Got a tip for us?

Some websites and apps offer two-factor authentication (also known as multifactor authentication), which helps prevent other people from accessing your accounts even if they know your passwords. Passwords are the first authentication factor, and temporary, one-time verification codes are commonly a second factor.

iPad can automatically generate these verification codes without your reliance on SMS messages or additional apps. You can set them up by scanning a QR code from another device’s screen.

Set up automatic verification codes for a website or app by scanning a QR code

With another device that has a screen, like a computer or iPhone, you can show a QR code from a website or app on it, then scan the code with the iPad camera.

  1. On your other device, sign in to the area of the website or app where you manage your account. Then select options to enable two-factor authentication and an authenticator app.

    A QR code appears to help you set up an authenticator app.

  2. On iPad, use the camera to scan the QR code.
  3. On iPad, select your account for the website or app.

    A verification code appears below the User Name and Password fields.

  4. On your other device, enter the verification code that appears on your iPad.

Set up automatic verification codes for a website or app by entering a setup key

If you can’t scan a QR code from another screen, you can manually enter a setup key.

  1. Sign in to the area of the website or app where you manage your account and then select options to enable two-factor authentication and an authenticator app.
  2. Choose the option to manually use a setup key (or setup code or similar) and then select and copy the setup key.
  3. Go to the Passwords app on your iPad.
  4. Tap All, then tap your account for the website or app.
  5. Tap Edit, then tap Set Up Code.
  6. Visit the website to get a setup key, enter the setup key in Passwords and then tap Use Setup Key.

    If the website offers a QR code, you can touch and hold it, then choose Add Verification in Passwords to do this automatically.

Use a verification code on a website or in an app

  1. Sign in to the website or app.
  2. If prompted, select the option to use an authenticator app.
  3. When asked for a verification code, tap the suggestion that appears above the keyboard.

    If no suggestion appears, go to the Passwords app on your iPad, select your account for the website or app, tap the verification code, then tap Copy Verification Code. Return to the website or app, then paste the verification code into the field.

Automatically delete one-time verification codes

Because one-time verification codes fill in automatically, you can stay in the website or app you’re signing in to. Once Autofill enters the verification codes, you decide whether to keep them or delete them automatically.

  1. Open the Settings app on your iPad.
  2. Tap General and tap AutoFill & Passwords.
  3. Under Verification Codes, turn Delete After Use on or off.

See also

In the FaceTime app, you can answer video and audio calls, decline calls, view video messages or listen to voicemails, and delete calls from your call history. If you’re on a FaceTime audio call and another one comes in, you can put the current call on hold, and Siri can announce incoming calls, too.

Note: Live Voicemail isn’t available in all languages or regions.

Answer a FaceTime call

Do any of the following when a FaceTime call comes in:

  • Accept the call: To answer a video call, tap the Video button, then tap Join. To answer an audio call, tap the Audio button.

    If a slider appears, you can drag it right to answer.

  • Decline the call: Tap the Decline Video Call button (for a video call) or the Decline Audio Call button (for an audio call).

    For FaceTime audio calls, tap Message to send a text message or tap Voicemail to send the caller to voicemail. (You may need to tap the incoming call banner to see these options.)

  • Put the current call on hold: Tap Hold and Accept.

    Note: This option is only available if you’re on a FaceTime audio call and you receive another incoming FaceTime audio call. Otherwise, you can tap End & Accept to end the current call and answer the incoming call.

Quick tip: Siri can announce incoming calls, and you can accept or decline them with your voice.

View information when receiving a FaceTime call

With Apple Intelligence, when you receive a FaceTime call, a Call Context card with related information may appear. This can include an upcoming or recent birthday during a call to a contact, or it can include tickets, orders, or confirmation numbers during a call to certain businesses. Tap the card to view the information in the related app, such as Mail or Messages.

Note: Apple Intelligence on iPadOS 27 or later is available on an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPad mini (A17 Pro) and iPad models with M1 or later. Apple Intelligence is not available in all languages or regions. Usage limits may apply.*

View a video message or listen to a voicemail

If you miss an incoming video call and the caller leaves a video message, you receive a notification about the video message. A thumbnail image from the video also appears in your FaceTime call history. You can tap the notification or image to view the video message.

