Apple says 100,000+ apps are optimized for iPhone Duo — here's still missing
Susan Prescott says well over 100,000 Duo-optimized apps are live. PayPal, Uber Eats, Venmo and Apple Store still aren't.
The skim
- The claim: Apple says well over 100,000 apps are now built for iPhone Duo — apps that fill the inner and outer displays and use vertical status-bar controls.
- The badge: Optimized apps show a "Made for iPhone Duo" badge in their App Store listings on the device.
- Still missing: PayPal, Uber Eats, Venmo, DoorDash, the Apple Store app, Google Docs/Sheets/Slides, and many others still are not optimized, MacRumors reports.
What Apple said
On Nov. 6, Apple marked roughly two weeks since iPhone Duo launched with a developer update. Susan Prescott, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations, said:
"It's been wonderful to see how quickly developers have embraced iPhone Duo, and we're grateful for their creativity and innovation. Today there are well over 100,000 apps built for iPhone Duo already live on the App Store, and thousands of optimized apps are being added to the store each day."
MacRumors confirmed the 100,000+ figure refers to apps built with the iOS 27.1 SDK or later. Those apps fill the full width of Duo's inner and outer displays and place vertical controls in the status bar. Older apps still run: iOS 27 SDK builds fill most of the inner display but avoid the right-edge status bar; iOS 26 and earlier apps sit centered with black bars on both sides.
What's optimized — and what isn't
Recent examples Apple and MacRumors cite as optimized include Microsoft Excel, OneNote, PowerPoint, and Word; Etsy; Goodnotes; Halide Mark III; NBA; NHL; Zoom; Amazon Prime Video; Fantastical; Flighty; Instagram; MLB; Netflix; WhatsApp; and YouTube.
Still not optimized, in alphabetical samples from MacRumors: AMC Theatres, Amazon Fire TV, Apple Store, Best Buy, Bluesky, Delta, DoorDash, Duolingo, Fandango, FedEx, Goodreads, Google Docs, Google Home, Google Sheets, Google Slides, Grubhub, JetBlue, Libby, Microsoft Authenticator, Microsoft Teams, Nike, PayPal, Ring, Southwest, Starbucks, Steam, Uber Eats, UPS, USPS, Venmo, Verizon, Wells Fargo, Whole Foods, and YouTube Music.
Apple says apps that use standard SwiftUI and UIKit components adapt automatically, and it has hosted more than 50 in-person Duo workshops in 19 cities. iOS 27.2 also added Apple Pencil (USB-C) support on Duo for apps like Procreate Pocket and Apple Notes.
Why it matters
Duo owners can now scan App Store listings for the Made for iPhone Duo badge instead of guessing. The list of everyday finance and food apps still missing — including Apple's own Store app — shows the gap is real even as the 100,000 count climbs. If an app you need daily still shows black bars, that is a fair reason to keep a second phone nearby until the update lands.
Sources: MacRumors (Nov. 6), The Verge, TechCrunch, AppleInsider.
