Apple is adding a custom equalizer for AirPods to iOS 27, announced at WWDC 2026 and due later this year.
The feature closes a gap that has existed since AirPods launched in 2016. Until now, iPhone users who wanted to shape their sound had only a global EQ preset buried in the Music app, a blunt tool that applied identically to every pair of headphones. Apple announced the per-device EQ at WWDC 2026 but has not said which AirPod models will be supported or how many frequency bands users will get to adjust.
The omission has been a persistent complaint among headphone reviewers and power users. Sony, Samsung, and Bose have offered companion-app EQ controls with their wireless earbuds for years, letting users save custom profiles and target specific frequency ranges. Apple's defense was "Adaptive EQ," a hardware feature that automatically adjusts sound based on how well the earbuds seal in your ear. That is tuning you cannot see or control.
Ten years is a long runway to ship a settings slider. Whether Apple's implementation matches what rivals already offer is a question for the fall.