It is quite often when users don’t see a necessity to have iMessage enabled, as they mostly communicate with Android users on Windows ones. In this case, they want to disable this feature. Fortunately, it is quite easy to do that. Keep on reading.
How to turn off iMessages
iMessage is a perfect feature that has been provided by Apple to give its users an opportunity to communicate freely with each other using only an Internet connection. Moreover, it gives you an opportunity not only to have a great messenger but also to be able to send messages to iPads and Mac devices.
Of course, if you don’t see a necessity to keep iMessage enabled, you can turn the feature off and change it to WhatsApp or Telegram.
So, if you want to disable iMessage, you should keep on reading.
How to disable iMessage
Most of the time, iMessage isn’t a problem, as text messages to non-Apple users will send as standard SMS messages. However, if you’ve purchased a non-Apple phone, it can cause issues if you leave iMessage enabled.
If you want to turn off iMessage, you should follow the steps which would be mentioned in the section below:
How to disable iMessage on iPhone
It is important to remember that you should switch iMessage off before removing the SIM card from your iPhone.
- First of all, you should head to Settings.
- After that, you should click on Messages.

- To complete the process, you should toggle off iMessage.

The next step is to disable FaceTime on your iPhone. To do that, you should follow the steps which would be mentioned in the section below:
- First of all, you should head to Settings.
- After that, you should click on FaceTime.

- To complete the process, you should toggle off FaceTime.

If you have already removed the SIM card from your iPhone, you must follow a different set of steps. In this case, you must deregister iMessage using a tool on the Apple website. The tool is used to generate a confirmation code to deregister iMessage.
Apple will send this number to your new phone, which now uses the number once used on your iPhone. After you have filled in the generated code on the website, Apple will halt iMessage for your phone number. Apple’s messaging service will be switched off on your Apple Watch.
How to switch off iMessage on iPad
If you want to turn off iMessage on iPad, you would be required to switch iMessage and FaceTime off using the Settings app on your device. To do that, you should follow the steps which would be mentioned in the section below:
- First of all, you should head to Settings.
- After that, you should click on Messages.
- To complete the process, you should toggle off iMessage.
The next step is to disable FaceTime on your iPad. To do that, you should follow the steps which would be mentioned in the section below:
- First of all, you should head to Settings.
- After that, you should click on FaceTime.
- To complete the process, you should toggle off FaceTime.
How to switch off iMessage on Mac
If you want to switch off iMessage on Mac, you should follow the steps which would be mentioned in the section below:
- First of all, you should open iMessage.
- After that, you should click on Messages which can be found on the menu bar at the top left.

- Then, you should tap on Preferences.

- Next, you should click on iMessage.
- To complete the process, you should tap on Sign Out and, then, you should follow any additional prompts.

The next step is to disable FaceTime on your Mac. To do that, you should follow the steps which would be mentioned in the section below:
- First of all, you should open FaceTime
- After that, you should tap on FaceTime which can be found on the menu bar at the top left.
- To complete the process, you should click on Sign Out and, then, you should follow any additional prompts.
How to turn off iMessage for one person
Via the “Send as SMS” option
First, you should take a look at whether the option for Send as SMS is enabled. Head to Messages from the Settings app. Then, take a look at whether the toggle for “Send as SMS” is on.
- Then, disconnect from your cellular and Wi-Fi connection before you send an SMS.
- Next, an exclamation mark next to the message will be displayed to show that there was an error, you should click it.
- Click the “Send as Text Message” option.
It’s impossible to turn off iMessage for one person on your iPhone. But you can send them text messages by either turning off your iMessage every time or using the ‘Send as Text Message’ option.