Android 16 may tidy up your lock screen with a compact notification shelf

Summary

• Android 16 may introduce a "Compact" notification view to declutter the lock screen.
• The new feature will collapse notifications into a small pill below the clock on the lock screen.
• Users will get more customization options, including hiding seen notifications for a cleaner look.

Google is gearing up to roll out the Android 16 update earlier than usual this year, with a mid-2025 release in sight. In fact, if the latest leaks are accurate, the Android 16 beta program could kick off as soon as this month. As we get closer to the beta release, more details about Android 16's new features are surfacing, and a new report suggests it could bring a much-needed lock screen upgrade to tackle notification clutter.

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According to Android guru Mishaal Rahman (via Android Authority), Google is working on a new "Compact" notification view for the lock screen in Android 16. While Rahman discovered this feature hidden in the Android 15 QPR2 Beta 3 released yesterday, it's not yet live — he had to manually enable it. Instead, Rahman speculates that Google plans to introduce it officially with Android 16.

Currently, Android 15 offers only a few options for lock screen notifications — you can either show all notification content, hide all notification content, or show sensitive content only when unlocked. With Android 16, Google is stepping things up by introducing a fully customizable notification view section for the lock screen.

Android 16 is set to revamp notifications in a big way

According to the report, Android 16 will provide a new page dedicated to customizing lock screen notifications. Users will be able to choose between viewing the "Full list" of notifications — similar to the current default — or switching to the new "Compact" notification view from this page. Users will also be able to completely disable notifications on the lock screen from this page.

The Compact notification view will collapse all notifications into a small pill below the clock, displaying only the app icons for received alerts. Tapping this pill will then expand to show the full list of notifications. Additionally, there will be other options, such as “Hide seen notifications,” which will automatically remove notifications that have already been viewed, helping to declutter the lock screen even further.

It's a small but handy feature for users who receive a ton of notifications and want to keep their lock screen organized — or simply prefer an unobstructed view of their wallpaper. This is yet another useful notification feature that Google is adding in Android 16. The update is also expected to bring back Notification Cooldown, and reports suggest Google is working on Gmail-like categories to improve notification management even further.

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