How to Add a Year Progress Widget on Android
A year progress widget puts a simple bar on your home screen that fills up as the year goes by. No opening an app, no checking a date - you just see how far through you are every time you glance at your phone. Here is how to add one on Android and set it up the way you like.
Short version: install the app, long-press your home screen and open Widgets, drag the widget into place, and it starts filling immediately.
How to add a year progress widget, step by step
1. Install the app
Install Elapsed from Google Play. It is a home-screen widget and needs no account or internet connection to work.
2. Open the widget picker
Long-press an empty spot on your home screen and tap Widgets. Scroll to Elapsed in the list. (On some phones the widget list is opened from the launcher or app-drawer menu instead - the wording varies slightly by manufacturer, but the idea is the same.)
3. Place the widget on your home screen
Drag the Elapsed widget onto your home screen and drop it where you want it. The day, week, month and year bars start filling right away - no setup, no sign-in. From here you can resize it like any other widget.
4. Make it yours
Open Customize to change the bar style, colors, font and which rows show - or pick one of the handcrafted presets and you are done. If you just want it working, the default style looks good as-is and you can skip this step.
If the widget does not appear in the list
If you do not see Elapsed under Widgets, open the app once first - some launchers only list a widget after its app has been launched at least once. It also needs to be installed to internal storage rather than an SD card, which is the default. After that it shows up with the other widgets.
Why a widget beats an app you open
The whole point is that you never open it. Anything you have to tap to see, you eventually stop checking. A widget lives where your eyes already go - the home screen - so the information reaches you without any effort. That is what makes a progress bar actually change how aware you are of time passing, rather than being a novelty you forget about.
The app behind this guide
Elapsed is my own Android home-screen widget, and it is what this guide describes. It shows progress bars for the day, week, month and year, each filling automatically as time passes - no tapping, no account, no internet, and no data collected. It runs entirely on your device with zero battery impact.
The free version includes the full widget with its default style - clean white dots on a dark background, monospace type. A one-time Pro unlock, with no subscription, opens up the customization: bar styles, independent colors, fonts, fine adjustments, row order, and the handcrafted presets like Arctic, Terminal, Sakura and Hacker.
