Apple has started to roll out iOS 18.6 to the public, with the usual bug squashing and performance improvements of the update joined by a fix for Photos.
Concluding the most recent beta testing cycle, and not long after the release candidates were tested, Apple has started to distribute its update to iOS 18.6. It is build number 22G86.
Owners of iPhones are now able to download and install the release to their devices and start using it, outside of the beta process.
The release notes for the iOS 18.6 update are relatively slim, in part due to it being very late in the life cycle of an operating system with an annual update schedule. Apple states that the updates provide "important bug fixes and security updates," as expected of a late-version release.
Apple does specify that there is one specific fix of note, described as "an issue in Photos that could prevent memory movies from being shared."
The update to iOS 18.6 runs alongside Apple's other beta-testing track, for its fall operating system update to iOS 26. That version includes many new features, including the Liquid Glass user interface aesthetic, call screening features, battery updates, and a Games app, among other changes.
How to install iOS 18.6
To install iOS 18.6 on an iPhone manually, open the Settings app, select General, then Software Update. With beta updates turned off, the final release version will appear unless it has already been installed.
Not everyone needs to do this manually. It's only if a user has set their iPhone not to automatically update.
