iMessage Needs to Be Enabled to Send This Message (12 Solutions)

When you trying to send iMessage to friends, you might face a warning popup like, “Cannot Send Message, iMessage needs to be enabled to send this message”. Usually, this issue is coming after updating to new iOS version. What will you do to overcome this warning? In this article, we will discuss this issue and give the best solution to enable iMessage on your iPhone and iPad.

Some users say that it is enabled But keep getting the error. Even if the iMessage is enabled, they get the same error. We cannot find the official solution for this issue from apple. Therefore we will offer all possible ways to solve this iMessage sending failure problem. You can solve the issue quickly.

imessage needs to be enabled to send this message

How to Fix iMessage needs to be enabled to send this Message

There are 11 ways which you can follow to solve your issue. You can get an idea about what does the issue mean by following these solutions. Just go ahead and follow instructions.

1. Check Apple iMessage Server Status

This is the very first thing that you can try. If apple server down, then nobody can send iMessages. It’s a rare thing and but it can happen. Therefore you can check the apple server status first. If the orange circle in front of any services is down. In this situation, wait until Apple resolves the issue.

Visit https://www.apple.com/uk/support/systemstatus/ and check the iMessage. Front of the iMessage text you can see the green color dot. Then the server is up, and the problem is in your iOS device. If you have more server issues, follow Fix Unable to Contact the iMessage Server in 11 ways.

Apple Server Status

2. Reboot your iOS device

With rebooting iOS, it will restart all of the services on your device. It helps to solve most of the issues. Follow these instructions to reboot your device.

For iPhone 6s, SE or earlier.

  • Hold the home button as well as the power button same time.
  • Keep both buttons held until the apple logo appears on the screen.
  • Now release the buttons and let device to start.

iPhone 7 or 7 Plus

  • Press the power button on the right side of the phone.
  • At that same time, you need to press and hold the volume down key
  • Wait for until apple logo appears on the screen and release the buttons.

iPhone 8 or X or higher

  • Press the release the volume up button
  • Press the release the volume down button
  • Now press and hold the power button until apple logo appears on screen
  • After that release the power button and let it restart

3. Disable and Enable iMessage

As a second method, we can look at the iMessage enable option. This can be the main issue because you were getting iMessage not enabled error, after update to new iOS version. follow the instructions to enable iMessage.

  • Open the Setting on iPhone
  • Tap on Messages
  • Use toggle switch to Turn on and Turn off iMessage
iMessage setting

If your iMessage already turns on, Just turn off for few seconds and turn it back on again. To activate iMessage service, you will need some credits in your mobile account. So, make sure you have enough credits in your mobile account.

4. Sign Out & Sign In iMessage Service

Signing out and signing in to iMessage helps to solve iMessage issues. You can try it from the below instructions.

  • Open Setting app > Messages and go to Send and Receive option.
  • Under the “You can receive messages to and reply from.” uncheck the phone number and email.
  • Now Tap on Apple ID on top and tap on Sign out. After that, tap again, sign in and sign in with your account.
sign in iMessage

5. Enable and Disable Airplane Mode

Using the AirPlane mode is easy, and try it before following other complex methods. Go to Setting App > enable AirPlane mode with touch on the toggle switch. Wait 30 seconds and tap again on the toggle switch to turn it off.

6. Delete Stuck Message or Conversation

Sometimes, if you have many iMessage on a conversation, It gets stuck and popup and show error when you are sending the new iMessage. Delete that few messages and try to send a message again. If you get the error again, try to remove the conversation and start new. This method will work if you get an error on sending iMessages on specific contacts only.

7. Reset Network Settings

This can be another reason you get Message needs to be enabled warning. You can reset your network setting on iPhone easily.

  • Go to Settings on your device
  • Tap on General and scroll to the bottom
  • Tap again on Reset
  • Reset Network Settings
Reset Network Settings Reset

This option will reset all of your network settings. If there are some issues in the network, it will get fixed. This option does not delete any personal data from your iOS device. If your internet connection is not working properly, you may get Waiting for activation” Error.

8. Reset iMessage Setting

Reset iMessage setting is also another method that you can use to solve the “iMessage needs to be enabled to send this message” problem. We have talked about the Guide to fix iMessage error on from previous articles. So you can visit it for complete information. Follow this instruction for reset.

  • Open setting on iOS device and tap on Messages
  • Tap on Send & Receive option
  • In “you can be reached by iMessage at section,” you can uncheck the phone number and email
  • Now tap on Apple ID and tap on Sign out
  • Restart your iOS device and Enable iMessage from setting as we discussed before
  • After that, Sign in with your Apple ID again start send iMessage

9. Switch from iMessage to SMS

This is also the easiest method you can try to solve this issue.

  • Go to Settings, tap on Cellular and Turn off Data
  • Again go to setting and tap on WiFi and turn of WiFi
  • Just open Message app and try to send a Message which you wanted to send it before
  • It will show a blue bubble, and you can press and hold on there then you will get an option to Send as Text Message.
  • Now tap on it and send as Send as Text Message and Send as Text Message.
  • Go to Settings, tap on Cellular and Turn on Data
  • Navigate again to setting and tap on WiFi and turn on WiFi

Once you are done with the above steps, you can try to send iMessage. It might work for you without getting an error.

10. Reset Factory Setting on Your iPhone

If the above methods don’t work for you, you can do a factory setting for your iOS device. After this procedure, you will lose all of your data. Therefore, make sure to back up all of the data before the factory reset, such as Photos, Videos, messages, etc. Use iTunes to back up your iOS device.

  • Go to setting and navigate to General
  • Scroll down to bottom and tap on Reset
  • Tap again on Erase All Content and Settings
  • It will ask confirmation, just confirm it and do the reset
  • After that your iOS device will start reset process and within few minutes you will get a brand new setting iOS device.
  • Go to iMessage setting, activate it and start sending iMessages
Erase All Content and Settings

11. Update iOS Version

Updating the iOS device to the latest version helps fix many errors. Most f the time, iOS beta versions have bugs and errors. By updating the news to a stable and public iOS version, you can eliminate errors. Updating iOS versions help to fix many errors on iPhones and iPads.

  • Open Settings app > General > Software Update
  • Click on the update and follow the update guide if the new update is available.

12. Contact Apple Support 

If none of the methods works for you to fix cannot send message iMessage needs to be enabled to send this message, contact Apple support for the help.

Also, don’t forget to read about Fix iMessage Not Working on iPhone, iPad, and Mac guide.

FAQ

What does iMessage needs to be enabled mean

It means that your iOS device detects that it is not iMessage enabled to send a message. Therefore we need to check why iOS does not connect with the iMessage server.

iMessage is enabled but not working

Is it better to restart your iOS device and check it works? If not, reset the setting on your device.

In conclusion, We have discussed 11 possible methods to fix the iMessage issue. As well as, we hope this guide helps you fix the “iMessage needs to be enabled” problem. If one method helped you, share your experience with us. So, if none of these methods works for you, we will find other possible ways to fix this issue. Keep in touch, and we e will update this article soon with new solutions.

5 thoughts on “iMessage Needs to Be Enabled to Send This Message (12 Solutions)”

  1. I read this whole blog and this blog is very workable for me. I used Reset Network Settings and this way is very easy for enable or disable settings. I fixed cannot send message imessage needs to be enabled to send this message Thanks for sharing!!

    Reply

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