iOS 26 vs iOS 18: What’s different, what’s new, and should you update?

Apple pulled back the covers on the latest iteration of iOS at WWDC 2025. This will initially confuse some people, as the successor to 2024’s iOS 18 is… iOS 26! Moreover, the software will release at the end of 2025. We guess naming is hard. So, does the rejiggering of the numbers look like clumsy PR, or is the new iOS one that marks a bold new direction for the iPhone?

In this comparison of the two iOS versions, we’ll run though what the main differences are and how the two compare, so you can be sure that you want to update to the new iOS when it arrives in September 2025.

Apple Intelligence

One of the main selling points of iOS 18 was the introduction of Apple Intelligence, although many of the touted features took quite a while to arrive. These included Writing Tools that helped users create, edit and rephrase texts, emails and other text messages.

Visual Intelligence turned the iPhone camera into a way to get more information about objects and places, aided by Apple Intelligence searching for matching images and information.

Siri was also meant to be powered up by the new AI features, although that seems to need more work, but the Image Playground did allow you to generate pictures via prompts on your device. Apple Intelligence was limited to only the iPhone 16 generation of devices, as well as the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Personalisation

Following on from the widgets in iOS 17, the ability to personalise your home screen with shaded/tinted icons that you could place wherever you like (shock horror!) was another big player for iOS 18.

Control Center Updates

Apple also gave users the ability to add new shortcut controls and ones for third-party apps in Control Center. The option to group them into specific situations, such as Home, Work, Music, etc, is also provided.

What’s new in iOS 26?

Building on the foundations of iOS 18 (and all that went before), Apple has unveiled what we can expect to see on our iPhones when September 2025 rolls around and the iOS 26 update becomes available. Here’s the pick of the bunch:

Liquid Glass

At the heart of iOS 26 is Apple’s new design language, which is calls Liquid Glass. This revamped the existing menus and interactive parts of the OS with translucent areas that mimic glass. Those fearing a return to the old Aqua design of ancient macOS versions, the iPhone design is actually very tasteful.

Liquid Glass Apple New thing

Camera

With the introduction of Liquid Glass, Apple has also decided to simplify the camera app, removing the various scrolling options from iOS 18 and instead pairing every back to just Photo and Video. If you still want to access options like Portrait or Panorama, then they remain available simply by swiping left or right when you’re in the Photo mode. Advanced settings (such as aspect ratio, etc.) can be brought into play by simply swiping up. But, if you don’t want to accidentally shot a portrait when you meant it to be a normal snapshot, the interface should now stay out of your way and let you capture that moment.

Camera iPhone Apple Design

Safari

Apple’s browser gets a nip and tuck, with edge-to-edge web pages filling up the screen, and the tab bar now shrinking as you scroll so that it keeps out of your way. The Liquid Glass update also makes everything feel more part of the page rather than interrupting the flow.

CarPlay

If you use you have support for CarPlay in your car, then the updates to CarPlay might be of interest. The interface has been overhauled so that calls and messages now appear in a small section of the display, allowing you to still see the directions from Maps clearly at the same time.

Widgets for various features also keep things neat, with live information displayed from them meaning you can always know if the flight you’re meeting at the airport is on time.

Plenty of other updates to the iPhone

That’s not all that’s in store with iOS 26, as Apple showed off several other features that will no doubt be useful in the year ahead. These include Maps creating alternative routes for your most popular trips; Wallet now allowing the creation of a Digital ID of U.S. Passports that can be used for domestic flights and age verification; order tracking in Apple Pay; new interface for Apple Music; plus lots more little details that are there to improve the iPhone experience.  

What’s the main differences between iOS 26 and iOS 18?

As you can see, there’s plenty to be excited about in iOS 26. The new Liquid Glass design does look great, but it’s the improvement-to-life features like Call Screening, Message Screening, Live Translation, and Visual Intelligence now including what’s on your iPhone screen that really mark a difference between the two iterations.

Should I upgrade to iOS 26?

This is a definite yes, but bear in mind of course that some of the features outlined here will rely on Apple Intelligence, which means that they will only be available for the latest iPhone models. So, if you have an older device, then it might be worth sticking with what you’ve got if it’s running well. Then you’ll have all these features to look forward to when you eventually upgrade.

Now you just need to wait until iOS 26 comes out in September… Or perhaps you’d like to try the beta?

For an in-depth look at what it has to offer, take a look at iOS 26 changes everything about how you use your iPhone.

By Martyn Casserly

Contributor, Macworld JUN 10, 2025 8:01 AM PDT