Note: Video messages can come only from saved contacts, people you’ve called, and anyone suggested by Siri.

If you miss an incoming audio call, the caller can leave a voicemail if you have Live Voicemail turned on in Settings > Apps > Phone, and your iPhone is signed in to the same Apple Account for FaceTime as your iPad.

The FaceTime call history, showing a Group FaceTime call, an audio call, a video message, an audio message, and a link to a FaceTime call.

Quick tip: For quick access to all video messages or voicemails from one specific contact, tap their name in the call history and then tap the Voicemails button or the Videos button.

Delete a call from your call history

  1. Start the FaceTime app on your iPad.
  2. Touch and hold the call in your call history. Tap Delete.

*Apple Intelligence is available with Siri and device language set to Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, or Vietnamese. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Some devices may not be available in all regions. Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 and requires an Apple Intelligence–enabled device set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not be initially available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS. Certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts. Daily limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future. Use of these features is subject to the Apple Intelligence Terms and Conditions.

See also

With Voice Control on your iPad, you can speak commands to interact with what’s on the screen, perform gestures and button presses, dictate and edit text, and more. And with Apple Intelligence, you can describe onscreen elements in your own words instead of using exact labels—refer to an item by its name, what it does, its color, or where it appears on the screen.

You can pause or resume Voice Control, see what commands you can use, label onscreen items, and show a numbered grid on the screen.

Note: When Voice Control is on, you use Voice Control to dictate text; standard iPadOS Dictation isn’t available. If you just want to enter text using Dictation, without controlling your iPad with your voice, see Dictate text. Voice Control isn’t available in all languages.

Note: Apple Intelligence on iPadOS 27 or later is available on an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPad mini (A17 Pro) and iPad models with M1 or later. Apple Intelligence is not available in all languages or regions. Usage limits may apply.* To use Apple Intelligence with Voice Control, you must have your system language and Voice Control language set to English. See Change the language and region and Set up Voice Control.

Set up Voice Control

The first time you turn on Voice Control, iPad has to be connected to the internet over a Wi-Fi network. After iPad finishes a one-time file download from Apple, you can use Voice Control without an internet connection.

  1. Start the Settings app on your iPad.
  2. Tap Accessibility, tap Voice Control, tap Set Up Voice Control, and follow the onscreen instructions.

    When the download is complete, the Voice Control icon appears in the status bar to indicate that Voice Control is turned on.

  3. Set options such as the following:

    • Language: Set the language and download languages for offline use.
    • Commands: View the available commands and create new commands.
    • Vocabulary: Teach Voice Control to recognize new words and phrases. You can enter a word or phrase and teach Voice Control how you pronounce it, or import a vocabulary list.

      Note: Not all Voice Control languages support a custom vocabulary.

    • Show Confirmation: When Voice Control recognizes a command, a visual confirmation appears at the top of the screen.
    • Play Sound: When Voice Control recognizes a command, a sound plays.
    • Show Hints: See command suggestions and hints.
    • Flexible Item Names: With Apple Intelligence, you can refer to onscreen items in your own words instead of using their exact labels. This is turned on by default and can be turned off to use exact labels.
    • Continuous Overlay: Display numbers, names, or a grid over screen elements.
    • Attention Aware: On an iPad with Face ID, Voice Control wakes up when you look at your iPad and goes to sleep when you look away.
    • Prefer Bluetooth Mic: Use AirPods or Bluetooth® headsets when connected instead of the iPad microphone.

      Note: Using Voice Control with AirPods and third-party headsets impacts audio quality and audio features like Siri announcements and Share Audio with AirPods.

Turn Voice Control on or off

After Voice Control is set up, you can quickly turn it on or off by doing any of the following:

Start using commands

Using Voice Control on your iPad is as simple as saying a command. And with Apple Intelligence, you can describe what you want to act on instead of giving its exact label.

Voice Control: Say, for example, “Open Control Center,” “Go home,” “Tap item name,” or “Turn up volume.” Or with Apple Intelligence, say “Tap the button that sends the message” or “Tap the button at the bottom right.”

