What is RCS? Everything you should know about iOS 18’s major Messages change

iOS 18 will launch this fall with major improvements like Apple Intelligence, new customization tools, and more. But one of the biggest changes is coming with Messages: RCS support.

RCS will make messaging between iPhones and Androids work better than ever. Here’s what that means for you.

RCS makes iPhone-Android conversations better than ever

When considering text messaging, there are a few different texting methods to be aware of.

• iMessage is Apple’s own, proprietary text messaging system. iPhones, Macs, iPads, and other Apple devices can communicate with each other over iMessage. That’s not changing in iOS 18. iMessage conversations use blue bubbles.
• SMS/MMS make up the texting system that the iPhone’s Messages app defaults to when communicating with an Android user. SMS/MMS conversations use green bubbles.
• RCS is like a newer, better version of SMS and MMS that will make messaging between iPhones and Android better than ever before.

RCS stands for Rich Communication Services, and it has been widely available on Android devices for a while. While SMS/MMS are technically more widespread, they are an older technology and come with more limitations.

For example, Androids supporting RCS can react to other messages using a heart, thumbs up, or other Tapback-like reactions. RCS also enables sending higher quality photos and videos, read receipts, typing indicators, and more.

iOS 18 makes RCS the new fallback when you can’t iMessage

In iOS 17 and prior versions of the Messages app, messaging between an iPhone and Android device could be unreliable. This is because the iPhone relied on SMS/MMS in those situations, and those are older technologies that don’t seem to play as nice with iMessage.

After gaining RCS support in iOS 18, your conversations with Android users should be free from the headaches they’ve previously brought. RCS conversations will still use green bubbles rather than blue ones, but they should be much more reliable for everyday use. You won’t have to worry about media not going through because it’s too high-quality, or messages getting lost the way they sometimes do. And you’ll be able to use more of the iMessage features you know and love from your blue bubble threads.

Importantly, SMS and MMS aren’t going away, they’re just being relegated to third-string. RCS relies on mobile data to send messages, rather than a traditional texting plan, so in situations where you can’t use data but do have a basic cell connection, your iPhone will utilize SMS.

Available today in beta

RCS is currently supported in the iOS 18 beta for select US carriers, so you can test it out if you’re running the beta and your carrier is on board. Note that the experience is likely to change during the course of the iOS 18 beta and not all features may be supported immediately.