If you’re looking to get iOS 14 beta, we have good news: Apple launched the iOS 14 beta for developers pretty quickly, and they finally released a public beta available to anyone.
You can download the iOS 14 developer beta, which involves signing up to be an Apple developer and paying a small fee. This version will get updates and features before the public one, giving you advance access.
Or you can get the iOS 14 public beta, which is likely more stable, though not as much as it will be when it’s fully released later in 2020. If you do wait for the final version of Apple’s software update, it’s likely to come in September with the iPhone 12.
Note that not all iPhones will be able to download iOS 14 – anything older than the iPhone 6S or later won’t be getting either the beta nor the full version of iOS 14 when it arrives later this year.
On the plus side, downloading the developer beta is the same as it was with the iOS 13 update, so if you were able to download that, you’ll be able to get the new OS. It’s even easier to get the public beta, too.
If your iPhone is compatible, scroll below for step-by-step instructions to update your device to the iOS 14 beta. We’ll go over the public beta first, but we’ve also kept the steps for getting the developer beta below that.
Getting any of these public betas is simple, though you’ll need an Apple ID. Before you do anything, back up your apps and data: public betas are generally more stable than developer betas, but they aren’t foolproof, and installing an advance operating system always contains risks.
You’ll need to register for the Apple Beta Program to download any of the public beta versions of the upcoming operating systems. Don’t worry, it doesn’t cost anything – you just need an Apple ID and to register it with the program.
Head to beta.apple.com and click on the ‘Sign Up’ button. You’ll be directed to enter your Apple ID and register with the Apple Beta Program, as well as sign an agreement acknowledging the risks.
Just like getting the public beta, if you’re about to get the iOS 14 developer beta, we recommend you back up your iPhone first – just in case. That way, you can restore your phone’s settings, apps, and data to normal (that is, on a stable version of iOS) should something go wrong.
The iOS 14 beta may be buggy or prone to crashing this early on (by definition a beta test is to find problems with the software), and you don’t want to be the person to discover a problematic data-loss bug if you don’t have a backup.
So before downloading to iOS 14, head over to our supreme guide on how to back up your iPhone.
Return to the Apple Beta Program site and click ‘Get Started,’ which takes you to the program’s guide page. You’ll need to visit on the iPhone you’d like to download a new OS beta on; click the iOS tab, and under the Get Started section, click ‘enroll your device.’
That will take you to an OS-specific beta page which will, again, urge you to back up your device. On the iOS device-enrolling page, follow the Install profile link to download a configuration profile,
Once you’ve downloaded your beta configuration profile, it will show up as a new option in Settings to install. Tap on it and follow the instructions to install a new beta-ready profile.
Once you have a new beta profile, head to Settings > General > Software Update and you’ll have the option to download and install the iOS 14 beta. Tap install to update as normal. Congrats! You’ve gotten the iOS 14 public beta. Keep your eyes peeled for new beta updates with more features.
You’ll need to be part of the Apple Developer Program to get access to the developer beta. To sign up as an individual, head to the official program enrollment page and follow the instructions (listed here). You’ll need an Apple ID and personal documentation, and yes, to pay a roughly $99 annual fee to sign up.
Just like getting the public beta, if you’re about to get the iOS 14 developer beta, we recommend you back up your iPhone first – just in case. That way, you can restore your phone’s settings, apps, and data to normal (that is, on a stable version of iOS) should something go wrong.
The iOS 14 beta is likely to be buggy or prone to crashing this early on (by definition a beta test is to find problems with the software), and you don’t want to be the person to discover a problematic data-loss bug if you don’t have a backup.
So before downloading to iOS 14, head over to our supreme guide on how to back up your iPhone.
To get Apple’s software before it’s officially launched, you’ll have to download the profile to the compatible device you’ll run the beta on. Head to developer.apple.com/download and follow the instructions to download the beta profile.
Tap the ‘hamburger lines’ menu icon in the top left and tap ‘downloads,’ scroll down until you see iOS 14 beta and click the ‘install profile’ button. This will put the file itself on your device, which you’ll need to install manually by navigating through settings.
Once this profile is downloaded, you’ll need to manually install it, too – head to Settings > General > Profile, then select the Profile Downloaded (a new option which should appear), then click the profile selected.
Pro tip: You may also see Profile Downloaded in the main menu of settings (this is a rather new shortcut for the OTA update process) that will take you directly to the Profile submenu within Settings.
Once the iOS 14 beta profile is installed, stay in the Settings menu, but scroll down to General and select Software Update. If the following steps have been followed correctly, you should now have the option to download the iOS 14 beta. Be warned, it’s a nearly 5GB update, so plug your phone in and set aside time for the download.
Restart your phone, and now you’ll be using the iOS 14 beta, allowing you to test out the software your peers will be waiting months for.
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