By
Oren Todoros,
Updated on September 29, 2024,
2 min read
Sometimes your iPhone group chats are going crazy, and you end up in a situation where you want to leave a group. If you’re wondering how to leave a group chat on iPhone, keep reading as we will walk through all the steps.
Group chats on iPhones are very convenient: they allow you to have multiple conversations with several people simultaneously and make it easier to continue a discussion as new participants join. But at times, you may find yourself wanting to leave a group chat that won’t let you do so—for whatever reason.
If you’re struggling with how to leave a group chat on iPhone, we’ve got all the information.
How to Leave a Group Chat on iPhone
Apple’s Messages app has two kinds of group chats: an iMessage group and an SMS/MMS one. The former includes only Apple users who rely on the company’s proprietary instant messaging service to exchange texts, while the latter consists of a combination of Apple and non-Apple people exchanging texts and media over cellular networks via the SMS protocol.
If all the people in the group are Apple users, your group will be filled with blue iMessage speech bubbles. If even one member of the group chat uses an Android phone, however, speech bubbles will be green.
And there’s more: SMS/MMS groups don’t give you an option to leave because they aren’t actually instant messaging. These messages go through your carrier over a custom protocol.
It’s possible to leave a group chat, but only if everyone else in that group is also using Apple devices. So, if you can’t leave, it’s likely that one or more users aren’t using Apple devices and don’t have iMessage enabled.
If everyone is using iMessage, here's how to leave a group chat:
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In Messages, open the group chat.
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Tap the group icon or name at the top of your thread to access it.
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Then tap Leave this Conversation to exit from a particular chat room entirely and confirm that you would like everyone else in that conversation to be notified about leaving them (as well as who did).
Discover More:
Mute a Group Chat Without Leaving on iPhone
If you’re in a noisy group chat that you want to silence for a period, but you’re not ready to leave it, you do have the option to mute it.
Here's how:
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Open the group chat in the Messages app.
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Tap the group icon or the group name at the top of the group chat.
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Scroll down and toggle the switch on to Hide Alerts.
Muting a thread won’t prevent a badge from appearing on your home screen, though. You can also swipe left over the group message text thread and tap on the Alerts button (the bell icon in purple). This will add a crescent moon icon next to your chat’s name to indicate it’s muted. When you’re ready to unmute the group, swipe left on the thread and hit the Alerts button again.
How to Mute SMS Group Chats on iPhone
As we mentioned in the beginning, it’s impossible to actually leave a group SMS chat. However, you can choose to mute it. To do this, open the conversation and tap on group chat icon to visit the chat page. Next, toggle Mute. You’ll see a crescent moon icon next to your chat’s name, indicating it’s muted. It would be great if Apple would work with the carriers to implement a way to leave an SMS group chat, but would likely need to implement RCS in order to do this. If you’ve recently updated to iOS 16, Apple does have a host of new iMessage features. Unfortunately, Apple has yet to release iMessage on Android.
A Better way to Group Chat on iPhone: Spike
If you’ve struggled with wanting to use iMessage on PC or iMessage on Windows 11, Spike might be your best option. Spike is an email client that looks and feels like iMessage. It allows you to send and receive messages from your iPhone to a Windows user or iPhone to Android. You can also use Spike to send messages from Android to someone using macOS. Spike supports group chats, emojis, and GIFs.
Start using the iMessage solution for your group chat
Spike also lets you send files, collaborate on documents, and send photos and videos using cloud storage. If you’re looking for an alternative for iMessage for PC (Windows 10 and 11) or Android, then Spike is the absolute best option available.
FAQs
The ideal platform will depend on the specific needs and preferences of the group. Some popular options include Spike, WhatsApp, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Chat, and Discord, among others. Each platform offers different features, such as file sharing, video conferencing, and integrations with other apps, so it is important to consider which features are most important for your group. Ultimately, the best group chat app or tool is one that is user-friendly, reliable, and meets the communication needs of the group.
Oren Todoros
Oren is a strategic thinker with over 20 years of experience in the marketing industry and is the current Head of Content Strategy at Spike. He's also the proud father of 3 beautiful daughters and a dog named Milo.