To turn off read receipts in iMessage, open the Settings app, go to Apps > Messages, and toggle off “Send Read Receipts.” On older iOS versions the same switch is at Settings > Messages. Once it’s off, the people you text no longer see a “Read” timestamp under their message — they only know it was delivered. You can also disable receipts for a single conversation, or in other apps like WhatsApp and Google Messages, each of which has its own toggle.
Turn off iMessage read receipts for everyone
- Open Settings.
- Tap Apps, then Messages. (If you don’t see an “Apps” section, scroll down and tap Messages directly.)
- Find Send Read Receipts and toggle it off (grey).
From now on, no one you iMessage sees when you’ve opened their message. This only affects iMessage (blue bubbles) — plain SMS texts (green bubbles) never had read receipts anyway.
Turn them off for just one person
Maybe you want receipts on generally but off for one chat, or the reverse. iMessage lets you override the global setting per contact:
- Open the conversation with that person.
- Tap their name or photo at the top of the screen.
- Toggle Send Read Receipts to your preference for that contact.
The per-conversation switch wins, so you can leave the main setting on and quietly turn it off for select people, or leave it off and turn it on for someone you always reply to quickly.
WhatsApp calls them the “blue ticks,” and the setting is mutual — turning yours off also hides everyone else’s from you:
- Open WhatsApp and go to Settings.
- Tap Privacy, then Read Receipts.
- Toggle it off.
Two caveats: read receipts always stay on in group chats regardless of this setting, and they always apply to voice messages (the microphone icon turns blue when heard) even with the toggle off.
Google Messages (RCS on Android)
Standard SMS has no read receipts, but RCS chats do. To switch them off:
- Open Google Messages and tap your profile icon (or the three-dot menu) > Messages settings.
- Tap RCS chats.
- Toggle Send read receipts off.
Facebook Messenger and Instagram
Not every app lets you hide read receipts. Facebook Messenger and Instagram direct messages both show a small version of your profile photo under a message once you’ve seen it, and neither app offers a setting to switch that off. The only workarounds are indirect — reading a message from the notification shade or a lock-screen preview without opening the app, which doesn’t mark it seen. Treat those two platforms as “receipts always on.”
Group chats and broadcasts
Group behavior varies by app. In iMessage, your per-person and global settings still apply inside group threads. In WhatsApp, group read receipts are always on and can’t be disabled, so any member can tap a message’s Info to see exactly who has read it, regardless of your privacy setting. If group visibility matters to you, that WhatsApp exception is worth keeping in mind.
Why the Messages setting moved
If you turned this off in the past and can’t find it now, you’re not imagining things. Recent iOS versions introduced an Apps section in Settings and moved each built-in app’s controls — Messages, Safari, Photos — underneath it. The toggle itself is unchanged; only its location moved, from the main Settings list into Settings > Apps > Messages. It’s worth trying both paths depending on which iOS version you’re on.
Does turning receipts off affect delivery?
No. Read receipts are purely a courtesy signal to the sender. Switching them off doesn’t stop messages from arriving, delay them, or change your notifications — you still get every message instantly. It only removes the “Read” line the sender would otherwise see, and it doesn’t touch typing indicators or your ability to react and reply as normal.
On Mac and iPad
Because iMessage syncs across your Apple devices, the read-receipt setting can differ from one device to the next. On a Mac, open Messages > Settings and toggle “Send read receipts”; on iPad it mirrors the iPhone at Settings > Apps > Messages. If receipts seem to keep sending after you switch them off on your phone, check that another signed-in device doesn’t still have them turned on.
What senders see once receipts are off
Turning receipts off doesn’t hide that a message arrived — it only removes the “Read” timestamp. Here’s the practical difference in iMessage:
- Receipts on: the sender sees “Delivered,” then “Read 9:41 AM” the moment you open it.
- Receipts off: the sender sees only “Delivered.” They can’t tell whether you’ve read it.
Typing indicators (the “…” bubble) are separate and still appear while you’re actively composing a reply, so if you start typing, the other person may notice.
A quick note on etiquette and privacy
Read receipts are a two-way convenience: they reassure senders their message landed, but they can create pressure to reply instantly. Turning them off is entirely reasonable and completely invisible to others — no one is notified that you disabled them. If you’re tightening up privacy across your phone generally, it goes well with controlling who’s on your Wi-Fi and managing where your email goes. Small settings, but they add up to a calmer, more private phone.
