- Free: full feature set
- vs Widgetable: free for both; Photo Widget wins on simplicity, Widgetable wins on social features
Migrating from Widgetable: Save photos from your gallery, point Photo Widget at them, configure the rotation.
Bottom line: Pick Photo Widget if you want the photo grid and nothing else. Skip it if the social side mattered to you.
Snapchat, best if your friends are already on one app for everything
Snapchat rounds out the list as the everything-and-the-kitchen-sink answer. The Bitmoji widget shows your friends as their avatars, Snap Map adds the location layer Widgetable lifted from Blink-style apps, and chat plus stories plus stickers fill in the rest.
For users who want a single app instead of seven, Widgetable versus Snapchat is barely a fight in terms of reach. Your friends are very likely already there.
Where it falls short: Snapchat is a big app with a lot more going on than widgets. The widget side feels secondary to the chat side.
Pricing:
- Free: everything that matters here
- Snapchat Plus: paid perks, none essential for the widget use case
- vs Widgetable: free for both; Snapchat wins on reach, Widgetable wins on dedicated widget design
Migrating from Widgetable: Add friends from your phonebook, enable the Bitmoji and Snap Map widgets.
Bottom line: Pick Snapchat if you want one app to cover widgets, chat, and friend location. Skip it if you want a dedicated widget tool.
How to choose
Pick Locket if you used Widgetable mostly to share photos with one or two close friends.
Pick Noteit if doodles to a single bestie are the whole vibe.
Pick BeReal if you want one daily honest moment instead of constant micro-updates.
Pick Bondee if your friends will actually come back to a 3D room.
Pick Color Widgets if your real goal was the home-screen aesthetic, not the bestie layer.
Pick Photo Widget if you only need a clean photo rotation on the home screen.
Pick Snapchat if your friends already use it and you want everything in one app.
Stay on Widgetable if the pets, mood bubbles, sleep sharing, and Pin It feature all matter and you have a friend group that engages with each one.
FAQ
Is Locket better than Widgetable? Locket is better if the photo widget was the only Widgetable feature you actually used. Widgetable is better if you want pets, mood, and sleep widgets in the same app.
Can a Widgetable friend list move to another app? No app on this list imports a Widgetable friend list. Re-invite each friend by phone number or username.
Which Widgetable alternative uses the least battery? Photo Widget and Color Widgets do not run background sync, so they are the lightest. Locket and Noteit also sit well below Widgetable.
What is the cheapest Widgetable alternative? BeReal, Photo Widget, and Snapchat all run for free on the features that matter. Locket and Noteit have optional premium tiers but the core widget works on the free plan.
What do people use instead of Widgetable? Locket and BeReal are the two most common drop-in replacements. Color Widgets covers the aesthetic side, and Snapchat covers the broader social side.