Quick tip: To get familiar with Voice Control and practice essential commands, try the interactive Voice Control Tutorial. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Voice Control, where you can tap Open Voice Control Tutorial.

Pause or resume Voice Control

If you don’t want what you say treated as commands or dictation, pause Voice Control. Resume Voice Control when you want it listening for commands and dictation again.

Voice Control: Say “Stop listening” or “Start listening.”

See what commands you can use

The list of available commands varies depending on the app you’re working in and what you’re doing, so text formatting commands show up while you’re writing a document, for example. Apple Intelligence also understands an item described in your own words, rather than by its exact label.

Voice Control: Say “Show commands.”

To browse the full list of supported commands and see examples of how to use them, go to Settings > Accessibility > Voice Control > Commands.

Label onscreen items

If you’re not sure what to call something, a name or number can appear next to each item on the screen, and you can use it to interact with the item. Or, with Apple Intelligence, skip the name or number and describe the item in your own words.

Voice Control: Say “Show names,” “Show numbers,” or “Show text numbers.” Or with Apple Intelligence, say “Tap the blue button at the bottom.”

To interact with an item, say its name or number, or say a command—such as “Long press”—followed by the item’s name or number. The item names or numbers disappear after you say the command.

Show a numbered grid on the screen

For easier interaction with a precise area of the screen, you can superimpose a grid.

Voice Control: Say “Show grid.”

  • Interact with a location on the grid: If a number is at the location you want to interact with, say any command—such as “Tap”—followed by the grid number. The grid disappears after you say the command.
  • Drill down on an area of the grid: If you need to further refine the location, say a grid number to show a more detailed grid in that area.

Say “Hide names,” “Hide numbers,” or “Hide grid” to turn the overlay off.

Enter text

In a text input area, you can use Dictation mode to dictate word by word, or Spelling mode to go character by character. Command mode, meanwhile, has Voice Control respond only to commands, so you don’t mistakenly enter a Voice Control command as text.

When you’re in a text input area and label onscreen items with numbers, numbers are shown next to each line of text. Select a line or another section of the text to display a number for each word in the selection; select a single word to show a number for each character in the word. To interact with a text item (such as a line or a word), say a command followed by the item’s name or number. For example, you can say “Delete [item number]” or “Uppercase [item number].”

Command Description
Voice Control: Say “Dictation mode.” Dictate word by word.

Any words you say that aren’t Voice Control commands are entered as text. Dictation mode is on by default.

In some Voice Control languages, if several words phonetically match what you say, they appear onscreen. Tap to choose the one you want.

Voice Control: Say “Spelling mode.” Dictate character by character.

Spelling mode is helpful when you need to enter a password, a web address, or another sequence of characters that wouldn’t be recognized as a word in Dictation mode.

When Spelling mode is on, the Spelling Mode icon appears in the text input area.

To increase accuracy when entering letters, you can use the letter’s phonetic alphabet code word (for example, say “Alfa Bravo Charlie” to enter “abc”).

Note: Spelling mode isn’t available in all Voice Control languages.

Voice Control: Say “Command mode.” Voice Control responds only to commands.

Words and characters that aren’t commands are ignored and aren’t entered as text. Command mode is helpful when you need to say a series of commands and don’t want them inadvertently entered in a text input area.

When Command mode is on, the Command Mode icon appears in the text input area to indicate you can’t dictate to enter text.

*Apple Intelligence is available with Siri and device language set to Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, or Vietnamese. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Some devices may not be available in all regions. Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 and requires an Apple Intelligence–enabled device set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not be initially available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS. Certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts. Daily limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future. Use of these features is subject to the Apple Intelligence Terms and Conditions.

See also

You can change how quickly or when Siri responds, have Siri listen for atypical speech patterns, have Siri audibly share notifications, and more.

You can set how long Siri waits for you to finish speaking, change how fast Siri speaks, and type instead of speaking to Siri. You can also decide when Siri responds aloud or in text, and have Siri recognize a wider range of speech.

Here’s how to change Siri accessibility settings on iPad.

