The LG-made Nexus 5X might not get as much love as the Nexus 6P, but that does not change the fact that it is a great mid-range Android smartphone with a great camera. And with Marshmallow, the handset is a delight to use. That is not to say the Nexus 5X does not come with its fair share of issues though. 

Many owners of the handset have reported performance issues, which mainly revolves around the handset feeling sluggish to use. While a reboot, or in some severe cases a hard reset, fixes these issues for most people, there are still some 5X owners that are not satisfied with its performance. In such cases, flashing a custom ROM on the handset will almost always fix the issue. This brings up the question of which custom ROM should one flash on their handset? To make that decision easier for you, we have rounded up the five of the best custom ROMs that are available for the Nexus 5X below.

CleanCore N5X

Looking for a custom ROM which…well…is not a custom ROM? CleanCore N5X is for you then. The ROM does not pack any new feature or customisation options, except for some bare essential ones. The main focus of the developer with this ROM is to trim down on the number of apps that Google now ships on its Nexus devices by default.

In total, the developer has removed well over 25 apps from to keep his ROM clean and light. All the removed apps can be downloaded from the Google Play Store, in case you ever need to use them.

Download: CleanCore N5X

Chroma

If you want a custom ROM that offers the best blend of customisation options and performance, Chroma will suit your needs. Based on the very latest security release of Marshmallow, the developer of Chroma does a great job of constantly updating the ROM with new features and still keeping it relatively stable.

A quick feature set of the ROM can be found below:

• Double tap to sleep
• Quick Settings customisations
• Custom quick tiles
• EmojiOne
• Light/Dark mode
• Unlinked system and notification volumes
• Wi-Fi display
• Layers RRO support
• Navigation bar customisation
• Lock screen customisation

Download: Chroma

Read: How to install a custom ROM on your Android device

Cataclysm

Cataclysm has been my go-to ROM for whichever device I am using at the moment. I have been using the ROM for well over a year now on a bunch of devices and I have been extremely satisfied with it. The developer, atl4ntis, manages to keep the ROM rocksteady despite adding new features to it, and very rarely will you come across any bug in the ROM.

Features:

• Smart Radio battery saver
• Status bar customisation
• Notification LED customisation
• Per-app immersive mode
• Navigation bar customisation
• Cataclysm Settings

All the customisation options of the ROM are neatly tucked under the Cataclysm Settings app, which ensures that you don’t have to go through a bunch of menu inside the Settings app to find the customisation option you are looking for.

If there is one custom ROM from this list that you must try out on your Nexus 5X, it has to be Cataclysm.

Download: Cataclysm

Pure Nexus

If for some reason you did not like Cataclysm, have a look at Pure Nexus. The ROM offers a similar set of features as Cataclysm and is as stable as it, if not better or worse. The ROM is also updated frequently by the developers to add new features and fix any known bugs.

Over and above of what the features that are already present in Cataclysm, Pure Nexus also packs in:

• National data roaming
• Weather panel in notification bar
• Recent app customisation
• Layers 4.0 support
• T-Mobile Wi-Fi calling support
• Power menu customisation

Download: PureNexus

CyanogenMod & OmniROM nightlies

Want to live life on the edge with your Nexus 5X? Want the latest features on the handset as soon as they are released? Then, you are going to love using nightly builds from CyanogenMod and the Omni team. Both ROMs are very different from each other: CyanogenMod packs in a plethora of features and options, while OmniROM offers a limited set of features but some of them are really unique and really add to the overall user experience.

The stable version of both CyanogenMod and OmniROM nightlies are released after months of testing and numerous nightly builds. Since Marshmallow was just released, a stable build for both ROMs is unavailable right now. Nonetheless, you can flash one of the recent nightly builds of the ROM on your Nexus 5X and if everything works, just stick to it. If not, flash a newer nightly until you find one where you don’t come across any major bug.

Download: CyanogenMod nightlies | OmniROM nightlies

Which is your favorite custom ROM for the Nexus 5X? Drop in a comment below and do let us know about it.