How to Tell If Someone Read Your Text on iPhone & Android

Nowadays, text messaging is the easiest and fastest way to connect with friends and family and this is mainly due to the increasing popularity of social media. Unlike SMS messages and mails, social media apps actually let you know when your messages have been delivered and when the receiver reads them. However, sometimes, you may not know if someone has read your messages or not for some reason.

If you’re wondering how to tell if someone has read your messages, this guide puts you through the various methods you can use to know if someone has read your texts or not.

Part 1. How to Tell If Someone Read Your Text on iPhone

iMessage Read Receipts

iPhone’s iMessage is an instant messaging app which allows you to send texts, photos and videos to fellow iPhone users. It is the default messaging app for iPhones. It has a read receipt feature that allows you to know if someone has read your messages or not, but if you have not been able to see this and you’re wondering why, it’s probably because you have not put your read receipts on. To turn on read receipts on iPhone, follow these steps:

Step 1. Go to Settings on your iPhone.

Step 2. Click on Messages.

Step 3. Toggle on Read receipts.

After doing this, other people can see that you have read their messages and if they also have their ‘read receipts’ on, you’ll be notified when they have read your messages. To check if your messages have been read on iMessage, you simply have to open the message and you’ll see a ‘read’ text under it if it has been read by the recipient.

Troubleshooting: What to do if read receipts aren't working.

If your iMessage read receipts aren’t working it could be because of various reasons such as internet connection and network settings. It could also be because the recipient doesn’t have their own read receipts on. If your read receipts are not working, you can check and ensure you have a stable internet connection. Alternatively, you can also reset your network settings or restart your device.

Part 2. How to Tell If Someone Read Your Text on Android

Native Android Messaging Apps

Android phones don’t come with the iMessage app, but with their own peculiar messaging apps and you can also find out if your messages have been read on these regardless of the brand you’re using.

Overview of SMS vs. RCS (Rich Communication Services)

SMS stands for Short Message Service. It is the traditional means of sending messages on mobile phones and its use was more prominent before social media apps took over. Just like the name implies, SMS allows you to send short text messages to another person through your mobile phone. However, it is limited to just texts unlike iMessages and it also has no way to tell if your messages have been read or not.

RCS(Rich Communication Services) on the other hand, is an upgrade on SMS messages and it allows you to send pictures, videos as well as text messages. It also has the read receipts feature which allows you to know if someone has read your messages. Google Messages is the default messaging app for most android phones now and it makes use of RCS to give users a better texting experience.

Steps to enable read receipts on Android:

Step 1. Open the Messages or Google Messages app on your phone.

Step 2. Click on the menu button on the top right corner of the screen.

Step 3. Select ‘message settings’.

Step 4. Select ‘General’.

Step 5. Click on ‘RCS Chats’.

Step 6. Toggle on ‘Send read receipts’.

After doing this, you can see if someone has read your text messages on your android phone.

How to check if your message was read on Android:

To check if your messages have been read on your android phone, follow these steps:

Step 1. Open Messages.

Step 2. Find the conversation you want to read and open it.

Step 3. If the check marks under your message are blue, then they have been read.

Part 3. How to Tell If Someone Read Your Text on Social Media

Finding out if someone has read your texts on social media is quite easy because most social media apps have the read receipts feature and it’s always on unless a user has turned it off.

WhatsApp Read Receipts

You can easily tell if someone has read your messages on whatsapp through the read receipts feature. The read receipts feature on WhatsApp is indicated by three checkmarks; a single tick indicates that your message has been sent, double tick means your message has been delivered and the blue double tick shows that your message has been read. However, it’s important to know that you have to put your own read receipts on to know if someone has read your own messages. To put your read receipts on on WhatsApp, follow these steps:

Step 1. Open WhatsApp.

Step 2. Click on the menu button on the top right corner of the screen and go to settings.

Step 3. Select ‘Privacy’.

Step 4. Toggle on ‘Read receipts’.

