Apple’s iOS 26, unveiled in 2025, became the most installed developer beta in the company’s history. The iPadOS 26 and macOS 26 betas also contributed to this statistic. The announcement was made during Apple’s second-quarter financial results announcement. CEO Tim Cook stated that significant momentum had been gained across Apple platforms following WWDC 2025.

iOS 26 Beta Downloads Break Record

iOS 26 comes with a new design language called Liquid Glass by Apple. While it’s been stated that this new visual approach hasn’t yet been fully implemented on devices, the design changes have been very popular among users. Many non-developers also installed the developer betas on their devices to try out the design.

Apple released the developer betas in June immediately following WWDC. Cook did not share specific data on the beta install count or comment on the public betas released last week. However, the strong interest in the developer beta demonstrates users’ desire to experience the new interface changes firsthand.

Two years ago, Apple removed the $99 annual Apple Developer Program membership requirement for accessing developer betas. With this change, betas are now available to anyone who creates an Apple Developer account, free of charge.

While the company recommended that average users wait for public betas, the new policies have led many non-developers to install developer betas.

The Liquid Glass design represents a visual change on a scale not seen on Apple platforms in a long time. To ensure timely adoption, developers are expected to adopt software updates early. At the same time, the strong participation of end-users in the beta installation process has demonstrated the anticipation created by this change. The final version is scheduled for release in September.