IOS 26

iOS 26 is the nineteenth and the next major release of Apple's iOS operating system for the iPhone. It was announced on June 9, 2025, at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), and is expected to be released in September.

It is the direct successor to iOS 18; its version number was brought forward to 26 due to a newly-announced policy of unified version numbers for Apple operating systems, which are now based on the year that follows their release (similarly to vehicle model years).

Features

System features

User interface

iOS 26 introduces a new unified design language across all Apple platforms known as Liquid Glass. Influenced by visionOS, the design replaces the flat design language introduced in iOS 7 to utilize rounded, translucent elements with the "optical qualities of glass" (including refraction), which would react to motion, content, and inputs. It also comes with the return of skeuomorphism from iOS 6 and earlier, most notable in the Camera app's new icon (which resembles the icon from iOS 6 and earlier). Multiple apps (including the camera and Safari) have redesigned user interfaces to reflect the new design language.

Home Screen and Lock Screen

Widgets on the lock screen can now also be placed at the bottom, rather than necessarily at the top below the time. The height of the time shown on the lock screen is dynamic, and it can increase or decrease depending on the objects recognized in the background, whether they are at the bottom or top, or even based on the stack of notifications growing from below.

In addition to the Dark, Light and Tinted themes, iOS 26 adds a "Clear" theme that changes the Home Screen to use icons that use the glass-like effects introduced with Liquid Glass.

When customizing the lock screen, the user can apply a 3D effect to a Home Screen wallpaper, making subjects appear to pop out of the screen as the user moves the phone.

Battery

* ''Adaptive power'': A new, less aggressive energy-saving mode has been introduced which is used when device usage is higher than normal. It makes minor adjustments, like reducing screen brightness or slowing down processes, without blocking background activities as the traditional mode does.
* ''Charge Time'': the estimated time to full charge is now displayed on the Lock Screen and in Settings.
* ''Improved Battery Usage Stats'': daily battery consumption is color-coded: orange for higher usage, blue for lower or typical usage. Each app shows whether it sent more notifications, ran in the background longer, or consumed more battery than usual.

Accessibility

* ''Reader Mode'': a new system-level reading mode designed to assist users with blindness, low vision, or other reading impairments, making text easier to read.
* ''Braille Access'': it turns the user's phone into a full braille note-taking tool, eliminating the need for external devices. It supports braille input (via screen or braille display), Nemeth code for calculations, reading braille files, and app navigation. It also provides real-time conversation transcripts on the braille display.
*''Equalizer'': a new audio equalizer with two modes, "Comfort" and "Focus", for automatic frequency adjustment, has been added in the Accessibility settings under Audio and Visual Effects.

Apple Intelligence

iOS 26 introduces new Apple Intelligence features; Apple Intelligence models were made more efficient and support additional languages. It will support live translation of voice and text conversations using on-device models, while Genmoji can now be invoked to merge existing emojis together rather than needing to use a prompt.

Visual Intelligence and Image Playground will also feature additional ChatGPT integration.

The new Foundation Models framework will allow Apple Intelligence features to be integrated into third-party apps; Apple stated that a Swift app can implement the framework in as little as three lines of code.

Voice Dictation

''Spelling Words'': One can now spell out a word when dictating, which is helpful for complex or unrecognized words.

Always-On Display (AOD)

''Wallpaper Blur for AOD'': A new setting lets the user apply a blur effect to the wallpaper image of the AOD.

App features

Phone

* ''Call Screening'' automatically answers calls from unknown numbers to determine if they’re from a real person or spam. It asks the caller to identify themselves and state the reason for the call. If the call is deemed legitimate, it’s passed through and the phone rings.
* ''Hold Assist'' lets one put a call on hold and notify the caller when they're ready to resume the conversation.
* ''Tap Recents to Call'': this setting when disabled prevents accidental calls from being made by tapping a name or number in one's call history.
* ''Live Translations in Calls'' allows real-time translation of the caller's voice, converting it into the desired language during the call.
* ''Phone Haptics'': the Phone app now provides haptic feedback, delivering a vibration when the call is answered on the other end.

Messages

The Messages app now supports custom backgrounds, polls, and the user indicator for typing in group chats. The user can also select and copy part of the text in a message, instead of the entire message.
* ''Antispam'': Spam messages from unknown senders are automatically recognized and moved to a separate list.
* ''Live Translations for Messages'': One can activate translation in real time, to make sure that everything written in one language is sent as a message written in another language.

