Apple CarPlay seamlessly extends the iPhone’s best features to your car’s dashboard, transforming any commute into a smarter, safer, and more entertaining journey. With the debut of iOS 26, CarPlay arrives with a refreshed look powered by the all-new Liquid Glass UI—a design that feels both modern and incredibly responsive. Enhanced widgets now put everything from messages and navigation to smart home controls right at your fingertips, making it easier than ever to keep your focus on the road. To enable these widgets, simply visit CarPlay settings on your iPhone.
Beyond the Basics: Discover More with Third-Party Apps
While staples like Spotify, Waze, and Audible are always within reach, CarPlay now supports a growing variety of third-party apps—many of which are completely free. These apps can help you locate parking, find EV charging stations, and stream your favorite content, all from your vehicle’s central display. Let’s explore a few underrated options that can enhance your driving experience:
SpotHero
Finding parking in a bustling city can be stressful, but SpotHero takes the hassle out of the hunt. Free for both iOS and CarPlay, this app lets you search, reserve, and navigate to parking spots, all from your car’s infotainment system. You can save favorite destinations for even quicker access in the future.
To get started, ensure your iPhone is running iOS 14 or later, add a payment method besides Apple Pay, and input your car’s details in the app. For the best experience, enable precise location access for SpotHero in your iOS settings.
PlugShare
Electric and hybrid drivers often dread finding a compatible charger mid-trip—but PlugShare makes range anxiety a thing of the past. While you’ll use your iPhone to plan routes, the CarPlay interface lets you view saved charging spots, navigate to them, and toggle between vehicle types with ease.
PlugShare’s standout feature is its smart filtering: unreliable or irrelevant charging stations are removed, and only the most relevant ones appear on your dashboard. Whether you’re driving locally or cross-country, PlugShare keeps you powered up and on track.
Pocket Casts
Podcasts are perfect road trip companions, and Pocket Casts—with its robust CarPlay support—is an ideal alternative to Apple’s native app. The familiar layout gives easy access to your subscriptions, filters, and downloads.
On the Now Playing screen, you can play, pause, rewind by 10 seconds, or jump forward by 45 seconds—all while viewing episode art. Pocket Casts Plus subscribers get extra perks, including up to 20GB of cloud storage for audio files.
VLC
VLC is a powerhouse media player known for its ability to play virtually any audio file format. Even though CarPlay doesn’t support video playback, VLC shines with its audio features: manage playlists, browse your song library, and enjoy lossless formats like FLAC and WAV.
You can easily upload content using the Files app or sync with cloud storage. There’s also a desktop version for more advanced management.
Dunkin’
Need your morning coffee without the wait? The Dunkin’ app is tailored for CarPlay, letting you quickly reorder favorites and find nearby locations before you even leave your driveway. With a DD Perks account, your payment and loyalty rewards are a tap away—you can even browse store hours and current promotions, ensuring a smooth caffeine run every time.
