Apple Invites Update Adds More than Just Liquid Glass
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Apple has just released another update to Apple Invites, its standalone app for planning parties, celebrations, and other events. While it was inevitable that the app would get the new iOS 26 Liquid Glass treatment, Apple has also added a couple of other features to make the app even more useful.
In case you’re unfamiliar with Apple Invites, it’s an app that Apple unveiled in February, only days after Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that Apple was working on a new party planning feature. While there was some speculation that this would be an enhancement to the iPhone’s built-in Calendar app, Apple chose to deploy it as its own app — and make it an optional download from the App Store.
As the name suggests, Apple Invites gives you a fun and easy way to create an event and invite friends, family, colleagues, or just about anyone else. An invitation can be sent via email, messages, or a shared link, and you can decide whether your event is open to all or only those you’ve specifically invited, and even choose whether they can bring additional guests.
The only catch is that Apple has turned Apple Invites into one of its iCloud+ features. This means you’ll need to pay for at least some amount of iCloud storage to create invitations, although even the $0.99 plan is sufficient, and, of course, it’s part of every Apple One bundle. Further, anyone can RSVP — they don’t even need an Apple Account to do so. Invitations open directly in a web browser for your guests who don’t have Apple Invites installed.
Apple Invites hasn’t become one of those apps that get released and then linger on the App Store for months or years. Apple has been actively releasing Invites updates every few weeks. A May release added the ability to include a tile that links to external sites, such as a gift registry, potluck list, or trip planner. This was followed by a summer fun update in Junethat added 45 new season-themed backgrounds, and an August update with Home Screen widgets to countdown to your next event.
Now, Apple Invites 1.5 gets a Liquid Glass polish to “make the app experience more expressive and delightful,” plus the ability to sync calendars and playback videos from shared albums directly in the app.
While Apple Invites has allowed you to save events to your calendar since day one, the new update saves you from having to do this on a per-event basis. Once enabled, every event you host and those you’ve RSVP’d to will automatically appear in a selected calendar. You can find this option by tapping on your profile picture in the top-right corner, selecting Calendar Sync, toggling it on, and then choosing the calendar you want to sync to. As with manually-added calendar events, each one will include a link to open the event, either in a web browser or directly in Apple Invites on your iPhone (if it’s installed).
Along similar lines, Apple Invites included support for shared albums in the first version, providing guests with a place to view and contribute photos and videos before, during, and after the event. However, videos were only shown with a static thumbnail, requiring users to open the Photos app to actually play them back. Now, in version 1.5, they can be played directly from within the invitation, either in the Apple Invites app or on the web. Sadly, guests still can’t view shared albums without an Apple Account, but at least they can see everything in one place now.
Apple Invites remains a free download from the App Store, and it can be used by hosts and guests alike, although, as mentioned earlier, you’ll need at least a $0.99/month iCloud+ plan to host events.
