We have to go back to 2018 and the launch of iOS 12 to remember one of the best ideas Apple has ever had, which has been greatly improved in iOS 26. It is, without a doubt, one of the most underrated features of iOS, but one that I couldn’t live without.
It’s a simple but effective feature: auto-completion of codes we receive via text message. Whether in a banking app to confirm a transaction or when logging in, this feature saves us from having to go to the messaging app, copy the code, and paste it back into the app we were using. The code simply appears on our keyboard so that, when tapped, it can be entered directly.
This feature also deletes messages or emails with the code once we use them. This was improved with the inclusion of codes in the Mail app, and now, with iOS 26, it has introduced several improvements that are well worth the effort.
This is how autofill improves codes in iOS 26
We’ve been using this feature for many years now, and we’ve grown so accustomed to how well it works that we probably no longer appreciate it enough. Perhaps that’s why Apple has decided to boost it in iOS 26 with important new features:
- On iPhone, SMS codes can be detected in third-party messaging apps, not just Apple’s Messages app.
- Likewise, codes we receive in third-party email applications like Gmail will also be displayed.
- If we use this feature on the Mac with macOS Tahoe, third-party browsers can now use the autocomplete feature that was previously exclusive to Safari.
Apple’s improvement of this feature is very good news for users. iOS 26 has many hidden secrets, and this is one of the best. These are features that make our lives easier without us even realizing it. No matter how small they may seem, we can use them a lot throughout the year.
