How to fix iMessage not working on iPhone
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While Apple’s iMessage service is very reliable, it sometimes stops working. Below you will find steps to fix iMessage not working on iPhone.
Fix iMessage not working on iPhone
If Apple’s iMessage service isn’t working on your iPhone, you’ll see all messages sent from your device appear as green bubbles instead of blue.
If iMessage doesn’t work at all, you won’t be able to send any messages from iPhone to Apple device users and non-Apple device users.
In both cases, you should be able to use the troubleshooting steps provided below to resolve the issue.
Turn OFF iMessage and Turn It Back ON
Go to Settings > Messages > move the toggle next to iMessage to OFF position.
Wait for 30 seconds and move the toggle next to iMessage to the ON position.
Check iMessage server status
Occasionally, Apple servers can be temporarily unavailable and cause iMessage issues. To confirm, visit Apple’s System Status page and check the iMessage entry.
If something goes wrong, you’ll see an error message next to the iMessage entry, and the dot next to the iMessage will be red.
Enable/disable airplane mode
Enabling and disabling Airplane Mode is a quick way to reset the wireless antenna on your device.
Go to Settings > Enable Airplane Mode by moving the toggle to the ON position.
Wait 30 seconds, then disable Airplane Mode by moving the toggle switch to the off position.
Check iMessage Settings
Go to Settings > Messages > Send & Receive > on the next screen, make sure both your Apple ID and Phone Number are listed with check marks.
If there is no check mark, tap on your Phone Number to activate iMessage for your Phone Number. If Apple ID is not listed, tap on Use your Apple ID for iMessage and sign in to your Apple ID.
Sign Out of iMessage and Sign Back In
Go to Settings > Messages > Send & Receive > on the next screen, scroll down and tap on your Apple ID.
On the pop-up, select the Sign Out option. After 30 seconds, sign back into iMessage using your Apple ID.
Reset iMessage Region
Go to Settings > Messages > Send & Receive > on the next screen tap on your Apple ID link.
On the pop-up, tap on Change Location > Region > select Current Region and tap on Save.
Check for software updates
Sometimes, the problem is due to a software update waiting to be installed on your iPhone.
Go to Settings > General > Software Update.
On the next screen, tap on Download to Install updates on your iPhone (if available).
Turn OFF WiFi Assist
The WiFi Assist feature on iPhone is known to cause connectivity problems. Hence, go to Settings > Cellular > disable WiFi Assist by moving the toggle to the OFF position.
After disabling WiFi assist, reconnect to the WiFi network and see if WiFi is now working on your iPhone.
Reset network settings
Make a note of the WiFi network’s password, then follow the steps to reset the network settings on your iPhone to factory defaults.
Go to Settings > General > Reset > select Reset Network Settings options.
On the pop-up, tap on Reset Network Settings to confirm. After iPhone restarts, join your WiFi Network and see if you are able to Sign-in to iMessage.
Delete old mail
Sometimes, stuck or corrupted messages or message threads can cause problems with iMessage. Users reported fixing iMessage issues by simply deleting the last iMessage received before the issue started.
More: How to hide text messages on iPhone.