Tell Siri when and how to respond to requests

  1. Open the Settings app on your iPad.
  2. Tap Accessibility, tap Siri, and do any of the following:
    • Set how long Siri waits for you to finish speaking: Below Siri Pause Time, choose Default, Longer, or Longest.
    • Change how fast Siri speaks: Adjust the slider below Speaking Rate.
    • Decide when Siri responds aloud or in text: Choose an option below Spoken Responses. You can also change how Siri responds.
    • Use Siri even when iPad is covered or facing down: When you set up Siri, “Hey Siri” or “Siri” activates Siri only when your iPad faces up. To change this, turn on Always Listen for “Siri.” Learn how to use Siri.
    • Require “Siri” or “Hey Siri” in order to interrupt Siri: Turn on Require “Siri” for Interruptions. This can be useful if you use VoiceOver or Voice Control and don’t want VoiceOver speech or Voice Control commands to interrupt Siri.

If you’d like to change how you activate Siri, check out our guide, Turn on Siri, and our article, Customize how you activate Siri.

Type instead of speak to Siri

Depending on your iPad model, you may be able to type to Siri.

  1. Open the Settings app on your iPad.
  2. Tap Accessibility and tap Siri. Turn on Type to Siri.

    If you have an iPad model that supports Apple Intelligence,* this option may not be shown.

  3. To make a request, activate Siri. Then interact with Siri using the keyboard and text field.

Have Siri recognize a wider range of speech patterns

If your primary language is set to English (U.S.), Siri can listen for atypical speech. That can help if you have an acquired or progressive condition that affects speech, like cerebral palsy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or stroke.

Go to Settings > Accessibility > Siri, then turn on Listen for Atypical Speech.

iPad can also learn to perform an action when you say a word or make a sound you choose. Read our guide, Use Vocal Shortcuts, to learn more.

Announce calls and notifications for specific apps

On your iPad speaker, supported headphones, and MFi hearing devices, Siri can announce notifications from apps like Messages.

  1. Open Settings, tap Accessibility and tap Siri. Then turn on Announce Notifications on Speaker.
  2. Tap Announce Notifications and then for each app, choose whether to announce all notifications or only time-sensitive notifications.

*Apple Intelligence is available with Siri and device language set to Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, or Vietnamese. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Some devices may not be available in all regions. Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 and requires an Apple Intelligence–enabled device set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not be initially available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS. Certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts. Daily limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future. Use of these features is subject to the Apple Intelligence Terms and Conditions.

See also

Tag: Siri

In the Reminders app, you can organize a list with sections and subtasks. You can also view the sections as columns and easily move items to different columns.

With Apple Intelligence, you can even automatically categorize related reminders into sections within a list. You can change a list’s name, color, or icon, edit multiple items at once, and sort items by due date, priority, or title. You can manually reorder or recategorize items in a list, too.

Note: You get all the Reminders features described in this guide when you use updated reminders in iCloud. Some features aren’t available with other accounts.

The Reminders app showing a list with one section expanded and the others collapsed.

Edit a list

  1. Open the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. While viewing a list, tap the More button and then do any of the following:

    • Change the list name, type, color, or icon: Tap Show List Info.
    • Edit multiple items: Tap Select Reminders or Select Items. Then select the items you want to edit. You can also drag two fingers over the items. Use the buttons at the bottom of the screen to add a date and time, move, delete, assign, complete, tag, or flag the selected items.
    • Sort items by due date, creation date, priority, or title: (not available in all Smart Lists) Tap Sort By and choose an option.

      When you sort or reorder a list, the new order is applied to the list on your other devices where you’re using updated reminders in iCloud. If you sort or reorder a shared list, other participants also see the new order (if they use updated reminders).

    • Remove the list: Tap Delete List.

Manually reorder or recategorize items in a list

  1. Open the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. While viewing a list, touch and hold an item you want to move and then drag it to a new location.

Organize with sections

  1. Open the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. While viewing a list, do any of the following:

    • Create a new section: Tap the More button, tap New Section, and enter a name.
    • Collapse a section: Tap the Collapse button.
    • Expand a section: Tap the Expand button.
    • Rename section: Tap the section name, then enter a new name.
    • Move a section: Touch and hold the section and drag it to a new position.

      Note: You can’t move the Others section.

    • Remove a section: Swipe left on the section and tap Delete.

      Note: Removing a section will also delete the section’s reminders.

