Apple Siri settlement: $25–$95 per iPhone and how to claim

What the Apple Siri settlement is about

The case is Landsheft v. Apple Inc., No. 5:25-cv-02668-NW, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in San Jose. The first complaint was filed on March 19, 2025, and seven similar lawsuits were folded into it. The plaintiffs say Apple promoted Apple Intelligence, including an upgraded and more personal Siri, to sell the iPhone 16 lineup and the iPhone 15 Pro models, even though those Siri features weren't available when people bought the phones.

Apple denies any wrongdoing. It says it has already delivered more than 20 Apple Intelligence features and plans to ship more Siri features in later software updates at no extra cost. Nobody has ruled on who is right: the class was certified for settlement purposes only. On July 17, 2026, Judge Noël Wise granted preliminary approval, which is what let notice and the claim period begin. The deal isn't final until a hearing in February 2027.

You can follow the case on Owed's Apple Intelligence settlement page or on the public court docket.

Who qualifies for the Apple Siri settlement

You're in the class if you live in the United States and bought one of these phones in the United States, for a reason other than reselling it, between June 10, 2024 and March 29, 2025:

• iPhone 16, iPhone 16e, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max
• iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max

Personal and business purchases both count. Apple, its employees and officers, and the court's staff are excluded. The standard iPhone 15, the iPhone 15 Plus and older models aren't on the list.

The class is defined by who bought the phone, not who uses it, and press accounts say the filer must be the original purchaser. A phone you were given or bought used is a gray area, so check the official notice first. If you bought two or more eligible phones in the window, each one is its own claim.

How much you could get per iPhone

The fund is $250 million, but that isn't what gets divided. Notice and administration costs, the lawyers' fees and expenses the judge approves, and service awards for the named plaintiffs (class counsel will ask for no more than $2,000 each) come out first. The settlement doesn't fix the lawyers' fees: they file a request before the objection deadline and the judge rules on it at final approval. In consumer class actions, fees typically run from a quarter to a third of the fund.

What's left is paid per device. The settlement starts from a presumptive $25 per eligible iPhone. If valid claims add up to less than the money available, every payment is raised pro rata, up to a hard cap of $95. If more claims arrive than the money can cover at $25, every payment shrinks. At the July 8, 2026 hearing the parties said the cap was unlikely to be reached because they expect a large notice campaign, so treat $25 as the planning number and $95 as the ceiling.

How to file an Apple Siri settlement claim

Filing is free, takes a few minutes and happens on the official claim site, which is run by the court-appointed administrator, Verita Global. Have the phone in your hand. If you never got a notice with a Claim ID, our guide to claim IDs and notice IDs explains why that's usually fine.

1. Find a device identifier. The easiest is the serial number: open Settings > General > About on the iPhone. If you can't, the form also accepts your Apple Account email together with the phone number tied to the iPhone.
2. Go to SmartphoneAISettlement.com by typing the address yourself, then choose the option to file a claim.
3. If an email or postcard gave you a Claim ID and PIN, enter them. If you didn't get one, pick the option for people without a Claim ID and PIN. You can still file.
4. Say whether the claim is personal or for a business, then enter your contact details, the device identifier and how you want to be paid. Press accounts list PayPal, Venmo, ACH and check as the options.
5. Confirm that you bought the phone in the U.S. during the class period and that you expected a Siri Apple Intelligence feature you didn't get, then submit.
6. Repeat for every eligible iPhone you bought, and save the confirmation. Everything must be submitted online or postmarked by December 21, 2026.

Key dates for the Apple Siri settlement

The claim deadline and the opt-out and objection deadline fall on the same day, so decide what you want to do before then. The dates come from the court docket and order, plus news reports of the longer schedule the judge approved in August 2026.

Is the Apple Siri settlement legit?

Yes. It's a federal class action with a public docket, a judge who has preliminarily approved it and a court-appointed administrator, Verita Global. Our explainer on settlement administrators covers who they are and what they do.

Copycat sites are the real risk when a settlement is this large. The claim form asks for an identifier, not a login, so treat any request for your Apple Account password, a card number or a fee as a red flag, along with look-alike web addresses and ads promising a bigger payout. Our guide to spotting settlement scams has more.

Don't mix this up with the earlier Siri case, Lopez v. Apple, over unintended Siri activations and privacy. That is a separate settlement with its own claim form, and its claim deadline was July 2, 2025. A claim there doesn't count here. For other open cases, browse the settlements directory.

What happens after you file

The administrator checks each claim and rejects duplicates, fraud and forms that don't follow the instructions. Then the court takes over: at the February 24, 2027 hearing, Judge Wise decides whether the settlement is fair and how much the lawyers get. Her order bars any payment before final approval.

After that, the agreement calls for payment within 60 days after the settlement takes effect (final approval plus the end of any appeals), or as soon as practicable. An appeal would push payments back, so plan on 2027 at the earliest. Checks are void 120 days after issue, so cash yours quickly. Our guides on how long settlement checks take and whether settlement money is taxable cover the rest.

If you do nothing, you get no money and you're still bound by the release of claims against Apple. Opting out by December 21, 2026 keeps your right to sue separately, but it also means no payment.

Owed finds the settlements you qualify for, explains them in plain English, opens the official claim form and reminds you before the deadline, then tracks each claim to payout. You submit the form yourself. Owed Pro is $2 for the first week, then $49 per year — one flat membership. Owed never takes a percentage of any payout. See which settlements match you.

This article is general information, not legal advice. The court and the administrator decide who qualifies and how much each person gets.

Glossary

Class period

The window in which a purchase counts. Here it's buying an eligible iPhone between June 10, 2024 and March 29, 2025.

Presumptive payment

The default per-device amount the settlement starts from, $25 here, before it is adjusted up or down.

Pro rata

Shared out in proportion. If claims total less than the money available, payments rise; if they total more, payments shrink.

Non-reversionary fund

A settlement fund from which unclaimed money can't flow back to the company that is paying.

Final approval hearing

The court hearing where the judge decides whether to approve the settlement for good and rules on attorneys' fees. Payments can't start before it.

Settlement administrator

The neutral company the court appoints to send notice, review claims and pay class members. Here it's Verita Global.

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