iOS 15 Lets You Drag and Drop Images and Text Across Apps

Apple this week previewed iOS 15, which is available now in beta for developers ahead of a public release later this year. One smaller but useful new feature added is the ability to drag and drop images, text, files, and more across apps on iPhone.

MacStories editor-in-chief Federico Viticci demonstrated the new feature in a tweet:

Cross-app drag and drop has been available on the iPad since 2017 and Apple has finally extended the feature to the iPhone with iOS 15. Cross-app drag and drop always results in duplication, not movement, of content.

From the iOS 15 features page on Apple's website:

Drag and drop
With support for drag and drop across apps, you can pick up images, documents, and files from one app and drag them into another.

To drag and drop on iOS 15, long press on an image, text, or file and, without lifting that finger, use a second finger to swipe out of the app and open another app. Then, let go of the image, text, or file to drop it into the other app. Long pressing on content makes it appear to rise and adhere to your finger, and as the content is dragged, animations and visual cues identify possible destinations where the content can be dropped.

ios 15 home screen icons

In many apps, you can drag a single item with one finger, and while dragging, select additional items by tapping them with another finger. The selected items move together and appear stacked beneath the finger that's dragging the original item. You can then drag the items as a group and drop them into another app.

The first beta of iOS 15 was seeded to developers earlier this week, and the software update should be released for all compatible iPhones in September.

Related Forum: iOS 15

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Production Will Reportedly Begin Ramping Up in October

Tuesday July 23, 2024 2:00 pm PDT by
Following nearly two years of rumors about a fourth-generation iPhone SE, The Information today reported that Apple suppliers are finally planning to begin ramping up mass production of the device in October of this year. If accurate, that timeframe would mean that the next iPhone SE would not be announced alongside the iPhone 16 series in September, as expected. Instead, the report...
iPhone 17 Plus Feature

iPhone 17 Lineup Specs Detail Display Upgrade and New High-End Model

Monday July 22, 2024 4:33 am PDT by
Key details about the overall specifications of the iPhone 17 lineup have been shared by the leaker known as "Ice Universe," clarifying several important aspects of next year's devices. Reports in recent months have converged in agreement that Apple will discontinue the "Plus" iPhone model in 2025 while introducing an all-new iPhone 17 "Slim" model as an even more high-end option sitting...
Generic iPhone 17 Feature With Full Width Dynamic Island

Kuo: Ultra-Thin iPhone 17 to Feature A19 Chip, Single Rear Camera, Semi-Titanium Frame, and More

Wednesday July 24, 2024 9:06 am PDT by
Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today shared alleged specifications for a new ultra-thin iPhone 17 model rumored to launch next year. Kuo expects the device to be equipped with a 6.6-inch display with a current-size Dynamic Island, a standard A19 chip rather than an A19 Pro chip, a single rear camera, and an Apple-designed 5G chip. He also expects the device to have a...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Less Than Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Thursday July 25, 2024 5:43 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
icloud private relay outage

iCloud Private Relay Experiencing Outage

Thursday July 25, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
Apple’s iCloud Private Relay service is down for some users, according to Apple’s System Status page. Apple says that the iCloud Private Relay service may be slow or unavailable. The outage started at 2:34 p.m. Eastern Time, but it does not appear to be affecting all iCloud users. Some impacted users are unable to browse the web without turning iCloud Private Relay off, while others are...
iPhone 17 Plus Feature Purple

iPhone 17 Rumored to Feature Mechanical Aperture

Tuesday July 23, 2024 9:32 am PDT by
Apple is planning to release at least one iPhone 17 model next year with mechanical aperture, according to a report published today by The Information. The mechanical system would allow users to adjust the size of the iPhone 17's aperture, which refers to the opening of the camera lens through which light enters. All existing iPhone camera lenses have fixed apertures, but some Android...

Top Rated Comments

contacos Avatar
41 months ago
Anyone else feel like iOS has become super unintuitive with its weird and almost random gestures and stuff by pressing on invisible areas on the screen with different amount of fingers on top or am I just getting old? It can’t be that cuz half the people I know didn’t even know multitasking was a thing on their iPads ?

edit: Cross-app drag and drop has been available on the iPad since 2017

i didn’t know this was a thing either!
Score: 56 Votes (Like | Disagree)
RowellE Avatar
41 months ago
Wouldn’t copy and paste be easier and faster?
Score: 44 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Khedron Avatar
41 months ago

Such a nice and helpful feature.

Thank you again Apple.

We don’t owe Apple just money ? we owe them our loyalty to the brand.
That escalated quickly.
Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cmaier Avatar
41 months ago

It would be nice after you paste text the clipboard would clear.
Why? You never paste the same thing multiple times? I sure do.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
velocityg4 Avatar
41 months ago

Anyone else feel like iOS has become super unintuitive with its weird and almost random gestures and stuff by pressing on invisible areas on the screen with different amount of fingers on top or am I just getting old? It can’t be that cuz half the people I know didn’t even know multitasking was a thing on their iPads ?

edit: Cross-app drag and drop has been available on the iPad since 2017

i didn’t know this was a thing!
Definitely, I started with iOS 4 or 5. It was very intuitive. First time I picked it up. It was like I'd been using it all along. All the commands and placement of everything in the UI just made sense.

iOS 7 was when it started to change. With features being hidden and placement being unintuitive.

Now so much seems to require a Google search to learn or poking around through tons of menus. Then much else I don't even know I'm missing out on. Unless I happen to come across it in a post.

A large part of that is feature creep. Everythings more complex. Which makes it harder to make everything intuitive.

A lot also has to do with minimalism or anti-skeumorphism. Making things less apparent. The most aggravating thing is when they move a function or command to another category or menu. For example adding mail accounts to settings has changed locations multiple times. To different headings.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Your Royal Highness Avatar
41 months ago
copy and paste seems much more elegant.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)