Essential New iOS 27 Features You Need to Know

With the fanfare of Apple’s new Siri AI and Apple Intelligence stealing the show at WWDC earlier this month, the company quietly packed iOS 27 with substantial upgrades across its core apps and services. From smarter bill splitting in Apple Wallet to flexible location sharing in Find My and enhanced Apple Maps features, the update offers practical tools for everyday use.

Apple Maps is getting a visual refresh. The “Flyover” feature, which delivers immersive 3D views of cities and landmarks, now boasts more detailed imagery and smoother navigation. Additionally, Apple is introducing “Local Lists,” a new way to discover and save trending recommendations for restaurants and attractions. This move could be Apple’s bid to lure users away from third-party exploration apps like Google Maps, Instagram, or TikTok.

Find My gains new location-sharing controls this fall. Users can share their location for a custom duration, whether a few minutes, hours, days, or until a specific date and time. A new option to pause location sharing with individual contacts until the end of the day is also available, ideal for keeping surprises like a birthday party under wraps.

Apple Wallet sees a major overhaul. A standout addition lets users scan receipts with their iPhone camera to automatically split bills with friends via Apple Cash. Powered by Apple Intelligence, this feature identifies individual items, calculates each person’s share of taxes and tips, and facilitates repayment directly through Messages or Wallet. Wallet now also supports digitizing physical membership and loyalty cards , just point your iPhone at a barcode or scan a digital card to save it. This extends to Apple Watch, where passes can be pinned to the Smart Stack for quicker access.

For travelers, a revamped hotel key experience lets guests unlock rooms and amenities with an iPhone or Apple Watch. Participating hotels and resorts will also offer trip details, activity schedules, service information, and real-time updates directly within Wallet.

Apple Pay gets a redesigned online and in-app checkout. Users can swipe between payment cards more easily while viewing rewards balances, debit account balances, and available pay-later options. Later this year, Apple says users will be able to add funds directly to eligible debit cards through Wallet or during checkout. For merchants, Apple expands “Tap to Pay” on iPhone with “Tap to Share.” Customers can tap to securely share loyalty accounts, shipping addresses, and contact details with participating merchants.

Apple Music expands its “Lyrics Translation” feature to support seven additional language pairings, including English translations for songs in French, German, Italian, Korean, Spanish, and Japanese. “Lyrics Pronunciation” now helps users sing along in unfamiliar languages by displaying phonetically translated lyrics across five new pairings. The “AutoMix” feature, which creates smoother song transitions, is enhanced with more immersive mixes and expands beyond iPhone to Apple TV and HomePod. Subscribers also gain access to Hi-Res Lossless Audio on Apple TV 4K, delivering studio-quality sound through tvOS.

Apple Podcasts introduces a “search within show” feature, allowing users to search directly through episodes of a specific podcast across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Vision Pro, and the web. Video podcasts are now available on Mac and Apple TV, reflecting the growing popularity of video-first content.

iCloud Shared Albums now supports full-resolution photo sharing, additional file types, emoji reactions, improved activity feeds, and per-album activity views. New temporary albums are designed for short-term projects and events, allowing collaboration without permanently using iCloud storage. Notably, people without Apple devices can contribute photos through the web.

Fitness+ launches “Strong Through Menopause,” a three-week program featuring guided Yoga and Strength workouts for those navigating perimenopause and menopause, focusing on strength, mobility, balance, and stress management. A new “Time to Walk” episode features actor Busy Philipps, who shares personal stories about her experiences with perimenopause.

All these features are available now for developers through the Apple Developer Program, with a public beta arriving next month.