Music

* ''Songs and Album Pins'': The user can pin favorite songs or albums at the top of the Library.
* ''Translation and pronunciation of live lyrics'' allows one to understand the lyrics of the songs in other languages and to sing them even if said person doesn't know the pronunciation.
* ''AutoMix'': switches from one song to another using Time Stretching and Beat Matching techniques to get a perfect mix.
* ''Playlist Folders'': One can create folders in which to put playlists.

Photos

There is a new layout with a command bar at the bottom that allows you to quickly switch to the Library, Collections, Search.
*''Spatial Scene'': it is possible to apply a 3D effect to a photo in order to make it appear that the subjects represented come out of the screen when the phone moves. This is the same visionOS technology that has been brought to the iPhone.

Camera

The Camera interface is now simpler, with two main buttons, "Photo" and "Video" initially visible and placed at the bottom. An expandable and scrollable command bar reveals other shooting modes. Menus are also more intuitive: to access controls like flash, timer, and photo format, you only need to tap the grid-shaped button at the top of the toolbar, without the need for a swipe gesture.

''Lens Cleaning Hints'' is a new setting that displays a suggestion when the camera lens should be cleaned to improve image quality.

Notes

The Notes app can record and transcribe calls into notes, while Markdown is added as a new export option.

Reminders

It is possible to add the Reminders control to the Control Center, allowing you to quickly create a reminder directly from there.

Maps

* ''Preferred Routes'' automatically learns the routes you take every day, such as those between home, school, and work, and notifies you in advance of any delays, without needing to check manually.
* ''Favourite Places'': you can save your favorite places that you visit, such as bars or parks, so as to find them immediately.

Safari

A third "Compact" (floating) style has been added for the tabs, alongside the existing "Tab Bar" (bottom) and "Single Tab" (top) styles.

Files

*''Folder Customization'': you can now color folders and assign custom icons for easier identification.
*''File Types per App'': from the File app you can quickly assign the default app that needs to open that file type.
*''Audio Files as Ringtone'': you can directly use audio files (MP3, M4A, etc.) as ringtones by selecting the file, tapping Share, and choosing "Use as Ringtone".

Clock

''Alarms'': the "Snooze" duration can be adjusted from 1 to 15 minutes. The buttons to stop or snooze the alarm are displayed in large size for easier access when waking up.

Calculator

''Math Notes'': the equations in 3 variables and 3D graphs are now supported.

Passwords

* ''Password History'' allows to view previous passwords along with their change dates.
* ''Export Passwords'' allows to securely export passwords, passkeys, and verification codes to other password manager apps.

Journal

''Multiple journals'': you can create several distinct journals, rather than just one.

Podcast

''Enhance Dialogue'': a new option that enhances the podcast audio by emphasizing the voice and reducing background noise and music. It is located in the menu that appears to adjust the podcast speed.

Home

Home only supports the redesigned Apple Home architecture introduced in iOS 16 and ends support for the legacy architecture.

Games

A new Games app provides an interface to games from App Store and Apple Arcade, as well as Game Center social features.

Apple Wallet

The Apple Wallet app adds additional functions for boarding passes, including the ability to display interior maps of the respective airport, and real-time flight information as a Live Activity. Users in the United States will also be able to add their digital passport to Wallet.

Shortcuts

''AI Actions'': new actions enable you to create commands leveraging AI capabilities. These commands begin with an action that selects an AI model or "engine", such as Cloud (Private Cloud Compute), On-Device, or ChatGPT.

Security and Privacy

Wired Accessories permission

In the privacy and security settings there is a new permission that allows or denies the use of accessories connected to the phone via cable when the phone is locked. The options you can choose are: always ask, ask for new accessories, allow automatically when the phone is unlocked, always allow.

Blocked Contacts

A new section is available in the privacy and security settings that collects all blocked contacts across various apps, such as all unknown phone numbers automatically classified as spam.

Supported devices

iOS 26 requires a device with an Apple A13 Bionic processor or newer, thus dropping support for the iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR. The Apple Intelligence feature requires an Apple A17 Pro processor or newer.

Release history

The first beta of iOS 26 was released on June 9, 2025, for developers, with a revised build of the first beta being released on June 13 for the iPhone 15 series and the iPhone 16 series.

See also

* iPadOS 26
* macOS Tahoe

Notes

References

External links

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{{iOS

*26
2025 software
Applications of artificial intelligence
Mobile operating systems
Products introduced in 2025
Proprietary operating systems