Should you install the iOS 26 beta?

Macworld

The iOS 26 beta is out now! It’s tempting to rush out and download it. Now that you don’t even need a paid developer account to grab the Developer Beta, there’s nothing but a couple minutes of filling out forms standing between you and an early look at the big iOS update coming this fall.

But you may not want to rush out and grab it right away. Running beta operating systems always carries some risk, and early iOS betas especially so. Plus, all the features you may want to try out aren’t in it yet.

Here’s what you need to know to decide whether to try out the iOS 26 beta or not, based on the best available current information. We’ll update this article throughout the beta test as the situation changes.

If you have installed the beta and are looking for a way to uninstall it we cover that in: How to remove an iOS beta from your iPhone.

iOS 26 beta: What you get




Apple

The current version of the iOS 26 beta is the first version of the developer beta. A public beta will launch in July.

The iOS 26 beta will give you a first look at the Liquid Glass design and user interface changes announced by Apple at WWDC2025.

However, an unstable beta is not going to give you an accurate impression of what iOS 26 will be like when it launches in the fall.

There will be a public beta, but even that won’t be entirely without issue. If you are really set on running the beta, we’d recommend you wait for that to arrive. It’s still not advisable to install it on your main iPhone and you should definitely back things up before you do.

iOS 26 beta: Bugs and problems

It’s not uncommon for iOS betas–especially early developer betas–to be full of bugs. That’s the point of beta-testing after all.

A quick look at any of the social networks indicates that the developer beta is not without issue. People are complaining of “extreme instability”, overheating iPhones, battery issues, Control Centre freezes, problems with apps, screen brightness issues, syncing problems, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connection issues, and more. That’s assuming you can even install the beta – some have found that they couldn’t even do that.

Do not expect your experience of the beta to be smooth until much closer to the official release.

Should you install the iOS beta?

Our advice would be to wait. If you aren’t a developer then wait for the public beta.

In the case of iOS 26, you don’t really need to run the beta right now unless you’re a developer who really needs to start testing your app or updating it to use new frameworks and APIs. If you are a developer, and you can’t wait to install a more stable version, then use a secondary device and make sure you have a backup from before the beta was installed.

If you are installing the beta on an iPhone then reports suggest that there are fewer issues on newer iPhones compared to the older models.