How-To

How to Add Someone to a Group Text on iPhone

By Adam Davidson

Updated March 8, 2024

Is one of your friends missing from your group chat? It’s not too late. Learn how to add someone to a group text on iPhone in this guide.

Group texts on your iPhone allow you to share messages between multiple people at once. They’re a great way to make arrangements for a night out, or just to share your gameplay scores.

What if somebody else wants to join in on the action? Adding them to your group text is simple to do if everyone is using Apple devices. If this isn’t the case, things are a little more complicated.

Here’s how to add someone to an existing group text on iPhone.

How to Start a Group Text on iPhone

You can start a group text on iPhone whether your contacts use Apple devices or other brands. The way that you create the group text is the same, although the way that the messages are sent is slightly different.

To start a group text on iPhone, follow these steps.

1. Open the Messages app.
2. Tap on the New Message icon.
   
3. Next, tap the + (add) symbol.
   
4. Tap on a contact to add to the group.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until you have added all the contacts.
   
6. If all the contacts use Apple devices, their names will show in blue. If any of the contacts use a different brand, then the numbers will all show in green.
   
7. Once you’ve added all the contacts, type your first message.
8. Click on the arrow to send your message. The color of the arrow will match the color of the contacts from step 6.
   
9. Your group text is now created.

If all group members are using Apple devices, the message will be sent as an iMessage, which is free of charge. If any member of the group is not using an Apple device, then the message will be sent as an MMS and may incur carrier fees.

How to Add Someone to a Group Text on iPhone

The way that you create a group text is the same regardless of the devices that your contacts are using. However, if you want to add someone to a group text, their devices matter.

If you find that you can’t add someone to an existing group text on your iPhone, it’s likely because someone in the group isn’t using iMessage. Mind you, if any of the contacts in your group text are using SMS/MMS, you won’t be able to add anyone else to the group. If your original group text is made up of only Apple device users, you won’t be able to add someone else to the group unless they’re also using an Apple device.

In both of these cases, you’ll need to create a brand-new group text including the original contacts and any that you want to add, following the instructions above. If all the contacts in your group text are using Apple devices with iMessage, however, then you can add another Apple user to the group without having to start from scratch.

To add a person to a group text in iMessage, follow these steps.

1. Open Messages.
2. Find your group text in your messages, and tap on it.
   
3. Tap on the group icons at the top of the screen.
   
4. Now tap on the small arrow next to the contacts.
   
5. Tap on Add Contact.
   
6. Click on the + (add) symbol and select a contact to add to the group.
   
7. If the contact is not using an Apple device, the contact name will show in red, and you won’t be able to add them.
   
8. If the contact uses iMessage, it will show in blue. Click Done to add them to the group text.
   

How to Remove Someone From a Group Text on iPhone

To remove a contact from a group text on an iPhone, you can do so by following these steps.

1. Launch the Messages app.
2. Find the group text in your list of messages, and tap on it.
   
3. Tap on the group icons at the very top.
   
4. Tap on the arrow to the right of the contacts.
   
5. Swipe left on the contact you want to remove.
6. Tap on the Remove button that appears.
   
7. Tap on Done. The contact is now removed from the group text.
   

Using iMessage

Despite the rise in popularity of apps such as WhatsApp, iMessage is still the best option for text-based communication between Apple users. Now that you know how to add someone to a group text on iPhone, you can easily add to your fun (or work-related) message thread.