Quick answer
Apple Intelligence adds four tools to the Mail app: one-line summaries in the inbox plus a Summarize button inside each email, a Priority section for urgent messages, Smart Reply suggestions, and Writing Tools for polishing drafts. You need an iPhone with an A17 Pro chip or newer and Apple Intelligence turned on in Settings › Apple Intelligence & Siri.
What Apple Intelligence does in Mail
It helps you decide what to read, read less of it, and answer faster. Mail does not delete or hide anything on your behalf. It adds context on top of your normal inbox.
| Feature | What it does | Where you find it |
|---|---|---|
| Summary previews | Replaces the first line of each email in the list with a one-line summary | Inbox list, automatic |
| Summarize | Condenses one email or an entire thread into a short paragraph | Top of an open email |
| Priority Messages | Pulls time-sensitive emails into a section at the top of the inbox | Inbox More (•••) menu |
| Smart Reply | Suggests replies that answer the questions in the email | Above the keyboard when replying |
| Writing Tools | Proofreads, rewrites or changes the tone of your draft | Select text in a draft |
These features arrived in Mail with iOS 18.1, and categories followed in iOS 18.2. Menu labels can move slightly between versions, so if a button is not exactly where these steps say, look in the same menu.
What you need before you start
- iPhone: an A17 Pro chip or newer. That means iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, every iPhone 16 model including the iPhone 16e, the iPhone 17 family, iPhone Air, and the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max. The iPhone 15 and 15 Plus are not included.
- iPad: an M1 chip or newer.
- Mac: any Mac with Apple silicon.
- Apple Intelligence switched on in
Settings › Apple Intelligence & Siri, with the models finished downloading over Wi-Fi.
If the Apple Intelligence section is missing from Settings, your device or region may not support it yet. Our step-by-step guide to enabling Apple Intelligence on iPhone covers setup, storage and language requirements, and the Apple Intelligence devices and regions page explains where it is offered.
How to summarize an email or a thread
Tap Summarize at the top of any open message. That is the fastest way to catch up on a long back-and-forth, because when the message is part of a thread, the summary covers the whole conversation rather than just the last reply.
On iPhone and iPad
- Open the Mail app and go to your inbox.
- Tap the email you want to read.
- Tap Summarize near the top of the message.
- Read the summary that appears above the email, then scroll down for the full text if you need it.
On Mac
- Open Mail and select a message in your inbox.
- Click Summarize in the message header.
Summary previews in the inbox
You do not have to do anything to get these. With Apple Intelligence on, Mail shows a short summary under each subject line instead of the opening words of the email, with a small icon to show it was generated. A message that starts with pleasantries gets a preview of what it actually asks, such as a request to move a meeting. Newsletters get their main topic, and order confirmations get the key details.
How to turn summary previews off
- Open Settings.
- Go to
Settings › Apps › Mail. - Switch off Summarize Message Previews.
The Summarize button inside each email keeps working after you do this.
How to use Priority Messages
Priority Messages moves emails that look urgent into a separate section at the top of the inbox. Mail looks for signals like same-day meeting invitations, boarding passes, delivery notices and pressing requests. When nothing qualifies, the section stays hidden.
Turn it on
- iPhone and iPad: open your inbox in Mail, tap the More (•••) button at the top right and choose Show Priority.
- Mac: select your inbox, open the View menu and choose Show Priority.
What to expect
Travel and time-bound emails are what Priority Messages handles best: flight details, hotel confirmations, invitations for today or tomorrow, and deliveries due soon. Personal messages from friends and family are where it is weakest, because it judges urgency from the content and timing of an email rather than from how much the sender matters to you. A promotion with a same-day deadline can rank higher than a note from someone close.
Treat the Priority section as a first pass, not a filter you trust blindly. A quick scan of the rest of the inbox still catches what it misses.
How to use Smart Reply
Smart Reply reads the email you are answering and offers short replies that address it directly. If someone asks whether you can send a report by Friday, the suggestions might confirm the deadline, propose a slightly later time, or ask for more time.
- Open the email and tap Reply.
- Look above the keyboard for the suggested replies.
- Tap the one that fits. Mail drafts it into the message.
- Edit the draft if needed and tap Send.
It works best on emails with a clear question: availability, confirmations, yes-or-no requests, quick status checks. If an email has no specific ask, you may see no suggestions at all. For sensitive messages, first contact with someone new, or anything personal, write the reply yourself. The suggestions are correct but rarely sound like you.
How to polish an email with Writing Tools
Writing Tools work in Mail the same way they do across the system. Write your draft, then let Apple Intelligence check or reshape it.
- Compose your email.
- Select the text you want to work on. Double-tap a word and drag the handles, or select all.
- Tap Writing Tools in the menu that appears.
- Choose Proofread, Rewrite, or a tone: Friendly, Professional or Concise.
