Almost everyone wants to throw a party but getting people together, sending invitations and keeping track of RSVPs can be a pain. Apple wants to simplify the process with Apple Invites, a new app that allows users to create custom invitations for parties and meetings. It also takes full advantage of Apple Intelligence. The company is launching the app when it can get plenty of traction in the US because Super Bowl LIX is on February 9, an occasion for parties and potlucks. Of course, there is always an occasion to celebrate, no matter where you are. Here’s how to navigate the app.
How does Apple Invites work?
As the name suggests, the primary aim of the app is to create custom event invitations. You need to download the app from the App Store on your iPhone to get started.
iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations, and anyone can RSVP, regardless of whether they have an Apple Account or Apple device. More of the iCloud+ bit later. While creating an invitation, you can use one of the images from the photo gallery as the main illustration or choose a colourful option from a curated library themed around various occasions. Add a description to the event you are hosting, an Apple Map link for location, timing and you are all set to send out the invitation to friends and colleagues.
It’s more than just RSVP
The power of the app lies in the set of features it comes with. When you receive an invitation, there is the RSVP option — you can accept or decline the invitation or choose “maybe”. That’s simple enough.
But the app goes beyond just attending an event. Eventually, an event comes with memories. You will take plenty of photos and videos or contribute to a music playlist. All of this gets taken care of on Apple Invites.
At the moment, the app directs you to Apple Music for playlists.
With Apple Invites, bringing events to life is easy and fun. Users can create, share, and RSVP to invitations through the Apple Invites app, or on the web from any device.
Getting Apple Intelligence involved
You can also, inevitably, get Apple Intelligence involved. That’s what 2025 is about, right?! Apple Intelligence has been integrated into Apple Invites without you requiring to do anything extra. You can use the built-in Image Playground to produce original images using your own concepts and descriptions, or even people from your photo library. Also, take full advantage of AI-driven Writing Tools to phrase your invitation perfectly to put across exactly how sophisticated or raucous your party would be.
Bolstering services
Every year, Apple manages to add something extra to the iPhone in terms of apps. There has been the Freeform app in 2022 that allows users to create infinitely scaling canvases called “boards”, which can display a range of inputs including text notes, photos, documents, and web links. Journal app came in 2023. It encourages users to create journal entries in which they can record and reflect upon their thoughts and activities.
Now, it’s time for Apple Invites. Users will not need an iPhone to RSVP to events but they will need a paid iCloud+ subscription to send invites. More and more users are finding iCloud+ helpful. You can opt for as little as a 50GB plan and then move upwards. From iCloud Private Relay to Hide My Email and HomeKit Secure Video and now Apple Invites.
Apple does not charge individually for many of its iCloud+ services and it now has a host of paid features intended to get users to upgrade from free storage. The company does not disclose how many iCloud+ subscribers it has.
“With Apple Invites, an event comes to life from the moment the invitation is created, and users can share lasting memories even after they get together,” said Brent Chiu-Watson, Apple’s senior director of worldwide product marketing for apps and iCloud. “Apple Invites brings together capabilities our users already know and love across iPhone, iCloud, and Apple Music, making it easy to plan special events.”
How safe are links?
When you share an Apple Invites link with someone, you trust that person. But what if the recipient decides to pass on the link to somebody else? There’s an option called ‘Approve Guests’. Send a public link for guests to RSVP. When they accept, they will appear in your guest list, allowing you to moderate. Or you can ‘Invite Individuals’, that is, choose a guest and send a one-time link to a single guest.
Collaborative features
We have already mentioned you can collaborate on photo albums and Apple Music playlists. What about a potluck where you want to mention what you are bringing to the potluck and see what others are bringing? In other words, is it possible to have the collaborative Notes feature in place? At the moment you can drop a link in the description. You can point people to a shared note but to have a full-fledged collaborative note in place would be helpful.
What about the Calendar app?
When you RSVP to an invitation, there is an icon at the top of the page. It helps you to add the event to the Calendar and that helps to keep track. It’s especially helpful if you have a hectic social life. It will stay in sync with any changes the host makes to the invitation, say, a small change in timing.
Do recipients need an Apple device?
Anybody with an iPad, Mac or a non-Apple device can access an invite to RSVP. Recipients don’t need a subscription or an Apple device or even an Apple Account to RSVP. As a host, you need an iCloud+ account but whoever receives the invite, can RSVP.
An iPhone user can send you an invitation either via email or through a direct link. You can then enter your RSVP status and see details about the event including the weather.
Apple Invites works well for Android users; it’s good to see that the company is allowing this service beyond its own device set.
How does it help?
It’s a straightforward app that offers a great way to invite friends to social dos rather than trying to squeeze all the details into a text message or make sure everyone checks their Facebook events. Plus, you get access to a number of features to make an invitation creative via Apple Intelligence support. And it comes with enough privacy policies.
What about competition?
Event invite app Partiful, a startup founded in 2020, also allows users to make and send invites. But it doesn’t offer the benefits of Apple Intelligence. Then there are apps like Paperless Post, Evite and Punchbowl. Also, there are young folks who are not in favour of Facebook. Apple Invites can help keep friends in the loop without using Facebook events, third-party apps, texts or emails.
Mathures Paul
At a glance
App: Apple Invites
Who can send invitations: Anybody with an iCloud+ subscription
Who can receive invitations: Everyone, even if they don’t have an Apple device or account. You can RSVP and keep track of the invitation across any platform
High notes…
- Customisable invitations
- Excellent integration with Photos (for shared event albums), Apple Music (for collaborative playlists), Image Playground (lets you create custom invite images), Maps (event’s location), Weather (projected forecasts) and Calendar (you can add an event with a tap)
- Great experience for both iPhone and Android users, and keeps event planning simple and fun
- Meaningful use of Apple Intelligence
- Hosts get full control of their invite experience: They can easily view and manage their events, share invitations with a link, review RSVPs
We want to see…
- Collaborative Notes integration
- Integration with Wallet app to make event cost-splitting easy