# Configuring the Salesforce mobile app

*Platform Administrator Study Guide · Productivity and Collaboration · Last updated September 26, 2026 · https://certifyforce.com/study-guide/platform-administrator/productivity-and-collaboration/salesforce-mobile-app-configuration*

How an admin tailors the Salesforce mobile app: navigation menus, phone-only Lightning pages and component visibility, app pages and launchpads, compact layouts and actions, and what Salesforce Branding can and can't change.

- Certification: Salesforce Platform Administrator
- Exam section: Productivity and Collaboration
- Study guide: https://certifyforce.com/study-guide/platform-administrator

**Official exam objective:**

> Describe the capabilities of the Salesforce mobile app (Lightning page, modifying the app, browser, app menu, visibility, branding mobile app, build launchpad).

## What the exam expects

- Control the mobile app menu: Lightning app navigation versus the legacy Mobile Only menu, menu order and tab visibility.
- Give phone users a different experience from desktop users with form-factor page assignment and component visibility rules on Lightning pages.
- Build a mobile app page or launchpad in the Lightning App Builder, activate it, and add it to mobile navigation.
- Modify the record experience for mobile with compact layouts and the Salesforce Mobile and Lightning Experience Actions section.
- Brand the mobile app with Salesforce Branding and know which parts can't be branded.

## Key facts

| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile app licensing | Included with all Salesforce orgs | [Salesforce Mobile App](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=xcloud.salesforce_app.htm&type=5) |
| Navigation bar | Shows the first four navigation menu items | [Mobile Only Navigation](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_nav_menu.htm&type=5) |
| Menu per user type | Not possible; tab visibility from profiles still applies | [Mobile Only Navigation](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_nav_menu.htm&type=5) |
| Default navigation since Winter '22 | First phone-enabled Lightning app; Mobile Only if none | [Mobile Only Navigation](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_nav_menu.htm&type=5) |
| Mobile Only menu | Setup, Salesforce Navigation; legacy | [Mobile Only Navigation](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_nav_menu.htm&type=5) |
| Phone-only record page | Activate a record page for the Phone form factor | [Activate Lightning Pages](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.lightning_app_builder_customize_lex_pages_activate.htm&type=5) |
| Phone-only component | Visibility rule with Device context | [Visibility Rules](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.lightning_page_components_visibility.htm&type=5) |
| App page reach | Must be activated and added to mobile navigation | [Create an App Page](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.lightning_app_builder_create_app_page.htm&type=5) |
| Launchpad items | Up to 20 selected; first six shown | [Custom Launchpad](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=xcloud.salesforce_app_launchpad.htm&type=5) |
| Compact layout on mobile | Up to ten fields in the highlights area | [Compact Layouts](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.compact_layout_overview.htm&type=5) |
| Mobile action bar | Salesforce Mobile and Lightning Experience Actions section | [Mobile Navigation and Actions](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=xcloud.limits_mobile_sf1_nav_and_actions.htm&type=5) |
| Branding logo | .jpg, .gif, .png; 200 KB; 460 by 560 pixels max | [Mobile App Branding](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_branding.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Not brandable | Home screen icon, iOS launch screen, white overlay headers | [Mobile App Branding](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_branding.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Seeing branding changes | Close the app and log in again | [Mobile App Branding](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_branding.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |

## Check yourself

- Where does an admin set the mobile app's brand color, and which three elements can't be branded? → Setup, Salesforce Branding; the home screen app icon, the initial iOS loading screen and the white headers on overlays, popups and dialogs can't be branded ([Customize Salesforce Mobile App Branding](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_branding.htm&language=en_US&type=5))
- How do you show a different Work Order record page only to phone users? → Build a second Work Order Lightning record page and assign it to the Phone form factor on the activation screen ([Activate Lightning Record or Home Pages](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.lightning_app_builder_customize_lex_pages_activate.htm&type=5))
- Why might a custom object appear on desktop but be missing from a user's mobile menu? → The user's mobile app reads a different menu, such as Mobile Only, and the object isn't in that menu; add it in Salesforce Navigation ([Mobile Only Navigation](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_nav_menu.htm&type=5))
- When can users reach a new app page in the mobile app? → Only after it's activated and added to the navigation of a phone-enabled Lightning app; move it first to make it the landing screen ([Create an App Page](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.lightning_app_builder_create_app_page.htm&type=5))
- Which layout controls the fields in a record's mobile highlights area, and where do mobile actions come from? → The primary compact layout (up to ten fields); actions come from the page layout's Salesforce Mobile and Lightning Experience Actions section ([Compact Layouts](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.compact_layout_overview.htm&type=5))

## Sources

- [Customize Salesforce Mobile App Branding](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_branding.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Customize the Mobile Only Navigation Menu in the Salesforce Mobile App](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_app_customize_nav_menu.htm&type=5)
- [Customize Navigation Menu for Salesforce App (Trailhead)](https://trailhead.salesforce.com/content/learn/modules/salesforce1_mobile_app/salesforce1_mobile_app_navigation)
- [Create an App Page with the Lightning App Builder](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.lightning_app_builder_create_app_page.htm&type=5)
- [Create a Custom Launchpad for the Salesforce Mobile App](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=xcloud.salesforce_app_launchpad.htm&type=5)
- [Activate Lightning Record or Home Pages](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.lightning_app_builder_customize_lex_pages_activate.htm&type=5)
- [Visibility Rules on Lightning Pages](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.lightning_page_components_visibility.htm&type=5)
- [Compact Layouts](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.compact_layout_overview.htm&type=5)
- [Navigation and Actions: What's Different or Not Available in the Salesforce Mobile App](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=xcloud.limits_mobile_sf1_nav_and_actions.htm&type=5)
- [Salesforce Mobile App](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=xcloud.salesforce_app.htm&type=5)

## About the full unit

The "Core concepts", "Exam traps" and "Worked scenario" sections of this unit, its 10 linked practice questions, and unlimited timed mock exams are included with the Platform Administrator pack (USD $19): https://certifyforce.com/practice-exams