Where to Find Autocorrect on Your iPhone

Autocorrect lives in your iPhone's Settings app under Keyboard. Open Settings, tap General, then Keyboard — you'll see a toggle for Autocorrect about halfway down the list. From here you can turn the whole feature off, or keep it on and customize which words it corrects and which ones it learns to leave alone.

The Keyboard settings page also shows you related features like predictive text, spell check, and caps lock — all of which work alongside autocorrect. If autocorrect is on but you're still seeing unwanted corrections, one of these neighboring settings might be the real culprit.

Key Takeaways

  • Autocorrect is toggled on or off in Settings > General > Keyboard, and you can turn it off entirely if you prefer to type without corrections.
  • When you reject a correction by tapping the X next to a suggested word, your iPhone learns that word and stops correcting it in the future.
  • You can add custom words to your personal dictionary so autocorrect never changes them, even if they're not in the standard dictionary.
  • Spell check and predictive text are separate toggles on the same Keyboard settings page, so turning off autocorrect won't affect those features.
  • If autocorrect keeps changing a word you use often, rejecting the suggestion multiple times trains your iPhone to recognize it as correct.

Turn Autocorrect Off Completely

If you want no automatic corrections at all, the fastest route is to flip the Autocorrect toggle to off. Go to Settings > General > Keyboard and tap the toggle next to Autocorrect — it will turn gray when it's off. Your iPhone will no longer suggest or make corrections as you type.

Turning autocorrect off does not affect spell check (the red underline under misspelled words) or predictive text (the word suggestions above the keyboard). If you want those features but not automatic corrections, you can leave autocorrect off and keep the others on.

Reject Corrections to Teach Your iPhone New Words

When autocorrect suggests a change, a small popup appears above the keyboard showing the correction. If that word is not what you meant to type, tap the X next to the suggestion to reject it. Your iPhone remembers this rejection and will stop correcting that word the next time you type it.

This works best for words you use regularly — names, slang, technical terms, or words in other languages. After you reject a correction three or four times, your iPhone treats that word as correct and stops trying to change it. You don't have to do anything else; the learning happens automatically.

Add Words to Your Personal Dictionary

If you use a word often and want to make sure autocorrect never touches it, add it to your personal dictionary. Go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement. Tap the plus sign in the top right corner, then type the word in the Phrase field and leave the Shortcut field empty. Tap Save.

Words in your personal dictionary are treated as correct and will never be autocorrected. This is useful for proper nouns (names of people or places), brand names, or words from other languages that your iPhone's standard dictionary doesn't recognize. You can add as many words as you need, and you can delete them later by swiping left on any entry and tapping Delete.

Use Text Replacement to Create Shortcuts

The Text Replacement feature does double duty: it prevents autocorrect from changing words, and it lets you create shortcuts that expand into longer phrases. For example, you could set the shortcut "omw" to expand into "on my way" — every time you type "omw" and hit space, your iPhone replaces it with the full phrase.

To set this up, go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement, tap the plus sign, and type your shortcut in the Shortcut field and the full phrase in the Phrase field. The shortcut should be short and straightforward to type, and it should not be a real word (otherwise autocorrect will interfere). Common shortcuts are abbreviations like "lol", "btw", or "omw".

Turn Off Autocorrect for Specific Languages

If you use multiple languages on your iPhone, autocorrect applies to whichever language your keyboard is set to at that moment. You can add multiple keyboards in Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards, and each one has its own autocorrect setting. Tap Edit next to any keyboard, then tap the keyboard name to open its settings and toggle autocorrect on or off for just that language.

This is helpful if you switch between English and another language — you might want autocorrect on for English but off for a language where autocorrect makes more mistakes. You can also delete keyboards you don't use, which keeps your keyboard switcher cleaner.

What to Do If Autocorrect Keeps Making the Same Mistake

If autocorrect repeatedly changes a word the way you don't want, the issue is usually that you haven't rejected the correction enough times yet. Tap the X next to the suggestion every time it appears — after a few rejections, your iPhone will stop. This trains the autocorrect system faster than waiting for it to learn on its own.

If rejecting the suggestion doesn't work after several tries, add the word to your personal dictionary instead. Go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement, tap the plus sign, type the word in the Phrase field, leave Shortcut empty, and tap Save. This guarantees your iPhone will never autocorrect that word again.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I turn off autocorrect but keep spell check?

Yes. Autocorrect and spell check are separate toggles in Settings > General > Keyboard. You can turn autocorrect off and leave spell check on — spell check will still underline misspelled words in red, but it won't automatically change them.

Why does autocorrect keep changing my name?

Your iPhone's autocorrect doesn't recognize your name as a correct word. Reject the correction by tapping the X each time it appears, or add your name to your personal dictionary in Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement. After you add it, autocorrect will never change it again.

Does turning off autocorrect affect predictive text?

No. Predictive text (the word suggestions above the keyboard) is a separate feature with its own toggle in Settings > General > Keyboard. You can turn off autocorrect and keep predictive text on, or turn both off, or keep both on — they work independently.

Can I undo an autocorrect change after I've sent a message?

No, autocorrect changes are permanent once you send a message. The best prevention is to reject unwanted corrections before you send, or add frequently misspelled words to your personal dictionary so autocorrect doesn't change them in the first place.

What's the difference between rejecting a correction and adding a word to my dictionary?

Rejecting a correction teaches your iPhone that word over time — usually after three or four rejections. Adding a word to your personal dictionary is when ready and permanent. Use rejection for words you use occasionally, and use the dictionary for words you use often or want to protect when ready.