New iOS 18 beta finally flips the switch for RCS on iPhones

Summary

• Apple finally caught up to Google with RCS messaging, promising an iOS 18 update for all users this year.
• The initial beta disappointed is with missing features, but latest iOS version 18 beta 2 activates RCS for some US users.
• RCS rollout is carrier-dependent, check the Settings app for an RCS toggle and reboot your iPhone if not available yet.

Years of Google pressuring Apple into adopting the RCS messaging standard are finally paying off. The Cupertino-based company took notice and finally decided to help out users struggling with the lack of interoperability on iMessage. Apple promised to give everyone access to RCS messaging with an iOS 18 update this year, and time is running out. However, a new beta version of the OS has activated the feature for a few users, rekindling the hope that the brand keeps its promise.

On Android, people using RCS in apps like Google Messages get access to several conveniences, such as read receipts, typing indicators, low-compression media sharing, and access to RCS group chats as well. Apple started working on the same protocol, and we tried using it in beta earlier this month, but were mildly disappointed to find all the above-mentioned features hadn’t been implemented. For example, support for message delivery indicators and high-res image sharing between iOS and Android was available, but read receipts and reactions to messages weren’t available.

That said, the latest beta released on Monday, iOS version 18 beta 2, finally gives a few users in the US access to RCS messaging. Some of my colleagues still don’t have access to it on carriers in Canada, but Redditors can confirm the beta automatically enables RCS for AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon customers (via Android Authority).

The RCS rollout is rather carrier-dependent

Although Apple has been chipping away at the development, the rollout seems largely carrier-dependent in this case, because each of them needs to manually update their bundles that roll out with iOS. Your carrier might not have rolled out RCS support for your iPhone yet, but there are two ways to check. First, you could head into the Messages section of the Settings app and search for an RCS toggle, which should be switched on by default.

If you’re on one of the aforementioned carriers, you can try rebooting your iPhone, because that helped RCS show up on a few devices where it was previously unavailable. Meanwhile, on Android, the standard is already rather widespread, and you can find the toggle for it in the Messages settings section of the Google Messages app.