Today, Apple has released the first public betas of iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate, watchOS 27, tvOS 27 and visionOS 27 to everyone enrolled in the Apple Beta Software Program with a compatible device.
The public beta release comes just over a month since the company initially announced version 27 of its platforms at WWDC26 and released the first Developer betas.
These releases all focus on the new and improved Siri AI, giving users a more chatbot-like experience with the Siri app, on-screen awareness and personal context.
In addition to AI, there have been major performance improvements and a focus on bug fixes after complaints that version 26 of Apple’s platforms had more issues compared to previous releases.
You can learn all about these releases with our Platform Guides.
How Do I Install The Public Betas?
You can enrol into the public beta program at beta.apple.com by signing into your Apple Account.
Once signed in, you will need to accept the terms and conditions before continuing. These conditions highlight that this is a beta, so things can change and you could lose data on your device.
After these steps are complete, a ‘Beta Updates’ tab will now appear in the Software Update section of settings, on all devices connected to that Apple Account. Here, the Beta can be toggled on and off or installed to the device.
Should you install the Beta?
Beta releases are incomplete versions of Apple’s software that are not due for release until later this year. As a result, you may encounter bugs, errors and data loss.
Apple recommends you do not install beta updates on your main personal device, and use a secondary device instead.
If you choose to install the beta on your main device, make sure you use iCloud backup or Time Machine (if on a Mac), and understand that some apps or features may not work correctly.
Alternatively, if you have multiple Apple devices, consider installing the beta on your least-used device. For example, an iPad used mainly for media consumption will be a better choice over your iPhone or Mac that you rely on everyday.
Compatible Devices
iOS 27 has the same requirements as iOS 26, requiring an iPhone SE (2nd Generation), iPhone SE (3rd Generation), iPhone 11 or newer. The Apple Intelligence and Siri AI features require an iPhone 15 Pro or newer.
iPadOS 27 requires an 11” iPad Pro 2nd generation or later, 11” iPad Air 4th generation or later, iPad mini 6th generation or later, or iPad 9th generation and later. Apple Intelligence only works with the iPad mini A17 Pro or iPads with an M-series chip.
macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with all Apple Silicon Macs, as this release drops support for intel-based Macs.
watchOS 27 supports the Apple Watch Series 9 and later, Ultra 2 and later or SE 3.
tvOS supports only the 2021 and 2022 Apple TV 4K models.
visionOS supports both the M2 and M5 Apple Vision Pros.
