Messages shows "1 Conversation Selected" in right pane instead of the actual messages?

Occasionally in macOS Ventura when using Messages, when I click on a message thread in the left list, the right pane shows just the text "1 conversation selected" instead of the actual message thread.


It's gets stranger. Sometimes it says "3 conversations selected" even though there is ONLY that one selected. The conversation is there .. I can see it on my iPhone, and if I double-click it, I can see the conversation in a separate window. It just refuses to show in the right pane of Messages. And it's only for ONE conversation .. all the others display just fine in the right pane.


Closing and re-opening Messages doesnt clear this. However, I have noticed a pattern. Occasionally, Messages "promotes" a conversation to the top of the conversation list (putting it in a little circle at the top of the list). It SEEMS that the "1 Conversation Selected" appears for the DEMOTED conversation .. that is, the one that got booted from the top of the list.


Either way this looks like a bug in Messages to me.

MacBook Pro Apple Silicon 2023

Posted on Feb 1, 2023 03:06 PM

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8 replies

Feb 4, 2023 10:59 AM in response to Tim Hill1

Hi Tim Hill1,


We appreciate you reaching out to us.

We’d like to gather additional details that may help us be in a better position to assist you.

Have you had the chance to restart your device?

Are you using the latest version of macOS Ventura? Update macOS on Mac - Apple Support


If you answer yes to both questions, let’s test if the issue persists on a newly created user account. 

  1. On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Users & Groups  in the sidebar. (You may need to scroll down.)
  2. Click the Add Account button below the list of users on the right (you may be asked to enter your password.)
  3. Click the New Account pop-up menu, then choose a type of user.
  4. Enter a full name for the new user. An account name is generated automatically. To use a different account name, enter it now—you can’t change it later.
  5. Enter a password for the user, then enter it again to verify. Enter a password hint to help the user remember their password.
  6. Click Create User.


You can use the article below as a reference.

Add a user or group on Mac


If you are experiencing the issue when signed in on a different user account, please check if the issue persists while on safe mode.

Performing this step may help resolve the issue, or further isolate the issue.

Below is an article to help guide you through the process.

How to use safe mode on your Mac




Take care!


Aug 29, 2023 02:14 PM in response to Shred Z

Close messages completely on the Mac. Hold down the left shift key and click on messages in your taskbar to open. Keep holding shift until messages is completely open. That should have done a safe load of the app without any cached settings. Usually what causes this is double-clicking on a group conversation which causes it to open in a new window. After that, even if you have closed that second window, it tries to retain that setting forever (unless you safe launch). I have not noticed it on messages with a single recipient, and if I recall correctly I'm not sure that it has to be the left shift key - that's the one I've always used and it works. Feel free to experiment, I just tested and it still works for me on Ventura... this method has existed at least as far back as Mountain Lion as it used to be a more common issue. (Mail and Safari could get garbled due to plugins and the safe launch also disables things like that for that launch.)

Jun 14, 2023 11:00 AM in response to Tim Hill1

I am having the exact same issue on Ventura new MacBook pro. Continual issue with messages. Have turned off, tried syncing etc. Does not remedy.


On the phone side, the message shows with the name of contact, photo and complete conversation thread.


On the MacBook Pro shows a blank grey circle for the contact, no thread in the right hand pane. It shows 1 conversation selected. I really feel this is a software issue in messages. It keeps happening randomly. Hoping some patch or something can resolve.



Feb 23, 2023 05:46 PM in response to kamote0628

Thanks for getting back to me...


Yes, I've reset/rebooted the MacBook .. no change.

Yes, I'm on macOS Ventura 13.2.1.


I checked the behavior on a different MacBook Pro that shared the same iCloud account, also on macOS Ventura 13.2.1, and I see the exact same thing. The specific "demoted" conversation always shows "1 Conversation Selected" in the right pane. I CAN open the conversation in a distinct window by double-clicking, but of course all other conversations except this one dont need this.


This really looks like a Messages bug to me.

Mar 22, 2023 09:32 PM in response to Tim Hill1

Same thing happened to me. I had a text message group with 3 friends, one didn’t have an iPhone so we all got the disgusting green messages. My peasant friend finally got an iPhone and started the group text again but now with blue messages. Once I deleted the identical group text with green messages, I no longer got the “1 message selected” message.

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Messages shows "1 Conversation Selected" in right pane instead of the actual messages?

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