Do Third-Party Launchers Work Well on Android 16? (yes)

Short answer: Yes, third-party launchers work great on Android 16. The update has resolved most of the issues I encountered with third-party launchers on Android 15 while using my Pixel 7.

Long answer:

The state of custom launchers on Android 15 was, to put it mildly, quite broken, particularly for Pixel phones. The problems were so widespread that launcher developers united to survey the community, hoping to pressure Google into addressing the persistent bugs. The survey's findings painted a grim picture for Pixel devices and led to a stark warning from Android Police: "Don't buy a Google Pixel if you want to use a third-party launcher.""

When Android 16 was released, Android Authority and discussions on Reddit indicated that the update was buggy for some Pixel devices. I have an older Pixel 7 (we're on 10 already!) and I was concerned that Android 16 would bring more woes, so I held off on the update. While some Reddit users suggested that recent updates improved the situation, I didn't see much chatter about third-party launchers.

However, the third-party launcher experience on my phone seemed to be deteriorating, with frequent crashes when switching between apps. Earlier this week, I decided to take the plunge and update to Android 16.

While I haven't noticed many differences in general, the improvement in the custom launcher experience is a night-and-day difference. Both Smart Launcher and Nova Launcher now run almost flawlessly. App switching is smooth and no longer messes up the order of my recent apps. I am no longer seeing janky notifications, and quick switching to the previous app works as intended. Life is good.

When I tried searching about this on Reddit and elsewhere I didn't find any quick answers. I hope this blog post shows up and gives someone else the peace of mind to update and get a less buggy experience.

Also, thank you to the launcher developers who got together and pressure Google to improve the situation.