Turn read receipts on or off in Messages on iPhone (2024)

FAQs

Turn read receipts on or off in Messages on iPhone? ›

'Disabling read-receipts helps create healthy boundaries between ourselves and those who communicate with us on these platforms, while also allowing us more distance from potentially toxic conversations and people who may make us feel obligated into responding – even though we don't really want to,' he says.

'Disabling read-receipts helps create healthy boundaries between ourselves and those who communicate with us on these platforms, while also allowing us more distance from potentially toxic conversations and people who may make us feel obligated into responding – even though we don't really want to,' he says.

On an iPhone, Apple's Messages app lets you know if your recipient has read your message — but the sender and recipient must be using iMessages on an iPhone or iPad, too, and have read receipts enabled. To turn this on, open Settings, tap Messages and enable Send Read Receipts by flipping the switch so it is green.

To turn off read receipts in Messages by Google on your Android, tap your profile in the Messages app, go to "Message Settings" > "RCS chats," and tap the switch. Turn off read receipts in Samsung Messages by tapping the three-dot menu icon, going to "Settings" > "Advanced Messaging," and tapping the switch.

Disable All Read Receipts With Exceptions

First, go to Settings > Messages on your iPhone or iPad and turn off Send Read Receipts. At the next screen, turn on Send Read Receipts.

If you don't want people to know that when you read their messages, turn off read receipts on your iPhone or Android.

Read receipts help set boundaries around a conversation. If you've read it, it can be assumed that if the text requires a response, it'll be coming shortly. Peter Nguyen, a personal stylist based in New York, loves read receipts for this reason. They train him to respond, he says.

One behavioral scientist noted in an interview that the use of read receipts often leads to feelings of rejection because, “When you see the instantaneous acknowledgment that a message has been received, it triggers your assumption that someone should respond just as quickly.”

Note: For you to find out when others have read your message, they must also turn on read receipts in their settings. Now, when you send a message to another Android user who has RCS messaging enabled, you will see a status below your message, such as “Delivered” or “Read.”

When read receipts are turned on and you open a conversation, the sender sees the word “Read” on their device (below their messages to you). Otherwise, senders see “Delivered.” You can turn on read receipts for everyone or for individual contacts.

How to know if someone turned off read receipts? ›

If you don't see two blue check marks, a blue microphone, or Opened next to your sent message or voice message: You or your recipient might have disabled read receipts in the privacy settings.

Begin by finding the conversation you want to read in the Messages app. Then, long-press on the conversation thread until a preview of the message appears. Unless the message is really long, you should be able to read the entire text without triggering read receipts using Haptic or 3D Touch.

People use it as a weapon as, like, Okay, I have my rubber seats on, but when I want to not talk to a person, I'll turn them off. Or I have my red receipts off, and when I want to. This person to know I read it and didn't want to reply, I'll turn it on real quick.

You can't see who's viewed your status if you've turned off read receipts. If you view someone's status with read receipts turned off, they can't see you've viewed it. If a contact disabled read receipts, you won't be able to see their view on your status.

Swipe right on a conversation to mark it as unread.

If you have read a text and a Read Receipt has been sent (you'll see the status just below the latest text within the conversation), marking the text doesn't change what the person you're talking to sees. They still get the Read Receipt. Marking as unread only changes the status of the message on your iPhone.