How to fix iPhone Not Sending Text Messages after iOS 18 update

If your iPhone won’t send text messages after iOS 18 update, these troubleshooting tips and fixes will get you back to texting fast.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• To fix an iPhone that won’t send text messages on iOS 18, first try restarting it or checking for updates.
• Check if you’ve been blocked by the recipient, or if your carrier is having network issues.
• You should also make sure your SIM card is installed properly.

Many people depend on the Messages app as their main form of communication, so not able to send SMS messages might means you won’t be able to communicate partners, friends, or family. Below, we’ll go through all the solutions you should try when your iPhone isn’t sending SMS after iOS 18 update

Why is my iPhone suddenly not sending text messages after iOS 18 update

If you are having trouble sending texts on your iPhone after upgrading to the latest iOS 18 update, it could be that something is wrong with your phone, the recipient, or the mobile service provider.

Fortunately, fixing the problem is usually pretty easy.

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h2>How to fix an iPhone not sending text messages after iOS 18 update/h2>

There are a variety of potential solutions here, and it may be hard to gauge which one will actually address your situation. If that’s the case, try going through these steps one-by-one — chances are you’ll eventually come across something that works for you.

1. Try improving your connection quality

The first thing you should do is ensure that you have a decent signal — without network connectivity, you might not be able to send texts until a stable connection returns. The status bar on your iPhone is usually a good enough indicator — if cellular is down to a single bar, “SOS only,” or “no service” for example, you may need to walk or travel until you find a place with two bars or better. Usually at least the texts should go through with a single bar.

If the signal is good and the messages still aren’t going through, move on to the next troubleshooting step.

2. Restart The Messages App

If your iPhone can’t send text messages in iOS 18 first try restarting the Messages app. On many occasions, I have managed to fix issues related to messages by closing and reopening the Messages app. So, you should give this nifty troubleshooting tip a chance.

• If your iPhone has a Home Button: Double-press the Home button -> Find Messages in the app switcher and swipe it up.
• On iPhone without the Home Button: Swipe up from the bottom of the screen to access the App Switcher -> swipe left/right to find Messages and swipe it up.
• Now, launch Messages and try sending texts again.

3. Check that both Send as SMS and MMS Messaging are enabled

While these are usually set up automatically on iPhone, the wrong settings will cause texts to fail.

1. Open the Settings app and tap Apps.
2. Scroll down and tap Messages.
3. Make sure Send as SMS and MMS Messaging are toggled on.

4. Restart your iPhone

Restarting your iPhone may potentially solve caching issues or stuck processes. So, it would be wise to give soft reset a chance to show its magic as well.

• To restart iPhone with a Face ID including iPhone 16: hold down the side button and one of the volume buttons until a set of sliders appear onscreen. Drag the Slide to power off slider all the way to the right. To turn your iPhone back on, hold down the side button until you see the Apple logo.
• To restart iPhone with a Home Button including iPhone SE (iPhone SE 3rd generation): hold down the power button until a set of sliders appear onscreen. Drag the Slide to power off slider all the way to the right. To turn your iPhone back on, hold down the power button until you see the Apple logo.

5. Check for iOS update

If the restart didn’t work, you should check if there is a pending iOS update.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap General.
3. Tap Software Update.
4. If an update is available, tap Update Now.

6. Check for carrier settings updates

These are rare, and you’ll normally be prompted to install them automatically, but if you’re missing one your cellular service may not work as intended, if at all.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap General.
3. Tap About, and if there’s an update, you should be prompted to install it within a minute or so. Wait at least a couple of minutes before bailing.

7. Check your SIM card

Next make sure that your iPhone’s SIM card is properly installed.

You can pop out the SIM tray using the SIM ejector tool that came with your iPhone or by unwinding a small paperclip pushing it into the tray’s eject hole.

If the card was physically out of place, that was likely the cause of the problem.

8. The recipient blocked your messages

If your text messages aren’t going through to a particular recipient, it could very well be that they have blocked your number. There’s no easy way to find out since you don’t get an alert when someone has done this. However, there are a few ways to check.

Try the following and keep an eye out for red flags of being blocked:

• Call the person: If your call goes to voicemail, it means they haven’t blocked you. However, if it tells you that the person you’re trying to call is unavailable, even after multiple calls at different times of the day, there’s a chance they may have blocked you.
• Text someone else: Try texting other people to see if they are receiving your messages. If they are going through to everyone else except this one person, then chances are, you have been blocked.

9. Your texts were flagged as spam

If too many people have reported your text messages as spam, which can happen if you’re using the number to text customers a lot, carriers could blacklist your number. That means every time you try to text a number belonging to those carriers, their spam filters will prevent your message from going out.

Depending on the severity of the spam reports, your number could be temporarily or permanently banned from texting.

10. Contact your carrier

Sometimes, if you’re unable to send a text message on iPhone, it could be that your mobile service provider is experiencing issues with their SMS service. Call them to find out if that is the case and when you can expect normal service to be restored so you can try sending the text messages again.

11. Reset your network settings

Resetting your network settings is a last-ditch attempt before seeking help from Apple, but it might be your last chance for getting those messages out.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap General.
3. Tap Transfer or Reset iPhone.
4. Select Reset.
5. Tap Reset Network Settings.

See also: 10 Fixes for an iPhone Not Receiving Text Messages