iMessage on iPhone not working after updating to iOS 18.5

Same thing with my iphone 16 pro so i went to my local apple store they checked all my settings and they were fine so then we connected to the Apple stores wifi and i sent a bunch of photos to my sister and it worked perfectly then when i got back home the same problem again failed to send pictures. Rang Apple support they said it was probably because my sister didnt have imessage turned on so got her to check that and it still wont send.

I noticed this problem starting on July 2nd. Ironically when I logged into my Mac I saw some angry messages from people thinking I ghosted them. Apple hasn’t helped me any; when asked about the issue some employees and over the phone tech would act all confused. T-mobile both tech and in-store employees have mentioned multiple customers with the same issue…. Went into a store again recently and although the common potential fixes have been conducted, T-mobile agreed that it was a bug in IOS 18.5. Trust me, I’m frustrated like the rest of you since my phone is also used for work along personal. Hopefully IOS 18.6 comes out this week or next and resolves this widely known issue. If it doesn’t I’ve threatened to switch to Android and I don’t like that idea. I have an iPhone 13 and even if I upgrade to a 16 or the 17 in September idk if that would fix future issues since the 17 and newer would run IOS 26 and onward

Don’t reset your iPhone it will not work. I have even tried using a different iPhone. I’ve narrowed it down to either the software update or the T-mobile carrier. I am going to have apple reverse the most recent update and if that doesn’t work I’m switching from T-mobile.

Same problem. 18.6 did not fix the problem. I can only send Text / SMS and I cannot receive iMessages. In message groups the sender's text field will be labeled with "iMessage" but then when they send it goes out to everybody in the group except me.

I haven’t found the fix. Apple hasn’t been able to help. I’m missing calls, FaceTimes and iMessages. I don’t know what else to do at this point. I was hoping the updated would fix this but it didn’t.

if I send a iMessage to myself meaning my own number, it delivers as iMessage but it’s so confusing because absolutely nothing else is fixed.

it's been well over a month with iPhone 16 Pro. The issue resolved itself, then got bad again, been fine since. iOS 18.6 no difference, still behaving now. Had support remote-in, all known fixes, then just fixed itself... clearly an iCloud/ carrier bug. You'd think 18.6 would've fixed it for others still affected. Would be nice if  copped to it s a known issue between now & .7 or 26...

I had the same problem. Apple support said it was because my number was on a spam list and they cleared it.

There is a bigger problem at large though. I don't message or call anyone but family. If I ended up on a spam list it could only be because of my number being maliciously spoofed without my knowledge... and if that is the case, Apple should not be automatically blocking users.

Every time I say something on here Apple removes my post….

I’ve heard it’s an ICloud issue, on here it’s a block/spam list, I’ve heard it “nothing” to bug issues. Will we 1) get a real answer and 2) ever get this issue resolved without the need of buying a new phone?

Bchaz wrote:

Every time I say something on here Apple removes my post….

I’ve heard it’s an ICloud issue, on here it’s a block/spam list, I’ve heard it “nothing” to bug issues. Will we 1) get a real answer and 2) ever get this issue resolved without the need of buying a new phone?

This is a user-to-user forum. Apple doesn't respond here.

If your account has been put on the spam list, only Apple can remove it. Buying a new phone won't change that.

I hate that I feel tethered to Apple. Because of issues like this. This should be a very simple fix. I have OCD and have been working on this for 48 hours. Now I have to set an appointment with the Apple Store. Absolute bs

Upgrade to a newer model? This is a platform issue. Upgrade to a newer model is the same issue as Apple downgrading their batteries to force you to buy a new model in the first place. I’m about to lose my mind with this.

Hi all. Same issue here. Tried everything suggested on this thread and eventually got in contact with Apple as nothing worked. Just off the phone and everything was looking bang on from their end so the guy suggested I delete the message thread. Deleted the message threads from both my wife and son and now imessage is working again on those conversations. Not sure why it happened.

This happened with 18.5 and 18.6 for me. Apparently, I was not blocked, but what worked for me was toggling iMessage and FaceTime off. Power off the phone. When back up, toggle iMessage and FaceTime back on. I had to re-select my phone number in both options and it took several hours to sync but eventually all of my iPhone-iPhone conversations turned back to iMessage from RCS/SMS. Insane this is a repeat issue in subsequent updates with this many people flagging the problem.

ifeanyi269 wrote:

Pls help a brother out ooh,I’m experiencing the same issue.my iphone iMessage has stopped working.each time I try to activate it,I gets an error due to activation message.

What is the error message?

Have you worked through this article:

If you can’t turn on or sign in to iMessage or FaceTime on your iPhone - Apple Support

This was very helpful, thanks. I couldn't fix this issue for months until I read what you posted here about the number being blocked on Apple's end. I think Apple should send an email or other notification if your number has been blocked for whatever reason, and then give you instructions to get it reactivated. Apple dropped the ball here.