The OnePlus brand is well regarded within the Android developer community. That’s because the company has made it a priority to provide developers with early releases of its development devices. As well as access to firmware, for example, the OnePlus 6 and the 6T. It’s rumoured that the company is working on OnePlus 7. If so what options do current owners of the 6 and 6T have as they wait for the successor? Naturally, that would be a ROM upgrade.

However, knowing which Custom ROM to use with your device is not easy. Do not worry though because that’s exactly why we’ve compiled a list of the best Custom ROMs available for the OnePlus 6 and 6T.

Custom ROMs are like a breath of fresh air to devices that are longer actively supported with updates. Custom ROMs get timely updates as they’re rolled out by developers. They also get enhancements and version bumps and all thanks to the versatile nature of the Android platform. This is likely in line with the vision of original creators. 

The list below is compiled in no particular order or priority. So number 1 is better than number 4 etc. All these ROMs are good so we’ll tell you what we know about each. You can decide on which one to go with based on your personal preference. Perhaps you favor one with better battery usage or some other customized feature, it’s your call. Let’s dig in. 

Best Custom ROMs For OnePlus 6 and 6T

AospExtended ROM

Android Open Source Project (AOSP) Extended (AEX) ROM comes with enhancements to the stock Android UI/UX, as well as the Substratum theme engine. The project was created by the developers by merging different commits from related projects. AEX is known for a smooth, lag-free experience. 

AEX had well over 1.4 million downloads as of 2019 (these are official and unofficial estimates). Core features you should expect with this Custom ROM include improvements to navigation, gestures, app operation, beautiful themes, and fonts. The developers continue to improve it with more features. So in case you decide to go with this option. Remember to follow them in Telegram to be updated on the same. And by the way, there are two separate versions for OnePlus 6 and 6T, respective links are provided as follows.

Version: Testing.

Download for OnePlus 6 (enchilada) | Download for OnePlus 6T (fajita)

Resurrection Remix ROM

Resurrection Remix is arguably the top dog of the Android Custom ROMs universe. This ROM has been around for a very long time. Some say since the early days of Android 4.0. development and is still going strong. This ROM is feature-packed with improvements to the UI. Menus and settings and everything that an Android fan would care about. And for that, we think the developers really deserve high fives. They have truly differentiated themselves by staying ahead of the pack. This is a rather crowded space so that’s very well deserved. 

Another custom ROM entrant that’s closely following this path is HavocOS. We’ll be looking at it later in the post. Resurrection Remix ROM is a product of handpicked features from Paranoid Android, SlimRoms, LineageOS, and AOSP. Additionally, the Resurrection Remix ROM development team have included some enhancements. Those include the appearance and overall functionality which make the ROM really stand out.

One drawback is that all that nice stuff can sometimes affect device stability. Even though opinion is varied on that one. If you get to test this ROM with your Oneplus 6 or 6T device, please share your experience.

Version: Stable

Download Resurrection Remix for OnePlus 6/6T

Lineage OS

Lineage OS aka LOS ROM is the predecessor of le grand CyanogenMod ROM, do you still remember that? CyanogenMod was the granddaddy of Custom ROMs. However, the project was plagued by management issues and later discontinued in 2016. Its code though, being open-source, was later forked, and development continues as a community project under the LineageOS brand. 

It’s very likely that of all Custom ROMs that you have come across. LOS would feature as number one and that’s well deserved. LineageOS is popular if you look at active users and downloads in the last several years. It’s also a developer’s favorite. And has been used as a base in the development of other Custom ROMs. Some support OnePlus 6 and 6T. It’s loved because of stability and security. 

Even though LineageOS customizations and enhancements exceed that of stock Android. Somehow it has also come short of expectations when compared to other versions of Custom ROMs in our list. By now you may understand why LineageOS is not usually ranked highly relative to other ROMs. By popular publications in the industry that cover Custom ROMs. It’s pretty obvious that personalization alone is not everything with regards to Android Custom ROMs. Nonetheless, it’s an important benchmark and one that can’t be ignored by any developer of Custom ROM.

Version: Stable

Download for OnePlus 6 (enchilada) | Download for OnePlus 6T (fajita)

Paranoid Android 

So this is not about “Paranoid Android”, the song by the English alternative Rock band Radiohead. Though I kind of think they were inspired by the Custom ROM or it was the other way round. We can discuss that in a music forum another day. So Paranoid Android is actually a custom ROM that supports OnePlus devices including OnePlus 6 and 6T. 

Developers, they tout OnePlus specific enhancements on their website that include. They mention advanced buttons control. Alert slider support, fingerprint enhancements, camera enhancements. Advanced gesture control (7.0), these are just one of many improvements that come with Paranoid Android. 

Version: Beta

Download Paranoid Android for OnePlus 6/6T

Omni ROM

OmniROM is a folk of Android Open Source Project (AOSP). It brings a ton of improvements for a great Android Custom ROM experience. It’s not only better but also different. Makes for an excellent alternative to stock Android for your OnePlus 6 or 6T device. 

OmniROM team consists of some team members from the CyanogenMod project. They know their element 🙂 I am sure by now you know what to expect in this ROM. Some of it’s differentiating features include the app-switcher “OmniSwitch” weather app called OmniJaws and open delta, an Update Utility. These can’t be found in any other Custom ROM besides Omni. 

