What "change iPhone message" usually means
When you search for how to change iPhone messages, you're usually looking for one of three things: changing how notifications sound when a text arrives, changing the way messages display on your lock screen, or changing the default messaging app itself. The steps are different for each, and they live in different places in your phone's settings.
This guide walks you through the most common changes people make to their messaging setup. If you're trying to do something else — like editing a message you already sent, or changing how your messages back up — those are separate processes covered elsewhere.
Key Takeaways
- Notification sounds for text messages are controlled in Settings > Notifications > Messages, where you can choose a different sound or turn notifications off entirely.
- Lock screen message previews can be hidden or shown in Settings > Notifications > Messages > Show Previews, which controls whether people nearby can read your texts.
- The default messaging app can only be changed if you install a third-party app like Google Messages or WhatsApp, since Apple's Messages app cannot be replaced as the system default.
- Do Not Disturb mode silences all notifications including messages, but you can allow calls and texts from favorite contacts to come through anyway.
- Changing these settings takes less than a minute and requires no restart of your phone.
Changing notification sounds for incoming texts
Open Settings on your home screen, then tap Notifications. Scroll down and tap Messages. You'll see a section called Sound — tap it to hear the available options. Your phone will play a preview of each sound as you scroll through them. Choose the one you want, and it becomes your new text notification sound when ready.
If you want no sound at all, scroll to the top of the sound list and tap None. Your phone will still show a visual notification on your lock screen and in the Notification Center, but it won't make a noise. This is useful if you keep your phone on silent or if you're in an environment where sound notifications would be disruptive.
You can also set a different notification sound for VIP contacts — people you've marked as favorites in your Contacts app. Go back to the Messages notification settings and look for a section called Sounds, then tap Repeated Calls or a similar option to set a distinct sound for important people.
Controlling what shows on your lock screen
When a text arrives, your phone can show the full message preview, just the sender's name, or nothing at all. This matters if other people use your phone or see it sitting on a table. Go to Settings > Notifications > Messages and tap Show Previews. You'll see three options: Always, When Unlocked, or Never.
Always means the message text appears on your lock screen for anyone to read. When Unlocked means the preview only shows after you've already unlocked your phone with Face ID, Touch ID, or your passcode. Never means only the sender's name appears, not the message content. Choose the option that matches your privacy needs.
This setting applies to all your messages at once — you cannot set different preview levels for different contacts. If you want to hide messages from one specific person, you would need to mute that conversation instead, which is a separate setting inside the Messages app itself.
Changing your default messaging app
Apple's Messages app cannot be removed or replaced as your system default. When someone sends you a text message (SMS or iMessage), it will always open in Messages. However, you can install other messaging apps like Google Messages, WhatsApp, Telegram, or Signal, and use those for conversations with people who have those apps installed.
If you install Google Messages, you can set it as your default SMS app — meaning regular text messages will open there instead of in Apple's Messages. Go to Settings > Apps > Default Apps (or a similar path depending on your iOS version), find SMS, and select Google Messages. This does not affect iMessages, which are Apple's encrypted messages between iPhone users and will still use the Messages app.
For most people, the built-in Messages app works fine, and changing it is optional. Third-party apps are useful if you want features Messages doesn't have, like message scheduling, advanced search, or integration with other platforms.
Using Do Not Disturb to silence messages temporarily
Do Not Disturb mode silences all notifications, including text messages, without changing your settings permanently. Swipe down from the top-right corner of your screen to open Control Center, then tap the Do Not Disturb icon (a circle with a line through it). Your phone will stop showing notifications until you turn it off again.
You can customize Do Not Disturb so that calls and texts from your favorite contacts still come through. Go to Settings > Focus > Do Not Disturb, tap Allowed Notifications, and select Calls From or Messages From. Then choose which contacts are allowed to reach you. This way, your boss or family can still get through even when Do Not Disturb is on.
You can also schedule Do Not Disturb to turn on automatically at certain times — for example, every night at 10 p.m. or during work hours. In the same Focus settings, tap Schedule and set the days and times you want it active.
Turning off message notifications entirely
If you want to receive messages but not be notified when they arrive, go to Settings > Notifications > Messages and toggle off Allow Notifications. Your messages will still come in and appear in the Messages app, but you won't see a badge on the app icon, hear a sound, or see a lock screen alert.
This is different from Do Not Disturb, which is temporary. Turning off notifications is permanent until you turn them back on. You'll need to manually open the Messages app to see if you have new texts. This setting is rarely used, but it's useful if you check your messages frequently and don't want constant interruptions.
You can also turn off notifications for a single conversation instead of all messages. Open the Messages app, swipe left on a conversation, tap the three dots, and select Mute. That conversation will still arrive, but it won't trigger any notification.
Changing text size and display options
The size of text in the Messages app is controlled by your phone's system-wide text size setting, not by a setting inside Messages itself. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size and drag the slider to make text larger or smaller. This affects Messages and most other apps on your phone.
If you want to make text even larger, turn on Larger Accessibility Sizes in the same menu. This unlocks additional size options beyond the standard range. You can also enable Bold Text in Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size to make all text appear heavier and easier to read.
The background color of the Messages app itself cannot be changed — it follows your phone's Light or Dark mode setting. If you want to switch to Dark mode, go to Settings > Display & Brightness and tap Dark. Messages will automatically adjust to a dark background.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I set different notification sounds for different people?
Not directly in Messages settings. However, you can create a contact group or use your Favorites list, then set a custom notification sound for calls from that group. For text messages specifically, all incoming texts use the same notification sound unless you mute individual conversations.
What's the difference between iMessage and SMS?
iMessage is Apple's encrypted messaging service that works between iPhones, iPads, and Macs over Wi-Fi or data. SMS is a standard text message that works on any phone. Messages app handles both, but they use different notification settings and delivery methods. iMessages appear in blue bubbles; SMS appears in green.
If I turn off notifications, will I still see message badges on the app icon?
No. Turning off notifications in Settings > Notifications > Messages removes the red badge with a number on the Messages app icon. You'll only see new messages if you open the app manually.
Can I change the color of message bubbles?
No. Message bubble colors are fixed — your messages appear in blue (iMessage) or green (SMS), and incoming messages appear in gray. You cannot customize these colors in any iPhone settings.
How do I stop getting notifications from a group chat?
Open the group conversation in Messages, swipe left on it, tap the three dots, and select Mute. You can choose to mute for one hour, one day, or indefinitely. The conversation will still appear in your Messages list, but you won't be notified when new messages arrive.