Turn Auto-Categorize on or off

With Auto-Categorize, Apple Intelligence automatically sorts related reminders into sections within a list.

  1. Open the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Tap a list in the sidebar.
  3. Do one of the following:

    • Turn Auto-Categorize on: Tap the More button, then tap Auto-Categorize.
    • Turn Auto-Categorize off: Tap the Auto-Categorize button and tap Turn Off. Then choose whether to keep or remove the sections.

      Note: Removing the sections doesn’t delete any reminders.

Not happy with how the sections are categorized? Try turning off Auto-Categorize, removing the sections, and turning it back on. That’ll reset your section titles and organization within a list.

Note: Apple Intelligence on iPadOS 27 or later is available on an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPad mini (A17 Pro) and iPad models with M1 or later. Apple Intelligence is not available in all languages or regions. Usage limits may apply.

View the sections as columns

You can view the list in columns, making it easy to visualize and recategorize the items.

The Reminders app showing a camping trip list with the categories organized as columns.

  1. Open the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. While viewing a list, tap the More button and then tap View as Columns.
  3. To recategorize an item, drag it into a different column.

Create subtasks

  1. Open the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. While viewing a list, swipe right on an item and then tap Indent. Or drag an item onto another item.

If you complete a main task, the subtasks are also completed. If you delete or move a main task, the subtasks are also deleted or moved.

*Apple Intelligence is available with Siri and device language set to Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, or Vietnamese. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Some devices may not be available in all regions. Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 and requires an Apple Intelligence–enabled device set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not be initially available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS. Certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts. Daily limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future. Use of these features is subject to the Apple Intelligence Terms and Conditions.

See also

In the Reminders app, you can create new lists, organize the lists into groups, and pin lists for quick access.

You can have a maximum of nine pinned lists, and you can change their order. You can also edit and rearrange lists and groups. Pinned lists sit above your other lists for easy access, and groups like work, school, or shopping keep related lists together.

Here’s how to organize multiple lists in Reminders on iPad.

Note: Every Reminders feature described in this guide is available with updated reminders in iCloud, though some aren’t available when using other accounts.

The Reminders app showing a grid of smart lists, such as Today, Scheduled, and Flagged, each showing the number of items. Under the heading ‘My Lists,' shows a list of custom reminder categories like Family, Work, and Camping Trip.

Make a new list

  1. Start the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Tap the Add List button.
  3. Enter a name and choose a color and symbol for the list.
  4. Tap List Type and choose Standard, Groceries, or Smart List.
  5. Tap the Done button.

Pin an important list above the other lists for easy access

  1. Start the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Touch and hold a list and tap Pin. You can also swipe right on the list and tap the pin button.

    You can have a maximum of nine pinned lists.

To change the position of a pinned list, tap the More button, tap Edit Lists, drag the Reorder button to a new position, then tap the Done button.

Create a group of lists

Organize your lists in groups such as work, school, or shopping.

To create a group, simply drag a list onto another list. You can also do the following:

  1. Start the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Tap the More button and then tap Edit Lists.
  3. Tap Add Group, enter a name and select the lists to include in the group (optional). Then tap the Done button.

Edit and rearrange lists and groups

  1. Start the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Tap the More button and tap Edit Lists. Do any of the following:
    • Rearrange lists and groups: Drag the Reorder button next to a list or group to a new location. You can even move a list to a different group.
    • Change the name and appearance of a list or group: Tap the Edit Details button.

Delete a list or group

  1. Start the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Swipe left on the list or group. Then tap the Delete button.

    When you delete a group, you have the option to keep the lists.

When you delete lists or groups, they move to Recently Deleted. Within 30 days of deletion, you can recover them, but after 30 days, they’re permanently deleted.

See also

In the Reminders app, you can easily search through all your lists for items that contain specific text. You enter what you’re looking for in the search field, and Reminders shows matching items from every list.

Here’s how to search through all your lists in Reminders on iPad.

Search for items in all your lists

  1. Start the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. In the search field, enter a word or phrase.

See also

In the Reminders app, you can use tags as a fast and flexible way to categorize and organize your reminders. You can add one or more tags to a reminder, such as #shopping and #work, and easily search and filter your reminders across lists using the Tag Browser or Smart Lists.

