What is RCS and why is it showing on my iPhone?

RCS, or Rich Communication Service, is a new standard of text messaging that Apple has adopted for text messages between mobile phones as part of the iOS 18 update.

It is a replacement for the SMS/MMS standard that has existed for phones since the early 2000s.While RCS is new for Apple iOS devices, it has been available on Android devices since 2018.

What is the difference between RCS and SMS?

While the text message part is mostly the same, RCS adds additional features that SMS does not have:

• Typing Indicators (i.e. the three dots that shows the other person is typing.)
• Customizable Group Names for text chains that include multiple people
• Text message emoji reactions
• Better Image, Video, and Audio sharing via text

You still may see SMS on some text message threads. Both the phone provider and the service carrier need to support it, so there are a few combinations that do not fully support it yet. Your phone will automatically enable RCS for phones that support it, so there is nothing extra you need to do to ensure your messages are working with all phones.

What is the difference between RCS and iMessage?

iMessage is a completely different standard that only works between Apple devices, and other phone types (like Android) still are unable to receive iMessages.

The easiest way to tell if your iPhone is using iMessage or RCS is the text bubble color:

• Blue Bubbles: You are sending an iMessage
• Green Bubbles: You are sending an RCS Message

While you won't notice much of a difference between the two types, keep in mind that RCS is not encrypted by default, while iMessages are. Meaning that the contents of your messages, if intercepted by an attacker, can be read. So, make sure to keep sensitive information and IDs off of RCS messages.

What if I don't want to use it?

You may not be able to fully stay off of RCS, depending on your phone type and provider; however, you can deactivate certain features of it that you don't like. For example, Typing Indicators (the three dots showing you're writing a message) and Read Receipts (badges next to messages that show the sender that you've read them) are optional and can be disabled within the settings for your phone's text messaging app.

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Andrew Murray

Andrew is the CEO of WUMU LLC, and the Key Forge Product Champion.