5 must-know tips & hacks for iPhone messaging

text messages make it simple to share birthday greetings, coordinate weekend activities, send images, and more. However, this deceptively simple program is jam-packed with capabilities that can help it reach its full potential. Are you looking for a way to ban text messages on your iPhone®? Are you looking for a way to hide text messages? Do you want to keep spammers at bay?

NOTE: These steps are for iPhones running iOS® 15 unless otherwise indicated.

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1. How to block messages on iPhone

o block messages from a specific person or phone number, follow these steps:

1. Open the Messages conversation with the person or number you want to block.
2. Tap the name or number at the top, then tap info.
3. Scroll down and tap Block this Caller > Block Contact. They won’t know that you’ve blocked them.

After you’ve blocked a contact or phone number, any messages sent or received won’t be delivered. And while someone you’ve blocked can still leave a voicemail, you won’t receive a notification.

To manage your list of blocked contacts and numbers, go to Settings > Messages > Blocked Contacts.

2. How to search messages on your iPhone

Here are two ways to search your iPhone messages.

THE MESSAGES APP

1. Open Messages, then pull down the screen so you can see the Search bar up top.
2. Type the name or keyword you’re looking for.
3. Relevant threads will show up. Tap one of those conversations to read it, or tap See All in the upper-right corner to view a full list of related conversations.

IPHONE SEARCH

1. Go to the Home screen and swipe down from the middle.
2. Tap the Search field, then enter the name or keyword you’re looking for. Search results will update in real time.
3. To see more results, tap Show More Results. You can also search directly in an app by scrolling down and tapping Search in App.
4. Tap a search result to open it.

3. HOW TO UNPIN A CONVERSATION ON YOUR IPHONE

There are two ways to remove pinned conversations at the top of your Messages list.

1. Touch and hold a conversation, then drag it into your list of conversations.
2. Touch and hold a conversation, then tap the Unpin icon (a tack with a line through it).

4. How to attach a file in iPhone Messages

1. Touch and hold the file you want to send.
2. Tap Share.
   You can send a smaller version of the file by tapping Compress instead. Then simply touch and hold the compressed version (called a zip file) and tap Share.
3. Select Messages, then type the name of the contact you are sending it to, and tap Send.

5. How to change your profile picture and name in iPhone Messages

1. Open your Messages app, then tap Edit in the upper-left corner.
2. Choose Edit Name and Photo.
3. Edit your name. You can also tap the image circle to choose an image, photo, emoji, or Memoji™.
4. Tap Done.

You can share your name and photo with anyone using iPhone Messages, but first you’ll have to confirm that you want to share when sending or replying to a new message. To turn sharing on—or off—repeat steps 1–2, then tap to turn Name and Photo Sharing on or off.