How to Disable and Deactivate iMessage on iPhone or iPad
Apple’s iMessage is one of the most popular messaging platforms around, and it’s a great way for Apple to lock people into its ecosystem. As great as iMessage is, there may still be times you need to disable or complete deactivate it.
Some of those times may be down to good old-fashioned troubleshooting (or perhaps you really did make the jump to Android) Whatever your reasons, you will not only need to turn iMessage off on your iPhone or iPad but potentially tell Apple to remove your number from iMessage on the server-side, too.
Sounds scary, doesn’t it? Don’t worry, we’re here to help.
How to Disable iMessage on Your iPhone or iPad
Disabling iMessage on your iPhone or iPad is often the first step to take if you’re having issues with sending or receiving messages. A simple toggle off and then back on can often wake iMessage up, and while we might not like to admit it, the age-old suggestion of turning something off and then back on again does work more often than not.
To disable iMessage, head into the Settings app and tap “Messages.”
Complete the process of turning iMessage off by flicking the switch. If you do need to turn it back on, here’s where you would do that too.
