How to turn on Galaxy S26's Now Nudge, and how it works

now nudge on galaxy AI screen
(Image credit: Future)

If you have one of Samsung’s new Galaxy S26 smartphones, Now Nudge is an exciting AI feature that can save you time and help you out, without you even asking. Now Nudge is part of Samsung’s Galaxy AI suite of tools, and launched with the Galaxy S26 series in early 2026.

It’s similar to Google’s Magic Cue on the Pixel 10 series, as both aim to proactively provide useful information and suggest actions based on what’s being displayed on your screen.

Now Nudge isn’t technically a new technology, but it is new for Samsung phones, and Apple currently doesn’t offer this level of AI integration on iPhone. It’s likely only a matter of time until it does, though, with iOS 27 tipped to bring a major AI overhaul to the iPhone.

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What phones can I use Now Nudge on?

Samsung’s Now nudge feature is only available on the flagship Galaxy S26 series. If you don’t have one of the three following phones, you won’t be able to access it.

There’s no word on whether Samsung will bring this AI feature to any of its other devices, but it’s likely to feature on the upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Flip 8 when they arrive later this year.

It’s worth noting Now Nudge currently supports 13 languages: English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Polish, Vietnamese, Hindi. If your phone language is set to anything else, this feature won’t work for you.

How to enable Now Nudge

Samsung Galaxy S26 held in the hand.

(Image credit: Tom's Guide / John Velasco)

There’s a chance you already have Now Nudge enabled, as it’s included in the general AI features acceptance when you set up a new Galaxy S26 device. Here's how you can double-check, or get it working if you're setting your phone up for the first time.

1. (Optional) Turn on Now Nudge during setup

During the setup wizard, you’ll be shown a “Galaxy AI, Advanced Intelligence” screen that lists all the key AI features on your new S26 series device. If you continue through and accept various T&Cs, Now Nudge will be turned on for you.

2. Turn on Now Nudge in settings

If you’re not sure Now Nudge is enabled, head to Settings > Galaxy AI > Now Nudge. There’s a toggle at the top of the screen. If Now Nudge is enabled it’ll be blue and say ‘On’. If it says ‘Off’, just tap the toggle on the right to turn it on.

3. Set Samsung keyboard to default

Now Nudge suggestions will appear in a bar above your keyboard, but you need to be using Samsung’s keyboard to access them. If you’ve switched to a different keyboard (such as Google’s GBoard), you’ll need to change it back to Samsung’s as the default.

To check the keyboard you’re using, go to Settings > General Management > Keyboard, and make sure “Default Keyboard” is set to Samsung Keyboard.

4. (Optional) Personalize Now Nudge with your data

You can provide Now Nudge with extra personalization data too, via the Personal data intelligence option in Now Nudge section of the Settings.

From here, tap the Manage personal data option, which will let you enter your name, email, phone number, passport details, pet names and interests (from a stock list). The AI can then surface these details when it detects a relevant moment.

What can Now Nudge do for me?

Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra shown in hand

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

Now Nudge becomes more powerful and more useful, the more you use your phone. Actions such as organizing meet-ups with friends, adding your work calendar, taking photos, making restaurant reservations, and booking flights can all be taken into account when Now Nudge proactively searches for useful information.

The AI can understand the context of your text conversations, and scans the data on your phone to surface relevant information to help you seamlessly pull up booking information, share photos, open a location in Maps, add an event to your calendar, and more.

A Now Nudge prompt appears as an icon in a bar above the keyboard, and will be labelled according to either the action it’s suggesting, such as ‘Add event’ or ‘Share photo’, or the information it’s trying to flag to you, such as a phone number or reservation details.

Tapping the icon will then trigger the action being suggested, without you having to leave the messaging or social app you’re currently in and having to navigate elsewhere.


Now Nudge is just one of several Galaxy AI features, and builds on Now Brief and the Now Bar that Samsung introduced over a year ago. While Now Nudge feels a little limited in places at the moment, we expect Samsung to continue developing the feature and opening it up to more apps and data opportunities.

If you want to learn even more about the Galaxy S26 series, we spoke to Samsung's senior VP of mobile product development, Drew Blackard, who answered your burning questions about the firm’s latest phone series.


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(Image credit: Future)

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