Apple announced iOS 18 at its WWDC developers conference on June 10, releasing the first developer beta of the update immediately after the opening keynote. After several months of beta releases, Apple is today finally rolling out iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 to everyone – just in time for the new iPhone 16 release.
Aside from the focus of Apple Intelligence, there's a redesigned Photos app, there are more customization options for your Home Screen (begone, grid!) and icons can be tinted. RCS messaging is also now available, too.
To update to iOS 18 or iPadOS 18 head into the Settings app on your device. Go to General and then Software Update. If you don't see iOS 18 immediately, select the option at the top of your screen where you can pick between iOS 17 and iOS 18. Note that updates may take a while to install while the update is so new, as many users will be scrambling to download it.
We recommend making an iCloud backup of all your important content. From photos to videos, it's always a good idea to prepare your iPhone before updating its software.
No Apple Intelligence features just yet
As you might expect, the headline feature of iOS 18 is the new Apple Intelligence suite of AI features – but you won't find it in the first release of iOS 18. Apple Intelligence will be available on iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro later this year, offering features like live transcribing, Writing Tools, generative image creation, and more.
It also features new emergency features like Messages Via Satellite and Emergency SOS Live Video, as well as Roadside Assistance via Satellite.
Apple Intelligence will debut as part of iOS 18.1 and beyond in October. The first rollouts will be U.S. English only, with localizations for English in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, and the U.K. coming in December. There's support for Chinese, French, Japanese, and Spanish coming next year, too.