How to add a lunar calendar widget to your iPhone home screen
Updated November 6, 2026 • vLunar
A widget shows the lunar date, Can Chi and upcoming events as soon as you unlock your phone, without opening the app. The steps follow iOS 18 and later; iOS 14 to 17 work the same way, only the add button differs. iPad works like iPhone.
Step 1: Install vLunar and open it once
- 1Download vLunar from the App Store (button at the end of this page).
- 2Open the app once so it can prepare the widget data. Widgets of an app that was never opened often do not appear in the list.
- 3To see events on the widget, turn on calendars in the app, for example Ngày lễ Việt Nam (Vietnamese holidays), US Holidays or your own calendar.
Step 2: Add the widget to the home screen
- 1Touch and hold an empty spot on the home screen until the apps jiggle.
- 2Tap Edit in the top-left corner, then Add Widget. On iOS 14 to 17, tap the + button at the top.
- 3Type vLunar in the search field and tap vLunar.
- 4Swipe left or right to see the small, medium and large sizes. Pick one and tap Add Widget.
- 5Drag the widget where you want it and tap Done in the top-right corner.
Which size should I pick?
- Small: solar and lunar date at a glance, fits next to your app icons.
- Medium and large: room for Can Chi, the 12 zodiac hours, events or a small month view, depending on the style you swipe to.
- The medium widget can show the weather forecast part of the meteorology block (Pro, off by default, turned on in the app's calendar widget settings).
Stack several widgets in one spot
While the screen jiggles, drag one vLunar widget onto another widget of the same size to create a stack. Swipe up or down on the stack to switch, for example between today's lunar date and a countdown to Tết.
Change the colour, background photo and text
The free version already has small, medium and large widgets, 7 colour themes and lets you pick a background photo for the widget (a built-in image or one of your own).
Pro unlocks deeper customisation: colours, text, the lunar and solar layout, plus lock screen widgets and unlimited countdown widgets.
Widget missing or not changing date?
- Pro users: open vLunar > Setting > User Guide > Widget tab and tap Sync home screen widget.
- Open vLunar once and go back to the home screen.
- Turn off Low Power Mode if it is on; iOS limits widget refreshes to save battery.
- Remove the widget and add it again as in Step 2.
- Update vLunar to the latest version in the App Store, then restart the phone.
See the lunar date right on your home screen
Install vLunar for a Vietnamese lunar calendar widget, Can Chi, the 12 zodiac hours and reminders for memorial days, full moon and new moon on the exact lunar date. No need to open a website every day.
Free
- ✓Lunar date, Can Chi, solar term and moon phase for every day
- ✓The 12 zodiac hours (twelve two-hour periods of the day)
- ✓Events that repeat every lunar month or lunar year: memorial days, full moon, new moon, reminded on the right lunar date
- ✓Vietnamese holidays, US Holidays, and events from the calendars on your phone
- ✓Small, medium and large home screen widgets, with your own background photo
- ✓Journal with photos, videos and hashtags, each entry with its lunar date
- ✓Two-pane layout designed for iPhone Duo
Pro
- ★Lock screen widgets and widget customisation: colours, text, lunar and solar layout
- ★Unlimited countdown widgets with photos rotated from journal hashtags
- ★Apple Watch app and complications
- ★Weather forecast part of the meteorology block on the day card and medium widget (Apple Weather)
- ★Journal lock with Face ID or passcode
Subscription through the App Store or Google Play; see the price in the app.
Frequently asked questions
Is the vLunar lunar calendar widget free?+
Yes. Small, medium and large home screen widgets are free, including a custom background photo. Pro adds deeper customisation, lock screen widgets, unlimited countdown widgets, Apple Watch and the weather forecast part of the meteorology block.
Which iPhones can add a lunar calendar widget?+
Home screen widgets exist since iOS 14. The minimum iOS version of vLunar is listed on its App Store page.
My iPhone already shows a Chinese lunar date. Why use vLunar?+
The iPhone's Alternate Calendars option only shows a small lunar date inside the Calendar app, and the Chinese lunar calendar sometimes differs from the Vietnamese one. vLunar follows Vietnam time and adds Can Chi, the 12 zodiac hours, solar terms, moon phase, events that repeat on lunar dates such as memorial days, full moon and new moon, Vietnamese holidays and many widget styles.
More guides
- Lunar calendar on iPhone Duo: vLunar designed for two panesvLunar has a layout designed for iPhone Duo: unfold it for the month grid on one pane and the lunar day card on the other; fold it for a smooth single-screen view with a Liquid Glass button rail. Free.
- How to show the lunar calendar on iPhoneTurn on the lunar calendar in the iPhone Calendar app with Alternate Calendars, learn why the Chinese lunar date sometimes differs from the Vietnamese one, and see the Vietnamese lunar date on your home screen.
- How to show the lunar date on the iPhone lock screenAdd the vLunar lunar calendar widget to the iPhone lock screen (iOS 16 and later): lunar date, Can Chi year and moon phase under the clock, plus how to remove it and fix it.
- How to add a lunar calendar widget to your Android home screenAdd the vLunar Vietnamese lunar calendar widget to your Android home screen on Samsung, Xiaomi, OPPO, realme and vivo, and fix a widget that does not change date after midnight.
- How to see the lunar calendar on Apple WatchPut the Vietnamese lunar date on your Apple Watch face with the vLunar app and complication: install the watch app, sync from iPhone, add the complication to the watch face.
- Vietnamese lunar date todayToday's lunar date, Can Chi of the day, month and year, the next full moon and new moon, and the countdown to Tết.