Apple released iOS 18.3 in January, and that update brought some bug fixes to your iPhone. But when Apple released iOS 18.2 in December, that update made it easier to change your iPhone’s default apps.
How to Change Your iPhone’s Default Apps in 3 Easy Steps
App Installation isn’t an available category in my region.
- App Installation*: Choose an alternative app marketplace instead of the App Store to use as your default.
- Browser App: Choose another app instead of the Safari app to use when opening links to webpages.
- Calling: Choose another app instead of the Phone app or FaceTime app to make calls.
- Call Filtering: Choose an app to use for presenting caller ID and blocking unwanted callers.
- Contactless App*: Choose another app to make contactless transactions using your device’s built-in technology.
- Email: Choose another app instead of the Mail app to use when opening links to send email.
- Keyboard: Choose an app to use for text-entry capabilities systemwide.
- Messaging: Choose another app instead of the Messages app to use when opening links to send instant messages.
- Password & Codes: Choose another app instead of the Passwords app to use for Password AutoFill in Safari and other apps.
*Only available in certain countries and regions.
Tap into any of these categories and you can change that default app. If you don’t have a third-party app downloaded to your iPhone for a certain category, that category will show you Apple’s app or nothing.
Couldn’t I change my default apps before?
In some cases yes. When Apple released iOS 14 in 2020, the update let you change your iPhone’s default email and browser apps. You could also change a few other categories before iOS 18.2, like Keyboard, but the options were scattered throughout Settings.
With iOS 18.2, your iPhone gathers those categories in one place, and the update adds a few other categories, like Messaging and Calling.
For more on iOS 18, here’s what you need to know about iOS 18.3.1 and iOS 18.3. You can also check out our iOS 18 cheat sheet.
