Can You Schedule a Text on iPhone? Yes, Here’s How! (iOS 18)

Have you ever wanted to schedule text messages on your iPhone? Maybe you want to send weekly reminders of chores to your family or automatically let your spouse know when you're heading home. Scheduling a text message makes sure your text will get to your desired person at the set time. Let's learn how to schedule a text message on an iPhone.

Can You Schedule a Text on iPhone?

Is there a way to schedule a text on iPhone? If your iPhone is updated to iOS 18, you can schedule an iMessage to send later by tapping the plus icon to the right of the text field and selecting Send Later. Then, just set the date and time you want the text to be sent.

However, this only works if your device is on iOS 18 or newer, and it only works when sending iMessages. It does not work with RCS/SMS text messages. If your iPhone is still running iOS 17 or if you need to schedule an RCS/SMS text message, refer to the Shortcuts method below for how to schedule a text message on an iPhone.

How to Schedule a Text Message on iPhone

So, how do you schedule a text on an iPhone if you are running iOS 17 or if you need to schedule an RCS/SMS message? You can easily schedule texts on your iPhone using the Shortcuts app. Just select the date and time to send your text, then set your message to send to an individual or group. You can even choose whether you want your text to automatically send or to ask for confirmation before sending. To learn more about iPhone shortcuts, check out our Tip of the Day newsletter. Now, here's how to schedule texts on your iPhone:

1. To schedule an iMessage, start by opening the Shortcuts app.
2. At the bottom of the screen, tap the Automation icon.
3. Tap the Add icon. If you don't have any existing automations, tap New Automation in the center of the screen.
4. In the Personal Automation menu, choose your text message's prompt. In this example, I will use Time of Day to schedule my text.
5. If using Time of Day, choose from Sunrise, Sunset, or Time of Day to set a specific time to send the text.
6. If you select Time of Day, tap the time and scroll to select when you want to send the text.
7. Under Repeat, select Daily, Weekly, or Monthly.
8. If Weekly or Monthly, select the day(s) of the week or month. For Weekly, all the days of the week will be automatically selected, so tap any day to deselect.
9. Select Run After Confirmation if you want your iPhone to ask for confirmation before sending the text. Tap Run Immediately if you want the text to send automatically.
10. Tap Next.
11. Tap Send Message.
12. In the box that says Send "Message" to Recipients, tap "Message" to compose the automated text.
13. Tap Recipients to choose your recipients.
14. Once you've chosen your recipients, tap Done.
15. Tap Done to save your scheduled text. You can now find this in your Automations tab.
16. To delete the automation, swipe left and tap Delete.

That's how to schedule a text message on your iPhone. Now your text messages should send right on schedule (unless you delete the automation)! If you love learning device shortcuts, you might also check out how to turn your iPhone flashlight on and off or even how to retrieve deleted texts on your iPhone.