Borealis is a $4.49 Android icon pack with more than 31,000 icons that keep each app’s own branding, plus cloud wallpapers and a dynamic calendar icon. You need a launcher that supports icon packs, such as Nova, and it has 4.8 stars from 2,755 ratings on Google Play.
Quick verdict
If you use a launcher that takes icon packs and want one uniform style across your icons without losing the brand colors, Borealis is a good fit. Many reviewers praise the design and how many apps it covers, and several have used it for years. Two things draw complaints. Several reviewers say requested icons took months or never came, and several find it hard to pick one icon by hand from such a long list. Many loading and crash reports came in 2022 and 2023. The developer says a July 2023 update fixed search and improved performance, and few reports in the sample come after it. If you want circle icons, or icons that look clearly different from the originals, look elsewhere. Across all ratings, 4.9% are 1 or 2 stars.
Borealis Icon Pack at a glance
| Developer | UNVOID |
|---|---|
| Store listing | Borealis – Icon Pack on Google Play |
| Price | $4.49, with in-app purchases from $0.99 to $20.99 per item |
| Ads | None |
| Play Store rating | 4.8 stars from 2,755 ratings (90.3% of the ratings in the store’s rating breakdown are 5-star) |
| Downloads | 100,000+ |
| Version / last updated | 2.202.0 / October 1, 2026 |
| Requires | Not stated |
| First released | March 13, 2018 |
| Data checked | October 21, 2026 |
What is Borealis Icon Pack?
Borealis replaces your app icons with its own versions inside a launcher that supports icon packs. The listing says it aims for a cohesive look “while respecting the original brands”, so most icons keep their familiar logo and colors. Reviewers describe the icons as square. The listing names more than 20 compatible launchers, including Nova, Niagara, Action, Apex and OnePlus, and says a supported launcher is required. The app itself is a dashboard where you apply the pack, browse icons, request missing ones and pick wallpapers. UNVOID has published it on Google Play since March 2018.
Key features
- Icons: 31,000+ icons, multiple alternative icons for some apps, and icon masking for apps the pack doesn’t cover.
- Dynamic calendar: a calendar icon that shows the date, if your launcher supports it.
- Wallpapers: 48+ high-resolution wallpapers, loaded from the cloud.
- Dashboard: apply the pack, send icon requests for unthemed apps, and read an FAQ section.
- Launcher support: the listing names ABC, Action, ADW, Apex, Atom, Aviate, CM Launcher, Evie, GO Launcher, Holo, Holo HD, Lucid, M Launcher, Mini, Next, Niagara, Nougat, Nova, OnePlus, Smart, Solo, Square, V Launcher and ZenUI “and more”.
- Setup tip: the listing says to turn off “normalize icon size” in your launcher before you switch to an alternative icon.
Borealis Icon Pack vs. what a launcher app should have
“Listed” means the Google Play listing names the feature, “Partial” means it covers part of it, and “Reviews only” or “Reviews and developer replies” means we found it outside the listing. Borealis is an icon pack that runs inside your launcher, so most launcher rows are your launcher’s job; it fills the icon and wallpaper rows.
Must have
| Feature | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| A home screen with the apps you choose | Not listed | Provided by your launcher |
| A searchable, sortable app list | Not listed | |
| Folders or grouping | Not listed | |
| Hiding apps | Not listed | |
| Easy setup as the default launcher | Partial | Apply from Borealis or your launcher’s settings; a supported launcher is required |
| Gestures and navigation settings | Not listed | |
| A usable free tier | Not listed | Paid app |
Should have
| Feature | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Notification management or filtering | Not listed | |
| Icon styles and third-party icon packs | Listed | 31,000+ icons with alternatives |
| Themes, wallpapers and backgrounds | Listed | 48+ cloud wallpapers |
| Font and text-size options | Not listed | |
| Built-in widgets | Not listed | The listing has a dynamic calendar icon, not widgets |
| Support for standard Android widgets | Not listed | |
| Renaming apps | Not listed | |
| Backup and restore of the layout | Not listed | |
| Working without an internet connection | Not listed | Wallpapers are cloud based |
Nice to have
| Feature | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Focus tools | Not listed | |
| Double-tap to lock the screen | Not listed | |
| Extra sort options | Not listed | |
| Automatic light and dark themes | Reviews and developer replies | A 2020 developer reply says dark mode was added in settings; one reviewer in 2022 says the app doesn’t follow the device setting by default |
| Notification dots or badges | Not listed | |
| Website shortcuts | Not listed | |
| Tablet and e-reader support | Reviews only | Two reviewers use it on a tablet |
| No ads | Listed | Google Play shows no ads |
| A one-time purchase that covers all devices | Partial | $4.49 once; premium icon requests cost extra |
Common problems and fixes
The sample goes back to 2018. Older problems may be fixed, and the developer’s replies below may be out of date.
