- The latest ExpressVPN update to iOS adds support to Siri, Widgets, Shortcuts and Automizations
- You can set the ExpressVPN to activate when connected to specific networks
- The update adds features to iOS 26 but they will also work on older versions.
ExpressVPN has revealed improved integration with iOS, added support to Siri, Widgets, Shortcuts and Automizations.
These new features have been announced warm on the heels of the new iPhone 17 series, but are working with older versions of iOS as well as iOS 26.
Using these improved integration functions provides greater control over VPN access via ExpressVPN. It is important that they also offer improved automation options, including support for connection via a VPN server when certain conditions are met (such as connecting to a specific open Wi-Fi network).
ExpressVPN’s new features are part of the latest update to its iOS app and is intended to do what Techradar’s reviewers considered one of the best VPN services on the market even faster to launch and easier to use on iPhone.
They are all already available at the time of writing by simply updating the app to the latest version.
Instead of letting you click through menus to find ExpressVPN, you can now easily connect to VPN either with a SIRI voice command or a home -screen sour.
This is a 2×2 widget, like iPhone watch, and offers “one-tap protection.” This means you can press the shortcut to connect or disconnect VPN which will start the last connection you have used. As long as the ExpressVPN app has been updated, the widget can be added in the usual way (Langpress on the Home screen, press Edit and then add Widget).
For hands-free online privacy, Siri Voice command also generates your last ExpressVPN server. This means that via a simple utterance “Hey Siri, turn on Expressvpn”-will the app restore the connection. It is especially useful for public Wi-Fi, whether at a café, mall or on public transport.
According to the ExpressVPN message, “For now, Siri keeps it easy by prioritizing your last connection – whether London for work, New York for streaming or Tokyo for travel.” This suggests some exciting future options for how the app connects to VPN servers.
Automations and routines for your ExpressVPN connection
The most exciting ExpressVPN addition is perhaps the introduction of actions that can be incorporated into automations. New Apple hardware is smart home attentive and this new feature feels like the first step towards greater contextual control over your VPN connection.
So the upgraded ExpressVPN app can handle shortcuts that connect to a particular server at a programmed time. You can also “configure ExpressVPN to turn on automatically when you sign up for a café’s Wi-Fi,” the provider explains.
Again, ExpressVPN implies that these automations may be more developed, which tells us that “over time, Siri will even learn to suggest the right action at the right time.”
The next Smart Home VPN solution?
ExpressVPN joins a list of competitors, including NordVPN and ProtonVPN, to offer more automations to iPhone users. Although the experience may not be as flexible or granular as with ExpressVPN.
This means that with this update, ExpressVPN could place itself as a Smart Home VPN solution. Given iPhones and Macs are increasingly equipped with wire radio, and Apple is expanding its support for the SMART Home platform (built on philosophies of interoperability and automation), it’s not hard to see what ExpressVPN aims for.
You can try these new features for yourself by updating to the latest version of ExpressVPN’s iPhone VPN app – the update works with both older versions of iOS as well as the latest iOS 26.
