12.06.24
An enhanced type of text messaging can unlock extra features for your chats. You may have heard of RCS messaging, seen it in your phone’s settings or perhaps even noticed an RCS label on a text you’ve sent or received.
Here’s what you need to know about the latest form of messaging.
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What is RCS messaging?
Texting has come a long way since its invention more than 30 years ago. It started as short, text-only SMS messages then evolved into MMS, which added the ability to send emoji and multimedia files.
Rich Communication Services, or RCS, rebuilds the idea of texting and is, well, rich in extra features:
You can send high-resolution photos, videos and audio; media files can be up to 100MB.
Read receipts and typing indicators let you know when your message has been seen and when someone’s working on a reply.
If you want to respond quickly, you can do a “tapback response” to react with an emoji to a message.
Group chats can be larger than with MMS, up to 100 participants.
Business-friendly options such as custom branding, analytics, and the ability to include files like maps or tickets.
Google has a longer history with RCS messaging than Apple, so it has slightly better functionality for phones using Google Message. Apple viewed RCS as a competitor to its iMessages approach and only enabled it for iPhones in late 2024, but now iPhones and Androids can participate in RCS chats together.
How does RCS messaging work?
RCS messages depend on an internet connection, so you need to be on Wi-Fi or have a phone plan with data. To carry on a conversation with RCS, you need these elements:
Your phone must support RCS: Androids on 5.0 or later and iPhones on iOS 18 or later are RCS compatible, as are most Pixel phones.
Your phone carrier may need to support it, too, unless you’re using Google Message. The Big 3 networks (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon) all do, as do many of the MVNOs.
You need to be somewhere RCS is available. It's not yet in all regions of the U.S.
You may need to enable RCS messaging on your phone. The recipient or recipients (everyone in the chat) need to have RCS messaging enabled on their phones, too.
On an Android: Go to Google Messages, tap your profile picture, then tap Message settings. Select RCS chats and enable.
On an iPhone: Open Settings -> Apps -> Messages. Under Text Messaging, tap on RCS Messaging and toggle it on.
If a recipient doesn’t have RCS or there are connectivity issues, messages will simply revert to SMS or MMS.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of RCS messaging?
RCS messaging adds a lot of functionality but also brings some drawbacks. The most notable one is encryption. RCS messages between Google Message users are end-to-end encrypted but iPhone RCS messages are not; instead, iPhone users must use iMessage to get that level of encryption. And messages between iPhones and Androids are not encrypted.
Pros of RCS messaging
Cons of RCS messaging
- High-quality sharing of images, video and audio
- File size up to 100MB
- Interactivity (typing indicator, quick tapback response, read receipts)
- Enhanced group chatting and larger groups
- End-to-end encrypted between Google Message users
- High-quality sharing of images, video and audio
- File size up to 100MB
- Interactivity (typing indicator, quick tapback response, read receipts)
- Enhanced group chatting, and larger groups
- End-to-end encrypted between Google Message users
Read more: What is a GB, and how many MB in a GB?
Is RCS messaging safe?
As mentioned above, the contents of RCS messages may or may not be end-to-end encrypted, depending on what platform and device is being used. Best practices if you’re worried about privacy of your message content include:
Avoid sharing sensitive material, like financial info, over RCS.
To ensure encryption, Android users could limit themselves to communicating with other Google Message users, and iPhone users could stick to iMessage.
Consider using a platform that emphasizes security instead, such as Signal or WhatsApp.
In addition, RCS can transmit sensitive metadata you’d rather not share: IP address, phone number, device info. That’s true even when the message content is end-to-end encrypted: RCS uses carrier networks, so it needs to identify you and your device to allow access. Again, if this gives you pause, you might want to use an alternative texting app like Signal, which has metadata protection software called Sealed Sender.
How do I change from RCS to SMS?
If you decide you’d rather not use RCS, you can toggle it off using the path you used to enable it. A few things happen if you turn off RCS messaging:
You’ll be removed from group RCS chats.
You’ll lose access to interactive features like read receipts, typing indicators and tapback reactions.
Media you send via text (photos, videos, audio) may have lower quality for the recipient, and the maximum file size drops from 100MB to 5MB.
Messages will be sent over the cellular network, not Wi-Fi or data.
Messages will not be encrypted unless you use an app like Signal or WhatsApp or stick with iMessage.
Android users should turn off RCS before switching to a new phone to avoid verification difficulties.