| Problem | What reviewers report | When | What the developer’s replies suggest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Icons screen stuck loading, crashes, or search returns nothing | Many reviewers; a few confirmed fixes in July and August 2023. One in April 2024 says icons take 15 seconds to load, and one in July 2026 says the app crashed on launch for two months before a fix. One reviewer in March 2024 says setting the app’s battery usage to Unrestricted stopped crashes | 2022 to 2023, two reports in 2024 and one in 2026 | Update 2.137.2 fixes search and improves performance (July 2023); a crash fix was applied (June 2026) |
| Hard to find one icon when changing a single app’s icon | Several reviewers scroll a long list with no search or alphabetical order in their launcher’s picker, two of them on Microsoft Launcher | 2018 to April 2026 | The picker is the launcher’s, not Borealis’s. Borealis has its own search and bookmarks (January 2024); in Nova, tap the top-right icon (February 2024); hold the scroll bar to browse by letter (October 2024) |
| Keyboard doesn’t appear in the icon search | A few reviewers, one on a Galaxy S10 | 2022 to May 2025 | Could not reproduce it with SwiftKey or the default keyboard (May 2025) |
| Icons change at random | A few reviewers | 2021 to 2022 | Re-apply the pack or restart the phone (2022); icons can reset when their branding is updated (2021) |
| Doesn’t work on the phone’s own launcher | A few reviewers on Samsung, LG and Poco launchers | 2018 to 2020 | Most stock launchers, Samsung’s included, don’t allow custom icon packs (2020). Two reviewers in 2024 use it on Samsung phones, one through Good Lock and one through Theme Park |
Pros (from user reviews)
- The look: many reviewers call the icons beautiful, clean or stylish. Two like that they stay true to each brand. One in March 2026 prefers them to the “whites, grays and neutral tones” many brands now use.
- Coverage: many reviewers say it covers a huge range of apps, including obscure ones. One in August 2023 says it covers F-Droid apps that few packs do. Several reviewers still found apps missing.
- Still updated: several reviewers say it gets new icons regularly, and several have used it for years. One in October 2026 says branding updates take months, even for Google apps.
- Alternatives and masking: several reviewers like having alternative icons for some apps, and several say apps without a custom icon still blend in.
- Samsung phones: a few reviewers use it with Samsung’s One UI, one through Good Lock and one through Theme Park.
- Support: a few reviewers say the developers responded quickly, including one in July 2026 whose refund was sorted.
Cons (from user reviews)
- Icon requests: several reviewers say their requests took months or were never added, and a few say that happened with paid premium requests. A few others say their requests were done quickly.
- Picking one icon: several reviewers find it hard to choose an icon by hand from the long list in their launcher.
- Loading and crashes: many reviewers in 2022 and 2023 couldn’t load the icons screen or use search. Few reports in the sample come after July 2023.
- Too close to the originals: several reviewers say the icons look much like the stock ones or are boring.
- White boxes: several reviewers dislike how apps without a custom icon sit small on a white square.
- Square only: several reviewers want circle, adaptive or transparent shapes.
- Redesigns: a few reviewers disliked redesigned icons, most recently one in March 2026 about the Google app icons.
- The developer’s tone: a few reviewers between 2020 and 2023 found the replies to reviews rude.
Across all ratings, 4.9% are 1 or 2 stars and 90.3% are 5-star.
Rating breakdown
| Stars | Ratings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | 2,476 | 90.3% |
| 4 | 81 | 3.0% |
| 3 | 52 | 1.9% |
| 2 | 52 | 1.9% |
| 1 | 81 | 3.0% |
Source: Google Play ratings histogram, checked October 21, 2026. The histogram adds up to 2,742 ratings, slightly fewer than the 2,755 total, and the shares are of the histogram total.
Pricing
Borealis costs $4.49 once, with no ads. In-app purchases run from $0.99 to $20.99 per item. A developer reply from April 2024 says they are premium icon requests and donations, and that you need neither to use the pack. Free requests are added by popularity, the developer’s replies say (2023 to 2026), while a premium request guarantees the icon in an upcoming update (April 2026). The developer’s replies also say you can get a refund by emailing your order ID to [email protected] (2022 to 2026). Two reviewers think the price is fair for the quality; a few say it isn’t worth it.
Privacy and permissions
We couldn’t read the Google Play data safety section, so we make no claim about what it declares. The permissions list includes Google Play license check, full network access, modify or delete the contents of your USB storage, modify system settings, prevent device from sleeping, read the contents of your USB storage, run at startup, set an alarm, set wallpaper, view Wi-Fi connections and view network connections. The listing doesn’t explain them.
Who it’s for
Borealis suits you if you use Nova or another supported launcher and want one uniform look across your home screen, with the original logos still easy to recognize. It also suits you if you have a lot of niche apps, since coverage is what reviewers praise most after the design. Skip it if you use your phone’s stock launcher without a workaround, if you want circle icons or a bold new style, or if you plan to change many icons by hand in a launcher with a slow picker.
FAQ
Does Borealis work with Samsung’s launcher?
Not directly. A 2020 developer reply says most stock launchers, Samsung’s included, don’t allow custom icon packs, and the listing says a supported launcher is required. Two reviewers in 2024 use it on Samsung phones, one through Good Lock and one through Theme Park.
What are the in-app purchases in Borealis?
The listing prices them from $0.99 to $20.99 per item, and a 2024 developer reply says they are premium icon requests and donations. Neither is needed to use the 31,000+ icons. Several reviewers say requests were slow or never added, so don’t buy one expecting a quick result.
Can I get a refund for Borealis?
The developer’s replies from 2022 to 2026 say to email your order ID to [email protected]. One reviewer in July 2026 says the developers responded promptly and sorted the refund. A few reviewers say they couldn’t get one.
Why do some apps show up in a white square?
Those are apps Borealis has no icon for. The developer’s replies call the white background a deliberate choice for consistency. You can send a request for the missing app from the Borealis dashboard.
How this review was put together
We haven’t tested Borealis Icon Pack. This review is based on public information from official sources: the app’s Google Play or App Store listing and rating breakdown, the developer’s website when there is one, and recent user reviews on the store with the developer’s replies. Features and claims are the developer’s own descriptions; what users like and dislike comes from the store reviews. Everything was checked on October 21, 2026. Apps change with every update, so check the store listing before you install.
