Apple Makes Developer Betas Free For All, You No Longer Have to Pay $99 to Download iOS, watchOS, and Other Betas

Apple recently held its WWDC 2023 event where it saw fit to announce iOS 17, iPadOS 17, watchOS 10, macOS Sonoma, and additional updates. It has recently been discovered that Apple has silently updated its beta program, allowing developers to download and install the latest beta software updates for free. Previously, the company charged an annual fee of $99 for its developer beta program while public betas remained free for all. Scroll down to read more details on the subject.
Apple's developer beta builds of iOS, watchOS, macOS, and other updates no longer require a $99 annual subscription fee
While it is being reported that the change came forth with the launch of iOS 17, we have been able to download the latest beta builds for a while. We have been able to download the IOS 16.4 and iOS 16.5 updates ahead of the iOS 17 announcement which means that the change is part of iOS 16. We also did a guide on how to download the official iOS beta without a configuration profile. Take note that we did not pay the $99 fee for Apple's beta program and the beta update was available.



Initially, users had to pay a whopping $99 annual fee to Apple to download the latest beta updates. Apart from iOS updates, since you are not required to pay the beta program fee, the change is applicable for other updates as well. What this means is that you will be able to install iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, macOS, and tvOS developer beta builds for free. However, we would still advise you to wait for the public beta of iOS 17 and other updates since the initial builds are crawling with bugs and issues.
Take note that Apple's beta program with a $99 annual fee is still active but it features the rest of the benefits like code building with Apple support, app distribution on the App Store, and more. It seems Apple wants developers to try out the beta builds for free. It would allow additional developers to join the program for filtering out bugs and issues.
Apple has recently released the first developer beta of iOS 17 which comes with a boatload of forward-facing features. The update lets you transform your iPhone into a smart display using StandBy Mode. Furthermore, Accessibility features have seen major additions including the new Personal Voice feature. You can check out more details on the update in our announcement post . This is all there is to it, folks. We will keep you guys updated on the latest, so be sure to stick around. Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Written by Ali Salman