Facebook Messenger Read Receipts

The Facebook messenger app comes with a different way to signal if your messages have been read or not. It uses a symbol to indicate when a message has been sent, delivered, and also when it has been read. When your message is still sending, it is indicated by a blue circle; when it has been sent, it is indicated by a blue circle marked with a tick; when it has been delivered, the circle is filled with blue and marked with a white tick and when your message has been read, it becomes a micro version of the recipient’s profile picture.

Instagram Read Receipts

Instagram read receipts feature lets you know when your followers have read your messages by indicating the status of the message right below it. When your message shows ‘delivered’ it means it has been sent to the other person, but they have not read it while ‘seen’ means your recipient had read the message.

TikTok Read Receipts

To turn on read receipts on Tiktok, follow these steps:

Step 1. Open Tiktok app.

Step 2. Click ‘profile’ on the bottom corner of the screen.

Step 3. Click on the menu button on the top right corner of the screen.

Step 4. Select privacy and click on direct messages.

Step 5. Toggle on ‘Read Status’.

This will allow you to know if someone has read your text on Tiktok. However, their read status also has to be on for this to work.

Signal Read Receipts

Just like Messenger, Facebook and others, Signal is an instant messaging app which allows you to send texts, videos and pictures to your friends. Signal lets you know if your text has been read by showing two grey overlapping circle icons with white ticks in the middle right under the message.

Tinder Read Receipts

On a dating app like Tinder, you’ll probably want to know if someone has read your messages or if they have decided to ghost you. Tinder has a read receipt feature, but you have to pay for it if you really want to know if your messages are being read. You can buy this feature from Tinder’s online store and you can only use it for a single chat. It indicates if your text had been read through a blue circle with two white ticks.

LinkedIn Read Receipts

LinkedIn has the read receipts feature available for all users and this makes sense since it’s a professional app. It lets you and potential clients get your conversations going quickly. LinkedIn lets you know your message has been seen by clearly showing ‘read’ below your text.

Part 4. Bonus: How to Read Someone's Text on iPhone & Android without Them Knowing

If you’re wondering if it’s possible to read texts on another person’s phone without their knowledge, the answer is yes. You can read other people’s text through the use of third party spy apps such as Msafely.

4.1. What is Msafely

Msafely is a versatile spy app that allows you to perform various tasks relating to spying and monitoring from your own device. It comes with many advanced features such as call tracking, SMS tracking and Geofencing.

4.2. Key features of Msafely

•  It can be used to monitor email accounts.
•  Msafely can track calls whether incoming or outgoing.
•  It can be used to spy on social media accounts such as Twitter, WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram.
•  Msafely can monitor all browsing activities on browsers like Safari and Chrome.
•  It can be used to monitor the movements of friends and family through its GPS tracking feature.
•  It comes with a stealth mode feature that allows you to monitor any activity secretly.

4.3. Steps to use Msafely to read someone's text on iPhone & Android secretly

Step 1. Go to the Msafely website and register for a free account with a valid email address.

Step 2. Choose the type of device you want to monitor (Android or iPhone).

Step 3. Now you can start to monitor someone's phone. Msafely not only helps you view text messages on someone else's phone, but it can also track their location, access their contacts, and check social media chats.

Part 5. FAQs about How to Tell If Someone Read Your Text

Q1. Can I see if someone has read my email?

Unfortunately, emails don’t indicate when they have been read, so you can’t see if someone has read your email.

Q2. Can I know if someone has read my text on WhatsApp with read receipts off?

No. You can’t know if someone has your texts on WhatsApp if you don’t put your read receipts on.

Q3. Can I turn off read receipts on iMessage?

Yes. You can turn off iMessage read receipts in your phone settings.

Q4. How can I stop someone from knowing I have read their text on WhatsApp?

If you don’t want someone to know you have read their text on WhatsApp, you can go to privacy settings on your WhatsApp and put off read receipts.

Q5. Can I know if someone has read my messages on Instagram?

Yes. Instagram lets its users know when their messages have been read.

Part 6. Conclusion

It could be painful when someone leaves you hanging and you don’t know whether they have gotten your messages or not, but having your read receipts on gives you the chance to know whether you’re being aired or not. This guide highlights the various ways you can find out if someone has read your text on Android and iPhone across various apps.