Version: Stable.

Download for OnePlus 6 | Download for OnePlus 6T

Havoc OS

HavocOS came out of relative obscurity with the launch of Android Oreo. It quickly rose through the ranks to become the most preferred Custom ROM for a lot of Stock Android users. Developers love it too. Besides Ressurection Remix, Havoc is the only other that managed to take customization to a level never seen elsewhere. It’s known for security, stability, and seamless user experience than most of its peers. 

The project was not very focussed in the early days. Developers struggled to incorporate about every feature in the book with the hope of attracting every type of user. That didn’t bring much success so as time went by things changed a bit and they re-oriented their focus. Now their focus is on developing features that attract end-users and other developers. In fact, HavocOS is one of the Custom ROMs widely used a lot of our readers. 

Version: Stable.

Download Havoc OS for OnePlus 6/6T

Bootleggers ROM

Well, this is the new kid in the block but that’s no reason to underestimate it. Bootleggers ROM is very similar to Android Oreo and had humble beginnings as a project for the Moto E in 2015. The project grew rapidly, largely fuelled by growing user interest, reports, commits, and feedback, a testament to its quality. 

It’s an experience that pretty much replicates itself among all popular Custom ROMs we list here, user interest is the driver for widespread adoption and that’s only possible if the ROM delivers on expectations of users who can be quite picky. Bootleggers ROM dev team seems to have learned from the experience of others and planned their approach carefully. 

Highlights of this ROM include in-build fonts, wallpapers, and themes that truly stand out and set apart this ROM from the competition. The developers of this ROM developed it by merging features from other ROMs such as Dirty Unicorns, OmniROM, PixelExperience and LineageOS.

Version: Stable.

Download Bootleggers ROM for OnePlus 6/6T

Dirty Unicorn 

Dirty Unicorn has a huge following since it was launched during the days of Android Jellybean also making it one of the oldest Custom ROMs still in active development. It was folked out of the Android Open Kang Project (AOKP) and initially didn’t have a name. 

It has since grown to be widely used and boasts a wide user base and a vibrant development community. Dirty Unicorn ROM is very feature-rich and comes with a beautiful User Interface. It’s not uncommon to find new ROMs borrowing heavily from stable Custom ROM builds like the Dirty Unicorn, for this reason, you will find this ROM widely listed in other ROM builds. 

There’s no official support for OnePlus 6 or 6T yet, it only supports OnePlus up to 5T but keep checking the developer’s website because it’s just a matter of time until those are added.

ArrowOS

ArrowOS comes with the least customization relative to the other Custom ROMs in this list. It’s developed based on AOSP codebase and is well optimized for longer battery life and overall stability. ArrowOS developer clearly aimed for a minimalist approach with this one and that has resulted in timely security updates which most security-conscious users are going to love. 

Version: Stable. 

Download ArrowOS ROM for OnePlus 6T

Pixel Experience

The whole point of getting Custom ROM is for the alternative experience that’s not readily available in stock Android and here is one ROM that makes the cut by promising to deliver on just that. Pixel Experience doesn’t fall short of expectation, it lets you relive the Google Pixel experience with enhancements not found on the stock version. 

Version: Stable.

Known Issue: n/a

Download for OnePlus 6 | Download for OnePlus 6T

ViperOS

ViperOS is another good Custom ROM from a team of developers based in Brazil, ViperOS aims to bring stability and performance enhancement. If you are looking for a stable ROM with solid features, minimal bugs, and zero lineage bloatware, then this is the ROM to go for. Some of the enhancement that comes with this ROM include 

• Face auto-unlock
• Fingerprint authentication vibration
• WheaterClient
• Battery info Charging
• Ambient music ticker
• Color engine
• theme QS style
• Styles switch
• Styles clock lock screen
• Buttons and navbar settings
• LED battery Charging
• LED notifications colors
• Power Menu advanced
• Fonts packages
• Pulse Navbar
• VPapers new

Version: Stable

Known Issue: n/a

Download ViperOS Custom ROM for OnePlus 6

Potato Open Sauce Project

This Custom ROM has a rather interesting name. It is similar to the others in the list to some extend but currently only supports OnePlus 2 and 3, the developers urge fans to keep checking their forum thread and official site because support for Oneplus 6 and 6T is likely to be added any time so fingers crossed on that one.

Choosing Custom ROM like most things in life is a very subjective decision thus it would be foolish to try and impose a choice on anyone. We understand that what works for one person may not work for another, the good news is that there’s a whole lot of options to pick from and we hope that our review of each will help guide you down that path. 

The final decision is yours though, you could research some more if you want about each ROM above, check out forums and ask questions or reach out to the developers themselves directly in case you need to know something specific. 

If forums are your thing then there’s one that we highly recommend for anything and everything ROM and that’s the XDA-Developers Forum, it’s a great place to hang out and ask questions because you might bump into developers of the ROM you’re considering and they might just be there to answer your question(s), you also get to interact with other users that may know more than you about each particular ROM and could help with advice. 

Let us know if you have any questions and most importantly happy flashing 🙂 

READ NEXT: OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z Earphones Are Extraordinary as details surfaces