How To Mark a Message as Unread in iMessage

Sometimes, we read a text message and can’t respond there and then. Marking a message as “Unread” can be used as a reminder to respond to that message at some point. Right now, iOS doesn’t allow you to mark read text messages as “Unread.” But there is a workaround.

Read on to learn how to mark a text you’ve read as “Unread.” Plus, discover another way to remind yourself to respond to a text later and how to prevent a sent message from being delivered.

How to Mark an iMessage as Unread on an iPhone

You could mark a read text message as “Unread” by resending it to yourself and leaving it unread. Here’s how to do that from your iPhone:

1. Long-press the text message you want to mark as unread.
   
2. A menu will pop up. Choose “More.”
   
3. At the bottom-right of the screen, tap the “Forward” or arrow icon. Forward the message to your number and send it. You’ll now have a copy of that message showing as “Unread.”
   

How to Mark an iMessage as Unread on an iPad

To get a read text message to show as “Unread,” you could forward the text to yourself. Follow these steps to do that using your iPad:

1. Press and hold the text message you want to mark as unread.
   
2. When a menu pops up, select “More.”
   
3. Tap the “Forward” or arrow icon at the bottom-right of the screen. Forward the message to your number, then send it. It will arrive in your messages and show as “Unread.”
   

How to Mark an iMessage as Unread on a Mac

To get a text message you’ve previously read to show as “Unread,” you can create a copy of the message by forwarding it to yourself. Here’s how to resend the text to yourself from your Mac:

1. Launch the iMessage app.
   
2. Click on the message to select it. 
   
3. Right click on the message, click “forward.”
   
4. Then enter your number to resend the message to yourself. 
   
5. You’ll now have a copy of the message displaying as “Unread.”
   

How to Pin Messages

Another way to remind yourself to respond to a message later is by pinning it. Your pinned conversations will be moved to the top of the iMessage app with the contact’s picture displayed if one is available. Here’s how to pin an iMessage:

1. Go to the message you want to respond to later.
   
2. Swipe right on the text and select the “Pin” icon. The message will automatically be pinned to the top.
   .

Alternatively:

1. Tap the “Edit” or “More” menu icon.
   
2. Choose “Edit Pins,” and yellow pins will display to the right of your conversations.
   
3. Tap the yellow pin next to the conversation you wish to pin.
   
4. Tap “Done.”
   

Un-Reading Your Read Messages

Once you’ve read a message, there’s no way to mark it as “Unread” in iMessage, but there are some workarounds. If you want to remind yourself that you need to respond to a text at some point, you can resend it to yourself and leave it unopened. Alternatively, you can pin the message so the contact icon displays at the top.

Other than resending a text message to yourself, what other methods do you use to remind yourself to respond? Share your ideas in the comments section below.