Screen, filter, report, and block text messages on iPhone
You can reduce the number of unwanted text messages you receive when you screen messages from unknown senders, filter and report spam messages, block unwanted messages, and turn off business alerts.
Screen and filter messages from unknown senders
You can prevent unknown senders from texting you directly. Their messages are filtered other folders, and you don’t get notified about them unless you want to be.
Go to the Messages app
on your iPhone.Tap
at the top right of the conversation list, then tap Manage Filtering.Turn on Screen Unknown Senders.
If you want to allow notifications from some unknown senders, tap Allow Notifications, then turn on or off those categories. (Options vary by country and region.)
For example, you can allow notifications for time-sensitive texts, like verification codes.
To detect and filter SMS, MMS, and RCS messages from unknown senders into folders for Transactions and Promotions, tap
, tap Text Message Filter, then turn on Text Message Filter and third-party message filtering extensions you install.
Review messages from unknown senders
Go to the Messages app
on your iPhone.Tap
at the top of the conversation list, then tap Unknown Senders.
Make an unknown sender a known sender
A known sender is anyone you’ve marked as known, added to the Contacts app, or sent a message to. If a message from someone whose messages you want to see was filtered to Unknown Senders, you can mark the sender as known, and this allows their messages to appear in your conversation list. To open a link sent by an unknown sender in iMessage, you must first make them a known sender.
Go to the Messages app
on your iPhone.Tap
at the top right of the conversation list, then tap Unknown Senders.Do any of the following:
Tap the message from the sender whose messages you want to see, then tap Mark as Known.
Add them to Contacts.
Until you mark a sender as known or add them to contacts, any future messages are filtered to Unknown Senders.
Recover messages in the Spam folder
When spam is detected as it arrives to a server or on your iPhone, it’s moved to the spam folder and doesn’t appear in your conversation list. You can check to see if messages are inadvertently marked as spam.
Go to the Messages app
on your iPhone.Tap
at the top right of the conversation list, then tap Spam.Tap a message that isn’t spam, tap Not Spam, then tap Move to Messages.
The conversation moves to your main conversation list, where you can send a reply. Tap
, then tap Messages.
Spam filtering is on by default. To turn it on or off, tap , tap Manage Filtering, then turn on or off “Filter spam.”
Report spam messages
When you use iMessage, you can report spam messages to Apple. Depending on your carrier and country or region, reporting spam you receive with SMS, MMS, or RCS shares this information with your carrier and its affiliates.
Go to the Messages app
on your iPhone.Do one of the following:
If you haven’t opened the message: Swipe left on the message, tap
, then tap Delete and Report Spam.If you’ve already opened the message: A Report Spam link appears at the bottom of any message from any unknown sender. Tap Report Spam, then tap Delete and Report Spam.
Note: You can’t report a message after you’ve replied to it.
If you don’t see the option to report spam messages you receive with SMS, MMS, or RCS: Contact your carrier. See the Apple Support article Wireless carrier support and features for iPhone.
If you received the message with iMessage, it’s sent to Apple with the sender’s information, and the message is permanently deleted from your iPhone.
If you accidentally report and delete messages, you can recover them.
Reporting spam doesn’t prevent the sender from sending messages, but you can block the contact to stop receiving them.
To avoid getting incoming messages from new numbers, you can filter them. See Screen and filter messages from unknown senders, above.
Block messages from a specific person or phone number
When you block a specific contact or phone number, messages from that person or number aren’t delivered. The person sending the message doesn’t know that their messages are blocked.
Note: When you block a contact in Messages, that contact is also blocked in Mail, Phone, FaceTime, Calendar, and other apps. See Prevent contacts from communicating with you.
Go to the Messages app
on your iPhone.Go to the conversation with the person you want to block, then tap the person’s icon at the top.
Tap Info, scroll down, then tap Block Contact.
You can remove someone’s access to shared items. See Manage information sharing with Safety Check.
Tip: You can’t block a group conversation, so instead of blocking all the people in the group, you can simply leave it or stop its notifications.
If you’re still having trouble with unwanted messages, see the Apple Support article Block phone numbers, contacts, and emails on your iPhone or iPad.
Check who you blocked
If you’re not getting someone’s messages, you can check if they’re in your Blocked Contacts.
When you block a contact in Messages, that contact is also blocked in Mail, Phone, FaceTime, Calendar, and other apps.
Go to the Settings app
on your iPhone.Tap Privacy & Security, tap Blocked Contacts, then do any of the following:
Unblock a number you’ve blocked: Tap [number] Unknown, swipe left on a number in the list, then tap Unblock. Or tap Edit, then tap
.Add additional contacts or numbers directly to the list: Tap Add Blocked Contact.
A sender can’t find out if they’re blocked.
Turn off business alerts
Some businesses send alerts and updates on your orders and other transactions. You can turn these off.
Go to the Settings app
on your iPhone.Tap Apps, then tap Messages.
Turn off any of the following:
RCS Business Messages: Tap RCS Messaging, then turn RCS Business Messages off. (Availability varies by carrier and country.)
Apple Messages for Business: Tap Messages for Business, then turn Business Updates off.
You can also report spam messages when you receive them, as above.
Tip: Another way to prevent unwanted messages is to allow your contacts only when you block messages with Screen Time.
To change how the notifications appear and more, you can set your notification options.
To pause notifications from Messages, turn on Do Not Disturb or another Focus.
To learn about other ways you can report and prevent unwanted messages, see the Apple Support article Recognize and avoid phishing messages, phony support calls, and other scams.