How do you turn off Apple Intelligence, and do you get the storage back?

Why there is no single switch any more

With the 27 releases Apple describes Apple Intelligence as integrated deeply into the operating system, and says it is automatically available on eligible devices after the update. Apple's support guide for Mac and iPhone now lists a set of separate controls under the title Turn off and restrict access to Apple Intelligence features, rather than one toggle.

PCMag reports the same change: on macOS 26 and earlier you could turn Apple Intelligence off in one place, while on macOS 27 you disable Siri and individual features instead. The practical result is that turning it off is now a short checklist, not a single tap.

The settings Apple documents on iPhone

All of these are in the Settings app on an iPhone running iOS 27, according to Apple's iPhone User Guide.

• Siri AI: tap Siri, scroll down, tap Turn Off Siri, then confirm. To keep Siri without AI responses, turn Siri back on and choose Siri Classic.
• Messages summaries: Apps, Messages, turn off Summarize Messages.
• Mail summaries: Apps, Mail, turn off Summarize Message Previews.
• Notification summaries: Notifications, Summarize Notifications, turn it off. Priority notifications: Notifications, Prioritize Notifications, turn it off.
• Smart replies, voicemail suggestions and Call Context: Apps, Mail, Personalize Smart Replies; Apps, Phone, Suggestions in Voicemail; Apps, Phone, Apple Intelligence and Siri, Show When Calling.
• Stronger restriction: Screen Time can block or allow Siri and Apple Intelligence features, which also works for a child account.

The settings Apple documents on Mac

The Mac User Guide for macOS 27 lists the same categories with Mac paths. The Screen Time route is the closest thing to a central control: in Screen Time Content and Privacy settings, Allowed Siri Version can be set to Don't Allow Siri, Siri AI (Beta) or Siri Classic, and a Capabilities list lets you mark individual items, such as Broad World Knowledge or Writing Assistance, as Allowed or Blocked.

• Siri AI: System Settings, Siri, Turn Off Siri. Turn it back on and select Use Siri Classic to keep Siri without AI-generated responses.
• Messages: Messages, Settings, turn off Summarize Messages.
• Mail: Mail, Settings, Viewing, turn off Summarize Message Previews; Mail, Settings, Composing, turn off Personalize Smart Replies.
• Notifications: System Settings, Notifications, Summarize Notifications, turn it off.
• Phone and Journal: Phone, Settings, Calls, turn off Suggestions in Voicemail; Journal, Settings, General, turn off Get Writing Prompts.
• Screen Time: Content and Privacy, set Allowed Siri Version and block the Capabilities you do not want.

Do you get the storage back?

Apple says Apple Intelligence on the 27 releases needs up to 14 GB of storage on iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, M4 or later iPads and M3 or later Macs with at least 12 GB of unified memory, and up to 8 GB on other supported iPhone, iPad and Mac models. That is the published ceiling, not a measurement of your device.

Turning features off is not the same as deleting the models. PCMag reports that on macOS 26 and earlier, disabling Apple Intelligence freed the space, while on macOS 27 disabling features and switching to Siri Classic does not automatically clear it; System Data may shrink over time, but that is not guaranteed. Apple's support pages we checked describe how to turn features off, and do not describe a supported way to delete the downloaded models. If storage is the real problem, Apple's general free-up-storage guide is the supported route.

What about one-command removal tools?

The tool behind today's discussion is RemoveMacAI, an MIT-licensed open-source project created on September 29, 2026. Its README says it turns the features off with a configuration profile that applies Apple restriction keys, removes the models (it says about 12 GB) through Apple's asset service without disabling System Integrity Protection, blocks their re-download by redirecting it to a closed local port, and can be fully reverted. Those are the maintainer's claims; RemoveMacAI was not tested for this answer.

Treat it as conditional risk. It installs a configuration profile you must approve, it changes system behavior that later macOS updates may handle differently, and its README lists what stops working, including apps that use Apple's on-device Foundation Models framework, Visual Intelligence and Xcode predictive code completion. If you try it, read the source first, run its dry-run mode, keep a backup, and confirm you know how to run its revert command.

Should you turn it off?

This is a preference, not a safety requirement. Common reasons to turn features off are storage on smaller devices and wanting fewer AI suggestions in mail, messages and notifications. Before removing everything, note that Apple designs many features to run on device, while server-side features such as Siri AI and Image Playground are subject to daily usage limits, and Apple says expanded access to those will be available for a fee in the future.

A middle path works well for most people: keep Siri Classic, turn off the summaries you do not trust, and leave the rest until you have a concrete reason to remove it.

Limits of this answer

Settings paths come from Apple's iOS 27 and macOS 27 user guides as published on October 4, 2026, and may change in point releases. Features and availability vary by language and region. The storage figures are Apple's stated maximums. The behavior of storage after disabling features on macOS 27 is reported by PCMag and by the RemoveMacAI maintainer, not by Apple.

A useful next action

Open Screen Time, set Allowed Siri Version to the option you want, then work through the summary toggles above. Check System Settings, General, Storage afterwards, and only consider a third-party removal tool if the space matters and you are comfortable reviewing and reverting a configuration profile.