Turn off read receipts in Settings on any Apple device
Read receipts on iMessage let the person you're texting know exactly when you've opened their message. To turn them off, open Settings, tap Messages, scroll down to Send Read Receipts, and toggle it off. The switch will turn gray when it's disabled. After you do this, people won't see "Delivered" change to "Read" when you open their messages.
This setting works the same way on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. On a Mac, go to System Settings (or System Preferences on older versions), click General, then Messages, and uncheck Send read receipts. Once you turn it off on one device, the setting syncs across all your Apple devices that use the same iCloud account.
Turning off read receipts is permanent until you turn them back on. You won't send read receipts to anyone, and there's no way to send them selectively to some people but not others through this setting.
Key Takeaways
- Read receipts are turned off through Settings > Messages > Send Read Receipts on iPhone and iPad, or System Settings > Messages on Mac.
- When you disable read receipts, senders will see "Delivered" but never "Read," even if you open their messages immediately.
- The setting applies to all your conversations at once — you cannot turn off read receipts for specific people.
- Your iCloud account syncs this setting across all your Apple devices, so you only need to change it once.
What read receipts show the other person
When read receipts are on, the person texting you sees two different states for each message. First, the message shows Delivered once it reaches Apple's servers. Then, the moment you open the iMessage thread and see their message, it changes to Read with a timestamp showing exactly when you looked at it.
If you have read receipts turned off, the sender only ever sees Delivered. They have no way to know whether you've read the message, opened the app, or even looked at your phone. From their perspective, the message reached you, but nothing more.
Why you might want to turn them off
Read receipts create pressure to respond quickly. Once someone sees you've read their message, they know you saw it and may expect a reply right away. Turning them off gives you the freedom to read messages at your own pace without signaling that you're available.
Some people turn off read receipts to maintain privacy or to avoid awkward situations — like when you read a message but need time to think before responding, or when you're busy and can't reply immediately. Others simply prefer not to broadcast their activity to everyone they text with.
How to check if someone else has read receipts on
You can see whether someone has read receipts enabled by sending them a message and watching what happens. If you see the message change from Delivered to Read with a timestamp, they have read receipts turned on. If it stays on Delivered indefinitely, they either have read receipts off or haven't opened the message yet.
There's no way to know for certain whether they've disabled read receipts or simply haven't read the message. The only way to find out is to ask them directly.
Read receipts only work in iMessage, not SMS
Read receipts only function when you're sending messages through iMessage — Apple's encrypted messaging service that works between Apple devices over data or Wi-Fi. If you send a regular text message (SMS) to someone with an Android phone or to an iPhone user who doesn't have iMessage enabled, read receipts won't work at all, regardless of your settings.
You can tell whether a message is being sent as iMessage or SMS by looking at the color of the message bubble. iMessage bubbles are blue, while SMS messages are green. Read receipts only apply to the blue bubbles.
Turning read receipts back on if you change your mind
If you decide you want read receipts on again, the process is identical to turning them off. Go to Settings > Messages on iPhone or iPad, find Send Read Receipts, and toggle it back on. The switch will turn green. On Mac, go to System Settings > Messages and check the Send read receipts box.
Once you turn it back on, people will immediately start seeing when you read their messages again. There's no delay or catch-up period — the setting takes effect right away.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I turn off read receipts for just one person?
No. The read receipts setting in iMessage is all-or-nothing. When you turn it off, nobody sees when you read their messages. There's no way to hide read receipts from some contacts while showing them to others through the standard settings.
If I turn off read receipts, will old messages show as read?
No. Messages you've already read will still show as read to the sender. Turning off read receipts only affects messages you receive after you disable the setting. Past conversations won't change.
Do read receipts work in group chats?
Yes. In a group iMessage conversation, everyone with read receipts enabled will see when each person reads the message. If you turn off read receipts, the group won't see when you read messages, but they'll still see when other members do.
What if someone has read receipts off but I have them on?
You'll still see "Delivered" for their messages, but you won't see "Read" because they have the feature disabled. Your read receipts being on doesn't affect whether you can see theirs — it only controls what you send to others.