iOS 27: What’s new with the Mail app

Apple’s Mail app is getting some useful updates in iOS 27, with Apple making big improvements to search and introducing new AI features.

Research

‌iOS 27‌ has a revamped search system that extends to the Mail app. Instead of showing results based on keywords and recency, Mail app search ranks results by relevance and intent. The search results that appear in Mail are more relevant than before, allowing you to find exactly what you’re looking for.

If you search for “Sprouts” because you want to find a recent order, your order will be displayed before showing any marketing emails you may receive from the same retailer.

Siri AI

The Mail app has a built-in “Ask Siri” feature. Long-press any email and you can ask ‌Siri‌ to summarize, search for an item in the email, track a package, get a flight number, save a photo, and more.

Once you get a response, you can swipe down to access the ‌Siri‌ interface to ask follow-up questions. Conversations are recorded in the ‌Siri‌ app.

‌Siri‌ can also perform tasks in the Mail app, like delete all emails from a specified sender or add information from an email to your reminders list.

The Mail app has a writing interface with ‌Siri‌ above the keyboard, which you can tap for help with writing. ‌Siri‌ can write an email for you, check an email you wrote, help you rephrase an email, change the style of the email, or give you writing tips.

Writing with ‌Siri‌ is able to match your standard writing style, punctuation, and tone, so emails sound more like you and less like AI.

Your iPhone also now flags typos and grammatical errors as you write.

Smart response

The Smart Replies your iPhone suggests are now tailored to your writing style, meaning one-tap suggestions look like things you could actually type.

Contextual suggestions

The pop-up suggestions you see at the top of the Mail app are now available for third-party apps, and Apple has revamped the design.

An email with a flight time or restaurant reservation has a button to add it to the Calendar app with one click. An email with directions can let you see the route in Maps, and emails with tracking information can be tracked with the Wallet app.

Call context

Call context is a feature that works between the Mail app and the Phone app. When you call a business like an airline or retailer for which you have a relevant email, the Phone app will display the information extracted from that email.

You might see it display a reservation number for a flight or an order number for a call with a retailer. Call context works on the device, looking at who you are calling and not on audio.

Performance Improvements

Messages in Mail load faster, search indexing is more reliable, and unread badges between platforms like iOS and macOS sync more reliably. Apple also updated the formatting of lists.

Requirements

The Mail app’s search improvements are available on all iPhones running ‌iOS 27‌, but AI features like ‌Siri‌ AI integration, writing with ‌Siri‌, call context, and contextual suggestions require an iPhone that supports Apple Intelligence.

‌Siri‌ AI is not available in the European Union or China, and contextual suggestions are only in English at launch.