Automatic app updates? How long and under what conditions?

[ChedNasad]

I've wondered a long time how automatic updates for apps work in iOS. I would have assumed if the phone was idle and being charged while connected to a network it would just update then. This is how Mac OS seems to work. However anytime I check I see tons of pending app updates and I have waited at times days to see if they would push through but to no avail. Mac OS on the other hand I pretty much never see anything pending. It happens seamlessly behind the scenes presumably during power nap. My friend was also asking about it as he has recently switched to iOS from Android and some of his apps will not work without being up to date so he will often have to go and manually update them despite there being plenty of opportunities for iOS to install during the night or during the day.

So to summarize my question: when do the apps update and how does this feature work?

 

[chabig]

I don't think anyone knows. For those who just let it work, it does so automatically. Like you, I tend to check and usually find many pending updates.

 

[patseguin]

I've wondered a long time how automatic updates for apps work in iOS. I would have assumed if the phone was idle and being charged while connected to a network it would just update then. This is how Mac OS seems to work. However anytime I check I see tons of pending app updates and I have waited at times days to see if they would push through but to no avail. Mac OS on the other hand I pretty much never see anything pending. It happens seamlessly behind the scenes presumably during power nap. My friend was also asking about it as he has recently switched to iOS from Android and some of his apps will not work without being up to date so he will often have to go and manually update them despite there being plenty of opportunities for iOS to install during the night or during the day.

So to summarize my question: when do the apps update and how does this feature work?

I was about to post this question but I was prompted with your post. I’ve been wondering about it for some time as well. My apps on all my devices don’t update unless I check for updates and tap on update all. If I wait like a week, I’ll see sometimes maybe as many as 30-40 updates available. Is there some reason why devices won’t just keep apps updated?

 

[ChedNasad]

It drives me nuts tbh. I think there is probably some elevation schedule to avoid an app update that has issues from reaching everyone at once but having the option to choose to live wildly would be nice. Or at least understanding how it works.

 

[BotchQue]

Huh. I seem to have just the opposite issue from the OP. My apps are always up-to-date (I just checked) but iOS itself never updates automatically (I just checked that too, updating to iOS 16.0.2 as we speak).
There must be a toggle somewhere deep in the machine.