Apple introduces easy primary email changes in iOS 18.1

Apple has finally delivered a long-overdue convenience for iPhone users with the release of iOS 18.1. If you’ve ever struggled with changing the primary email associated with your Apple account, you’ll appreciate this update’s new streamlined approach to managing email addresses. Gone are the days of jumping through hoops and deleting your existing email just to update it.

Up until now, anyone looking to change their Apple ID’s (now Apple Account) primary email address had to go through a frustrating process: first delete the current email and then add a new one. But with iOS 18.1, that headache is history. Apple’s latest software update introduces a handy new feature right in the Settings app—a “Primary Email” toggle—that lets you choose which email address you want to be your main point of contact without the hassle of erasing the old one.

This small but crucial change makes life a lot easier, especially for users juggling multiple email accounts. Whether you prefer to use your Gmail for work or collaborations on your iPhone and iPad, the new system allows a much smoother switch without risking any disruption to your Apple services.

Apple isn’t stopping there, though. They’ve also introduced a more seamless way to update the primary iCloud email associated with your Apple Account. This is the address tied to important services like iMessage, FaceTime, and account recovery, so having flexibility here is a big deal.

Before iOS 18.1, users could only use aliases to mask their identity in shared projects or group collaborations. But that left many of us vulnerable, exposing our inboxes to potential privacy issues. Now, with just a few taps, you can change your iCloud email to something new without compromising any of your Apple services.

To make these changes, simply head to your iPhone’s Settings app and follow this path: Settings > Profile Name (at the top) > Sign-In & Security > Email & Phone Numbers. From there, you can swap out your primary email address for a new one, keeping everything else intact—no more deleting, no more reconfiguring everything from scratch.

The image shows two iPhones displaying the "Email & Phone Numbers" settings screen. The left iPhone screen shows an option to remove the primary email from the account with buttons labeled "Make Primary" and "Cancel." The right iPhone screen shows a prompt to change the email address with buttons labeled "Change And Remove Email Addresses" and "Don't Remove." Both screens display a message explaining the use of the email address for signing in, verifying identity, and recovering the account, as well as for iMessage, FaceTime, Game Center, and more.

These updates were first spotted by MacRumors, and they’ve been rolling out to users on the iOS 18.1 beta for some time. With Apple now dropping the sixth beta of iOS 18.1, testers have also noticed a few cosmetic tweaks and minor additions to the Settings app, but the real game-changer is in how email addresses are handled.

For those eagerly awaiting the public release, this marks yet another step toward making Apple’s ecosystem more user-friendly—something long-time users and tech enthusiasts alike can get behind.

So, if you’re planning on refreshing your inbox address or need to update your iCloud account without jumping through hoops, iOS 18.1 has you covered. The days of email-changing headaches are finally behind us.