Here’s everything new for the Phone app in iOS 26

Apple’s Phone app is getting its biggest changes ever this year in iOS 26, with a completely revamped layout, call screening tools, Apple Intelligence features, and more. Here’s everything new that’s coming to your Phone app in iOS 26.

Brand new design

Apple is completely overhauling the design of the Phone app in iOS 26.

But unlike last year’s big Photos redesign, this time Apple’s making the new layout entirely optional.

When you first install iOS 26 and launch Phone, you’ll get asked whether you want to enable the new design.

All iOS 26 users will get Liquid Glass elements and other minor UI changes inside Phone. But you can choose whether to adopt Apple’s new ‘Unified’ layout, or stick with what’s now called the ‘Classic’ view.

Whatever you do, the choice is reversible. You can switch between each layout at any time.

But if you opt for the new design, the Favorites, Recents, and Voicemail tabs will be condensed into a brand new ‘Calls’ tab, which now serves as a go-to hub in the app.

Call screening for unknown numbers

iPhones today are much smarter than they were back in 2007, and now Apple’s applying some of those smarts to the way phone calls are handled.

iOS 26 offers a new ‘Screen Unknown Callers’ option that’s pretty neat.

Essentially, your iPhone will answer incoming calls from unknown numbers and automatically ask who’s calling and why. This all happens before the first ring ever makes you aware of the call.

So when that first ring happens, you’ll have more information to decide whether to answer or not.

On that note, the new Messages app feature to filter unknown numbers into a separate section of the app is coming to the Phone app too.

Hold Assist saves you from long waits

Similar to call screening, the Phone app in iOS 26 also offers a ‘Hold Assist’ feature.

When you’re put on hold during a call, with Hold Assist you can hop off the call and go about your day.

Your iPhone will wait for a live agent to become available, then ring to notify you that someone’s actually ready to talk to you.

Apple Intelligence for translation and voicemail

Using Apple Intelligence, the Phone app can do two new things in iOS 26:

1. Live Translation lets you have calls with people who speak a different language, with AI speaking the translations aloud.
2. Voicemail transcripts will now benefit from AI summaries to help you get a quicker sense of why someone’s calling.

These features, like many others, will be limited to newer iPhone models that support AI.

Phone app comes to Mac and iPad

The above changes arrive not only for the iPhone. Apple is bringing its Phone app to the iPad and Mac too.

Taking advantage of the existing Continuity features that allow you to make and receive iPhone calls via Apple’s other products, there’s now a dedicated Phone app in iPadOS 26 and macOS Tahoe.

You’ll find similar features to what’s on iPhone, but also a new layout that better utilizes the larger screen real estate of the Mac and iPad.

Which new Phone features in iOS 26 are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments.

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