A tag can be only one word, but dashes and underscores can combine words. You can also rename or delete a tag, and deleting it removes it from all Smart Lists that use it.

Note: All Reminders features described in this guide are available with updated reminders, but some features aren’t available when you use other accounts.

Add tags

  1. Start the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. When you create or edit an item in a list, tap the Tag button and type a tag.

    A tag can be only one word, but you can use dashes and underscores to combine words. You can add multiple tags to an item.

View items with tags

  1. Start the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Below Tags at the bottom of the screen, do any of the following:

    • View items with specific tags: Tap one or more tags. Then choose to view items matching any or all of the selected tags.

      Tip: To save this list as a Smart List, tap the More button, then tap Create Smart List.

    • View all items with tags: Tap All Tags.

      A Reminders screen showing the Tag Browser at the bottom left with All Tags selected. On the right is a list of all items with tags.

Rename or delete a tag

  1. Start the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Below Tags (at the bottom-left), touch and hold a tag and tap Rename Tag or Delete Tag.

    When you delete a tag, it’s also removed from all Smart Lists that use it.

See also

The Reminders app helps you remember anything you need to track. You can set reminders, make grocery lists, create checklists for projects, and organize tasks in to-do lists.

You can type, dictate, ask Siri, or even scribble with Apple Pencil when you need to remember something. A grocery list automatically sorts items into categories, and you can invite people to work on a list, categorize with tags, and manage your reminders with Smart Lists.

The Reminders app, showing a new task being added to the Reminders list.

Set a reminder

When you need to remember something, type it, dictate it, ask Siri, or scribble it with Apple Pencil.

The Reminders app, showing a grocery list with items in categories such as Produce and Seafood.

Create a grocery list

Make your shopping easier with a grocery list that automatically sorts items into categories. To convert a regular list into a grocery list, tap the More button (at the top-right corner), tap Show List Info, tap List Type, then choose Groceries.

The Reminders app, showing a grocery list with options for sharing on the right.

Collaborate on a list

To invite people to work on a list, tap the Share button, then choose a sharing option.

The Reminders app, showing multiple lists and the Tag Browser on the left. On the right is a list of all items with tags.

Organize your reminders

Create new lists that suit your needs, use tags to categorize, and manage your reminders with Smart Lists.

Note: To use all the Reminders features described in this guide, you need updated reminders in iCloud. With other accounts, some features aren’t available.

For more help with Reminders, these guides are worth a look:

In the Reminders app, you can easily filter your items across lists using Smart Lists. You can create custom Smart Lists to automatically include items filtered by tags, dates, times, locations, flags, and priority. You can choose more than one tag (such as #gardening and #errands) and combine them with other filters.

There are default Smart Lists, like Today, Scheduled, and Flagged, and you can convert a list to a Smart List, though not a shared list.

A Reminders screen showing a Smart List that contains all flagged items.

Note: When you use updated reminders, all Reminders features described in this guide are available, but other accounts don’t support some of them.

Automatically organize items using the default Smart Lists

  1. Open the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Tap the More button and then tap Edit Lists.
  3. Turn on or off the following Smart Lists:
    • Today: Items scheduled for today and overdue items
    • Scheduled: Items scheduled by date or time
    • All: All items across all your lists
    • Flagged: Items with a flag
    • Completed: Items with a checkmark
    • Assigned to Me: Items assigned to you in shared lists
    • Groceries: Grocery items
    • Siri Suggestions: Suggested items detected in Mail

Make a custom Smart List

  1. Open the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. Tap the Add List button.
  3. Enter a name, tap List Type, and then choose Smart List.
  4. Tap Edit Filters, choose one or more filters, and then choose to include items matching any or all of the selected filters. You can filter by tags, dates, locations, and more.
  5. Choose a color and symbol for the list (optional).
  6. Tap the Done button.

Convert a list to a Smart List

Converting a list sends its items to the top level of the default list, where they’re tagged with the name of the Smart List.

Note: You can’t convert a shared list.

  1. Open the Reminders app on your iPad.
  2. View the list you want to convert.
  3. Tap the More button, tap Show List Info and scroll to the bottom. Tap Convert to Smart List.

See also