I’ve been using an iPhone as my daily driver for over three years. Over time, enabling and disabling connectivity options like mobile data, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth became habitual via a single tap. iOS 18 changed this, and not for good, so I had to fix it.

iOS 18’s Control Center Has a Big Problem

Using something in a particular manner develops muscle memory for it, which is exactly what happened with the Control Center on my iPhone 13. Between 2021 and 2024, I used three different iOS versions, but what was common among all was the Control Center layout.

To turn on cellular data, I swiped down from the top right corner of the screen, hit the mobile data icon at the top left (which is where most of the connectivity options were), and that was it. I did the same thing for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and airplane mode, and never did it feel inconvenient or chaotic for once.

However, that’s not the case with the new Control Center in iOS 18, and I can’t find a good reason for it.

Access to the basic connectivity features should be quick, as even a regular user might need to tweak those settings several times a day. Not everyone leaves all the options enabled all the time (like me); we access the quick settings area even more.

Why Control Center Isn’t as Convenient Anymore

The new Control Center layout on iOS 18 sure looks good at first glance. Apple has added more pages to the interface, which allows users to place their favorite widgets on different screens. You can even move the circular icons around the pages and increase or decrease their sizes.

However, there’s one thing that’s fundamentally wrong with the new layout, and that’s hiding the cellular data switch. To access it, iOS 18 requires you to press and hold on to the group of connectivity options in the top left and then hit the cellular icon button.

It might sound like a teeny tiny change that doesn’t matter, but the more you use the quick controls, the more you’ll notice it. In iOS 17, I didn’t even have to look at the screen to switch from Wi-Fi to mobile data (I was that quick). Now, I’ve to wait for the sub-menu to open before making the switch.

Personally, I wouldn’t call this the most clever or fluent UI interaction. However, I’ve figured out a way to shorten the process, as it used to be on older iOS versions like iOS 17. It might sound tedious at first, but this will fix the issue once and for all.

I Made This Change to Fix the Control Center

By taking the required connectivity controls out of the group, you’ll effectively eliminate the need to press and hold before you can make the necessary changes.

To do this, you must enter edit mode and make the required changes. Before you start, I’d suggest you take a screenshot of the current layout, as it will be useful later in the process.

First, tap and hold an empty space in the Control Center. As you enable the edit mode, tap on the “Add a control” option at the bottom.

In the Controls menu, scroll down until you come across the Connectivity section. This contains individual buttons for all the essential options like cellular data, personal hotspot, AirDrop, airplane mode, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi. Press any one of the buttons (like cellular data).

This will add it at the bottom of the existing layout.

Now, drag the newly-added button toward the top of the layout (or wherever you want to place it) and drop it. Doing so will disturb the other buttons, but we’ll adjust them in a bit.

For now, repeat these steps for all the controls that you want to add for quick access. In my case, I’ve added four controls at the top.

Press on the minus sign at the top left of the connectivity options group to remove it.

Remember how I told you to take a screenshot of the previous layout? Tally and place the other controls in their respective positions, and you’re done. Pro tip: Place the remaining buttons toward the bottom of the Control Center and start arranging them from the top.

There you have it. A new Control Center layout that is efficient and, more importantly, convenient. The best part is that you can customize it the way you feel. For instance, if you want to place the connectivity options at the bottom (as they’ll be closer to your thumb), you can do that by following similar steps.

The Control Center issue also exists on the new iPhone 16e, but now you know how to fix it. Check out more details about the budget iPhone in our articles on the missing features, reasons to buy, and how it compares with the iPhone 16.