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Send and receive text messages on iPad

Use the Messages app to send and receive texts, photos, videos, and audio messages. You can also personalize your messages with animated effects, Memoji stickers, iMessage apps, and more.

The Messages list on the left and a conversation on the right.

Send a message

You can send a text message to one or more people.

Tap at the top of the screen to start a new message, or tap an existing message.
Enter the phone number, contact name, or Apple ID of each recipient. Or, tap , then choose contacts.
Tap the text field, type your message, then tap to send.
- A blue send button indicates the message will be sent with iMessage; a green send button indicates the message will be sent with SMS/MMS, or your cellular service.
- An alert appears if a message can’t be sent. Tap the alert to try sending the message again.

Tip: To see what time a message was sent or received, drag the message bubble to the left.

To view conversation details, tap the name or phone number at the top of the screen. You can tap the contact to edit the contact card, share your location, view attachments, leave a group conversation, and more.

Reply to a message

Siri: Say something like:

“Send a message to Eliza saying how about tomorrow”
“Read my last message from Bob”
“Reply that’s great news”

Learn how to ask Siri

Tip: When you wear AirPods (2nd generation and later), AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max, or other supported headphones, Siri can read your incoming messages, and you can speak a reply for Siri to send. See Listen and respond to messages in the AirPods User Guide.

Or do the following:

In the Messages list, tap the conversation that you want to reply to.
To search for contacts and content in conversations, pull down the Messages list and enter what you’re looking for in the search field. Or, choose from the suggested contacts, links, photos, and more.
Tap the text field, then type your message.
Tip: To replace text with emoji, tap or , then tap each highlighted word.
Tap to send your message.

You can quickly reply to messages with a Tapback expression (for example, a thumbs-up or a heart). Double-tap the message bubble that you want to respond to, then select a Tapback. You can also reply to a specific message in a conversation. See Reply to a specific message in a group message.

Pin a conversation

You can pin specific conversations to the top of the Messages list so the people you contact most always come first in the list.

Do any of the following:

Swipe right on a conversation, then tap .
Touch and hold a conversation, then drag it to the top of the list.

Unpin a conversation

You can unpin specific conversations at the top of the Messages list.

Do any of the following:

Touch and hold a conversation, then drag the message to the bottom of the list.
Touch and hold a conversation, then tap .

Share your name and photo

In Messages, you can share your name and photo when you start or respond to a new message. Your photo can be a Memoji or custom image. When you open Messages for the first time, follow the instructions on your iPad to choose your name and photo.

To change your name, photo, or sharing options, open Messages, tap , tap Edit Name and Photo, then do any of the following:

Change your profile image: Tap Edit, then choose an option.
Change your name: Tap the text fields where your name appears.
Turn sharing on or off: Tap the button next to Name and Photo Sharing (green indicates that it’s on).
Change who can see your profile: Tap an option below Share Automatically (Name and Photo Sharing must be turned on).

Your Messages name and photo can also be used for your Apple ID and My Card in Contacts.

Switch from a Messages conversation to a FaceTime audio or video call

In a Messages conversation, you can start a FaceTime audio or video call with the person you’re chatting with.

In a Messages conversation, tap .
Tap FaceTime audio or FaceTime video.

Send a message to a business

Some businesses allow you to communicate with them directly, to ask questions, resolve issues, get advice on what to buy, make purchases with Apple Pay, and more.

Search for the business you want to chat with using Maps, Safari, Search, or Siri.
Start a conversation by tapping a chat link in the search results.
The appearance of the chat link varies—it could be a button, a text link, or the company logo.
You can also start a chat with some businesses from their website or their app. See the Apple Support article How to use Messages for Business.

Note: Messages sent to participating businesses appear in dark gray, to distinguish them from messages sent using iMessage (in blue) and SMS/MMS messages (in green).

Helpful?

iPad User Guide