If you're an iPhone owner, you might be familiar with this experience. You're having a back-and-forth conversation with your friend over iMessage, when suddenly there's a lull and your blue bubbles are now green. Or perhaps you're texting someone over RCS (which was introduced last year with iOS 18), but something happened, and now all your messages are regular SMS, you can't see typing indicators, and your read receipts are gone.
Sure, you can continue the conversation over SMS, but iMessage and RCS have significant advantages. iMessages, which can only be done between Apple devices, are end-to-end encrypted, plus they have special features such as Tapbacks, Live Stickers, text effects and more. iMessages support links, high resolution images, delivery and read receipts plus typing indicators.
RCS messages aren't end-to-end encrypted yet, but they otherwise provide a comparable texting experience between an iPhone and an Android phone. They also support delivery and read receipts, typing indicators, high-resolution photos, links and more.
So what do you do if neither iMessage or RCS is working? Here are a few steps that might rectify the situation.
Apple's iMessage includes features like the ability to schedule texts to send later. James Martin/CNET
Make sure iMessage is turned on
If your iMessage is not working, try making sure your iMessage service is turned on. Go to your phone's Settings, then select Apps. Scroll down to Messages and select it. On this page, make sure that iMessage is enabled.
Make sure iMessage is set up with your phone number and Apple ID
iMessage works not just with your phone number but with your Apple ID as well as any email addresses that you have associated with your Apple ID. This way, you can send and receive iMessages across your Apple devices. If your iMessage isn't working, try making sure it's set up with your current number and Apple ID.
To do so, go to Settings, then Apps, then Messages. Then select Send & Receive. There, you'll see a list of numbers and email addresses under the heading "You can receive iMessages to and reply from." You can then select which ones you want to use with iMessage.
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