Apple's iOS Roadmap: Looking Ahead From iOS 26.3 To iOS 27

After relatively uneventful iOS 26.1 and iOS 26.2 updates – which mostly consisted of tweaks to the Liquid Glass design and the expansion of the Live Translation feature to more languages and regions — users are eagerly awaiting more features. That said, unlike in previous iOS software update cycles, Apple has been more careful about announcing features it might not be able to ship in a timely fashion. In past years, the company announced an all-new CarPlay experience that took years to ship, the oft-delayed Apple Intelligence platform, and other small features that took time to launch, like iPad's Stage Manager, Sidecar, and so on.

After the Siri fiasco and the delay of the all-new personal assistant, which was expected for iOS 18.4, Apple decided to only unveil features it would be able to ship alongside iOS 26 during the WWDC 2025 keynote. While the company did accomplish that, it also left us with little to no information about what would be coming next. Or so we thought. With that in mind, here's an iOS roadmap with leaked and expected features for iOS 26.3 through iOS 27.

iOS 26.3 is still in beta 1, but it should bring several useful new features to the iPhone, including a new Android transfer system. At first, it will be only available for iPhone and Google Pixel devices, and users will be able to transfer photos, messages, notes, apps, and phone numbers from one platform to the other in a more straightforward way. Both companies say improved interoperability is coming in the future, as Health data and other important information won't transfer between devices.

Besides that, Apple is giving third-party smartwatches the ability to display iPhone notifications with a new Notification Forwarding setting. Apple has been working on this feature since the last beta, and it seems it might be ready for action early next year. Apple is also tweaking the wallpaper section by splitting up Astronomy and Weather categories. A new Unity wallpaper is also expected to be introduced with iOS 26.3 to celebrate Black History Month.

For European users, Apple will add high-bandwidth Wi-Fi connections for peer-to-peer use, a new proximity pairing system for third-party accessories, and new NFC features to connect third-party devices as part of the DMA legislation. When or if these features will make their way to the U.S. remains to be seen.

According to an internal build of iOS 26 seen by Macworld, Apple has several features in the work for iOS 26.4. Among them, there are hints about the all-new Siri and a new Health+ subscription, which is an AI service that can answer questions based on health data stored in the app.

Apple is also testing credit card autofill for third-party apps and a full folder system for the Freeform app. With a renewed focus on sports for Apple TV, Macworld found references to a new "Sports Tier" for the Apple TV app as well. It's still unclear what this tier will contain, but it could eventually lead to a more expensive subscription for Apple TV users, as Apple is the official streaming partner of Formula 1 in the U.S. starting next year.

The report also notes that Apple is improving the security layers of iOS to ensure the device is not compromised before logging into an Apple Account and iCloud. Lastly, the company is expected to release new emoji with iOS 26.4, as Apple usually saves these new character sets for x.4 updates.

Little is known about iOS 26.5 and iOS 26.6. However, based on previous releases, it's not unreasonable to assume that iOS 26.5 might improve some of the features that debut in iOS 26.4. With iOS 18.5, Apple added a new Pride Harmony wallpaper and a few other tweaks. That said, iOS 26.5 should be slightly more significant, while iOS 26.6 will likely focus on security updates and bug fixes, as iOS 27 would be right around the corner.

That being said, Macworld also claims to have seen some of the iOS 27 features Apple is already working on, including improved collections in the Photos app and an all-new AirPods pairing system. For European users, the DMA requires Apple to offer broader access to background tasks for third-party apps and an alternative to AirDrop.

Besides that, iOS 27 should bring important changes to Apple Intelligence, especially if Apple is able to deliver the all-new Siri with the ability to tap into on-device information, such as finding "a podcast that friend sent you a few weeks ago" or "that movie I was talking about with Pedro yesterday." We will let you know as soon as we find out more about future iOS features.