Philips Hue widgets and Control Center controls for iPhone

Turn lights on and off in one tap

Opening an app just to switch off the hallway light takes too long. HueCommand (Command for Philips Hue on the App Store) adds interactive widgets and a room control to iOS, so the rooms you use most are one tap away.

These are native WidgetKit widgets and controls. Tapping one sends the command to your Hue Bridge without opening the app.

Home Screen widgets

• Room Toggle (small): one room you choose. Tap to switch it on or off
• Rooms (medium): up to four rooms side by side, each with its own toggle. If you don't pick rooms, it shows the four with the most lights

The widgets work on iPhone and iPad.

How to add a Home Screen widget

1. Touch and hold an empty area of the Home Screen, then tap Edit and Add Widget (on iOS 17, tap the + button).
2. Search for Command and choose Room Toggle or Rooms.
3. Tap Add Widget and place it on the Home Screen.
4. Touch and hold the widget, choose Edit Widget, and pick the room or rooms it should show.

Control Center, Lock Screen and Action button

On iOS 18 or later, the Room Lights control can go in three places:

• Control Center: swipe down and tap to switch a room on or off
• Lock Screen: replace one of the two buttons at the bottom of the Lock Screen with a room toggle
• Action button: on iPhones that have one, press it to toggle a room

Add it from the controls gallery while editing Control Center, the Lock Screen or the Action button setting, then choose the room.

Widgets are made for home

For a Bridge you paired at home, widgets and controls send commands over your home network. They don't switch to the Hue cloud when you're away. To control your lights while you're out, open the app with remote access (Pro), or use a Siri Shortcut, which can reach your Bridge through the Philips Hue cloud when it isn't reachable locally (with Pro and remote access signed in).

Before toggling, each tap checks the room's current state on the Bridge. If someone already switched the lights with a dimmer or another app, the widget still does what you expect.

Tips for choosing rooms

• Put the room you use most, often the bedroom or living room, in the Lock Screen control so it's there before you unlock
• Use the medium widget for a group of rooms, such as everything downstairs, and the small widget for a single room
• Assign the Action button to the room you switch most in the dark, such as a hallway

A Pro feature

Home Screen widgets and the Control Center, Lock Screen and Action button control require Pro. Without Pro, the widget shows an upgrade prompt instead of your rooms. Controlling lights inside the app is always free.

Pro is $2.99 a month or $19.99 a year (US prices, which can vary by country), or a one-time Lifetime unlock. See Free vs Pro.

Widgets and controls are only on iPhone and iPad. On Mac, use the keyboard shortcuts. On Apple Watch, use the Watch app.