- Review the result and keep it or undo it.
Proofread is the safe everyday choice because it fixes mistakes without changing your wording. The tone options earn their place in email: draft quickly in your own voice, then switch to Professional for a client or Concise for a busy manager. Our guide to writing and editing with Apple Intelligence goes through every option in more depth.
Compose with ChatGPT
From iOS 18.2, Writing Tools can hand a request to ChatGPT. Choose Compose, describe the email you need, and ChatGPT drafts it. That is useful for formal letters when you know what to say but not how to phrase it. The text you send goes to OpenAI rather than Apple, and you are asked for permission first. If you would rather keep everything with Apple, stick to Proofread, Rewrite and the tone options.
How email categories work
Since iOS 18.2, Mail can sort incoming email into four categories: Primary for people and important messages, Transactions for receipts and orders, Updates for newsletters and notifications, and Promotions for marketing.
- Open Mail and go to your inbox.
- Tap the More (•••) button.
- Choose Categories to sort, or List View to go back to a single inbox.
Categories make batch work easier: clear all Transactions at once, skim Updates when you have time, ignore Promotions on busy days. List View is better when you are searching for something and do not remember where it landed. If a sender keeps ending up in the wrong place, touch and hold one of their emails and choose the right category. Mail applies it to that sender's future messages.
Privacy: what happens to your email
Apple processes most Mail features on the device itself, including summaries and Priority Messages. When a task is too large for the device, it goes to Private Cloud Compute, where Apple says data is processed without being stored. The only time your email text leaves Apple's systems is when you choose ChatGPT in Writing Tools, and you are asked before that happens.
Troubleshooting
- No Summarize button: check that Apple Intelligence is on and the model download has finished in
Settings › Apple Intelligence & Siri. A restart helps if it was just enabled. - Priority section missing: confirm Show Priority is ticked. If it is, there may be nothing urgent right now.
- Summaries miss the point: summaries favour brevity, so some detail is always dropped, and marketing emails often get vague summaries. Open the email when it matters.
- No Smart Reply suggestions: the email may not contain a clear question. That is normal.
- Apple Intelligence not offered at all: the device, its language setting or your region may not be supported. Our beginner's guide to Apple Intelligence explains the requirements.
A simple routine that uses all of it
- Open the inbox and deal with the Priority section first.
- Scan the summary previews to spot anything else that needs you today.
- Answer quick questions with Smart Reply, adjusting the draft before you send.
- Before joining a long thread, tap Summarize to catch up.
- For longer replies, write in your own words, then run Proofread or change the tone.
- Once a day, switch to Categories and clear Transactions and Updates in one go.
What to do next
Mail is only one place these tools appear. If you want the same summaries and reply help in your conversations, read how Apple Intelligence works with Messages next.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get Apple Intelligence to summarize an email?
Open the message in the Mail app and tap Summarize near the top of the email. Apple Intelligence writes a short summary of that message, or of the whole conversation if the email is part of a thread. In the inbox list you also get one-line summaries under each subject automatically, as long as Apple Intelligence is turned on in Settings › Apple Intelligence & Siri.
How do I turn off email summaries in Mail?
Go to Settings › Apps › Mail and switch off Summarize Message Previews. The inbox then shows the first lines of each email again. You can still tap Summarize inside any message when you want a summary. Turning off Apple Intelligence entirely in Settings › Apple Intelligence & Siri removes summaries, Priority Messages and Smart Reply together.
Which iPhones can use Apple Intelligence in Mail?
Any iPhone with an A17 Pro chip or newer: iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, every iPhone 16 model including the 16e, the iPhone 17 family, iPhone Air, and iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max. The iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus use the A16 and do not get it. On iPad you need an M1 chip or newer, and on Mac any model with Apple silicon.
Why don't I see Priority Messages in Mail?
First check that Apple Intelligence is on in Settings and that Show Priority is ticked in the Mail inbox's More (•••) menu, or the View menu on a Mac. If both are set, there may simply be nothing urgent: the Priority section only appears when Mail finds time-sensitive messages, such as same-day invitations or boarding passes.
Does Apple Intelligence send my emails to a server?
Most Mail features, including summaries and Priority Messages, run on the device. When a request needs more computing power, Apple uses Private Cloud Compute, which processes the data on Apple servers without keeping it. ChatGPT is different: if you use it through Writing Tools, your text goes to OpenAI, and the iPhone asks for your permission before it sends anything.
Can I rely on an email summary instead of reading the email?
For routine mail, usually yes. A summary is a quick way to see what a message wants from you. It is not a substitute for reading contracts, legal letters, medical information, payment requests or anything where a missed detail matters. Summaries also flatten tone, so humour, sarcasm or frustration can disappear. Open the full message whenever the outcome depends on the exact wording.