iPadOS 26: Expands the availability of Stage Manager - Which iPads are included?

June 23, 2025

With iPadOS 26, Apple is extending Stage Manager to many more iPad models, not just the top-of-the-line Pro with M-series chips.

According to MacRumors, they are now supported:

13″ iPad Pro with M4 chip
12.9″ iPad Pro 3rd generation and later
11″ iPad Pro 1st generation and later
iPad Air 3rd generation and later
iPad mini 5th generation and beyond
iPad 8th generation and beyond

Practically all iPads that will receive iPadOS 26, i.e. those with A12 or newer chips, get Stage Manager as an option (except for internal windowing replacement), but:

Connecting to an external display with Stage Manager is only allowed on models with M1 or M4 chips.
On older models (e.g. Air 3, iPad 8), Stage Manager is limited to up to 4 apps per stage, while the M-series allows more.

This change clearly shows that Apple has upgraded the performance of the feature so that it can work reliably even on smaller iPads other than the Pro.

Even an 8th generation iPad or iPad Air 3, once upgraded to iPadOS 26, you'll now be able to turn on Stage Manager and manage multiple apps in stages.

If you have an iPad Pro with M1, M4 or Air 5/M2, you can use Stage Manager on an external display - and more apps are supported at the same time.

iPadOS 26 is available in developer beta right now, with a public beta to follow very soon.

The official launch is expected in September 2025.