How to change Siri settings on iPad

You can customize how you activate Siri, change Siri’s language and voice, change how Siri responds, and more in Siri settings on iPad.

You might say “Siri” or “Hey Siri,” or use the side button or type instead, and on supported models, you can say just “Siri” in some languages and regions. iPad can listen for “Siri,” “Hey Siri,” or both, depending on your choice. You can also tell Siri about yourself and retrain Siri with your voice.

For information about how to set up and use Siri, see Turn on and activate Siri.

Customize how you activate Siri

You can change how you activate Siri. For example, you can say “Siri” or “Hey Siri,” click the side button on your iPad, or type to Siri.

Note: The option to say just “Siri” is available on supported iPad models in some languages and regions.

Start the Settings app on your iPad.
Tap Siri.
Tap Requests and then do any of the following:
- Turn on “Siri” or “Hey Siri”: Tap Siri or Hey Siri (or Hey Siri) and then follow the instructions to set it up.
  
  Depending on your choice, iPad listens for “Siri,” “Hey Siri,” or both to activate Siri. To retrain Siri with your voice, turn off “Siri” or “Hey Siri,” turn it back on again, then follow the onscreen instructions.
  
  Tip: To prevent iPad from responding to “Siri” or “Hey Siri” when you don’t want it to, place your iPad face down.
- Turn off “Siri” or “Hey Siri”: Tap Off. iPad doesn’t listen for “Siri” or “Hey Siri” to activate Siri.
- Activate Siri using the side button on your iPad: Turn on Press Side Button for Siri.
- Type to Siri: Turn on Type to Siri. When Siri AI (Beta) is on, you can always type to Siri.
  
  Note: Siri AI is available in beta on iPadOS 27 or later on an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPad mini (A17 Pro) or iPad model with M1 or later set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not initially be available in the EU on iPadOS. Usage limits may apply.*

Change Siri’s language

Start the Settings app on your iPad.
Tap Siri.
Tap Language, then select a language from the list.

The language you choose is used for Siri, Maps, turn-by-turn directions, and Listen to Page in Safari.

Change Siri’s voice

You can change the way Siri sounds by changing the variation and voice Siri uses.

Start the Settings app on your iPad.
Tap Siri.
Do any of the following:
- Change the variation: Tap Voice and select an option below Variations.
- Change the voice: Tap Voice, then select an option below Voices.
- Use Siri Expressive Voices** (Siri AI only): Tap Voice and then adjust Voice, Pace, and Expressivity settings until they sound just right to you.
  
  Note: Pace and Expressivity adjustments are currently available for American and British voices.

Change how Siri responds

Siri can always respond silently or speak back when you provide voice input; it’s your choice. You can also have messages sent automatically without Siri asking you to confirm, and Siri can read your messages in a different language.

Note: The options you see vary with the version of Siri you’re using.

Start the Settings app on your iPad.
Tap Siri.
Tap Responses and then do any of the following:
- Have Siri respond aloud: Choose Prefer Spoken Responses or Speak Back for Voice Input. If Siri AI is turned on, choose Spoken Response.
- Have Siri respond silently: Choose Prefer Silent Responses or Always Silent. If Siri AI is turned on, choose Silent Response.
- See what Siri says onscreen: Turn on Always Show Siri Captions.
- See your request onscreen: Turn on Always Show Request.
- Have Siri send messages without confirming: Turn on Automatically Send Messages.
- Have Siri read messages in a different language: Tap Add Language and select a language from the list.
  
  Tip: After languages download, you can choose the variety and voice Siri uses to read messages. Tap the language below Read Messages, then select from the options below Variety and Voice.

Tell Siri about yourself

For a more personalized experience, you can give Siri information like your name, your home and work addresses, and even your relationships. Then you can say things like “Give me driving directions home” and “FaceTime Mom.” Siri learns about you from your contact card (called My Card) in the Contacts app.

Start the Settings app on your iPad.
Tap Siri.
Tap Your Information, then tap your name.
Go to the Contacts app to do any of the following:
- Change or edit the information: Tap My Card at the top and tap Edit. Then edit your information. For more information, see Add or edit your contact info and photo.
- Tell Siri how to pronounce your name: Tap My Card at the top and then tap Edit. Scroll down and then tap “add field.” Select a pronunciation name field, then type how to say your name. You can also add pronunciations for other contacts.

Siri can learn who other people are in relation to you. Try saying something like “Sarah Milos is my sister” or “Hey Siri, Ashley Kamin is my mom.”

Your personal information, which is encrypted and remains private, stays current on every device where you use the same Apple Account. When Siri learns about you on one device, your Siri experience gets better on your other devices, too. Turning off Siri in iCloud settings keeps Siri personalization from updating across your devices.

Change Visual Intelligence settings

If you have Apple Intelligence, Visual Intelligence can search for items similar to those around you, and you can choose to have highlighted objects sent automatically to third parties to provide results.

Start the Settings app on your iPad.
Tap Siri and then do any of the following:
- Turn on Highlight to Search (Siri AI only). This setting automatically searches the web when you highlight content in screenshots.
- Turn on Automatic Visual Look Up. This setting automatically identifies objects and places that appear in screenshots.

Customize apps Siri has access to

Give Siri access to an app or App Clips, and it can find information and suggest what you might want to do next, even before you ask. Get an invitation in Mail, for example, and you’re asked whether to add it to your calendar. Suggestions are on by default, though you can change which apps Siri has access to at any time.

Note: Siri and Apple Intelligence are designed to protect your privacy and keep you in control of your personal data by giving you control over what you share.

Start the Settings app on your iPad.
Tap Siri.
Do any of the following:
- Allow Siri to learn how you use an app to make suggestions: Tap App Access and select an app from the list. Then turn on Learn from this App.
- Choose how Suggestions appear: Tap App Access, select an app from the list, and then turn on Show on Home Screen, Suggest App, or Suggestion Notifications.
  
  Note: The options you see may be different depending on the app you select and which version of Siri you’re using.
- Allow Siri to learn from App Clips to make suggestions: Tap App Clips and then turn on Learn From App Clips.
- Allow Search and Shortcuts to show App Clips: Tap App Clips and turn on Show in Search or Suggest App Clips.

Customize where suggestions appear

Where suggestions appear is up to you. You might show them in an app, for example, but not on the Home Screen or as notifications.

Start the Settings app on your iPad.
Tap Siri.
Tap Suggestions and then do any of the following:
- Allow suggested apps to appear in search: Turn on Suggest Apps Before Searching.
- Allow suggestions to appear in notifications: Turn on Allow Notifications.
- Allow suggestions to appear in App Library: Turn on Show in App Library.
- Allow suggestions to appear when sharing: Turn on Show When Sharing.
- Allow suggestions to appear when you might want to listen to music: Turn on Show Listening Suggestions.

To change Siri accessibility settings, check out our guide, Change Siri accessibility settings.

*Apple Intelligence is available with Siri and device language set to Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, or Vietnamese. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Some devices may not be available in all regions. Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 and requires an Apple Intelligence–enabled device set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not be initially available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS. Certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts. Daily limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future. Use of these features is subject to the Apple Intelligence Terms and Conditions.

**Siri Expressive Voices are available with Siri AI on iPad models with M4 or later with at least 12GB of unified memory.