Panels, the wallpaper app created by YouTuber Marques Brownlee (known as MKBHD), will shut down on 31 December 2025, the development team has announced. The decision follows difficulties in maintaining and expanding the app after changes in the core development team.
Panels launched in September 2024 and quickly became the top-ranked app in the Photos category on both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. It recorded more than two million wallpaper downloads during its first year. However, despite its early success, the team says the app did not achieve the long-term user base and revenue needed to sustain development.
According to the statement, the developers were unable to find new collaborators who matched the “original passion and vision” for the project. Rather than continue with limited updates, they chose to close the app entirely.
When Panels is removed from app stores on 31 December, all active subscriptions will be automatically cancelled. Users will still keep any wallpapers they downloaded or purchased. Refunds for ongoing subscriptions will be issued after the shutdown date.
The team also confirmed that all user data will be permanently deleted. Once this process is complete, the app’s source code will be released under the Apache 2.0 open-source licence, expected around 4 January 2026. This will allow developers to reuse or build new wallpaper apps based on the original code.
Panels faced growing criticism during its short life. Many users argued that its subscription price — US$11.99 per month or US$49.99 per year — was too high for a wallpaper service. Others raised concerns about the app’s broad permission requests at launch, including tracking and location access. Analysts say the core challenge was convincing users to pay for wallpapers that are widely available for free.
Despite the shutdown, the team says the artist revenue programme will continue until the end of the year. The app’s closure is likely to be seen as a case study in the challenges of monetising aesthetic content through subscription models.
