How to Schedule a Text Message on iPhone and Android

It is 11:40 at night and you remember your friend's birthday starts at midnight — or you need a work message to land at 9:00 in the morning, not now. Sending it right away is too early, and trusting your memory until morning is a gamble. Scheduling the text solves it: write it now, pick the time, and your phone sends it for you.

iPhone: schedule a text with Send Later

Apple added Send Later to Messages with iOS 18. It works in iMessage conversations — the ones with blue bubbles — and your recipient never knows the message was scheduled.

1. Open the Messages app and go to the conversation.
2. Tap the + button beside the text field, then tap Send Later.
3. Tap the time to open the scheduler and choose when the message should go. You can schedule up to 14 days into the future.
4. Type your message and tap Send. The text field's border turns into a dashed line, and the send time appears above the message.

The message sits in the conversation with a dashed outline until its time comes, then it is delivered — Apple says it is delivered even if all your devices are offline, because the scheduled message is held encrypted on Apple's servers until it is sent. Once sent, it is removed from Apple's servers and the bubble turns solid.

You can change your mind until the delivery time, but you need to be online to do it. To reschedule, open the conversation, tap Edit beside the date above the scheduled message, then tap Edit Time and pick a new time — or tap Send Message to send it right away. To edit the text, touch and hold the message bubble and tap Edit. To cancel it, touch and hold the bubble and tap Delete; a deleted scheduled message is never delivered. If you cannot see your scheduled message, scroll to the bottom of the conversation — Apple notes scheduled messages may appear below sent messages.

Android: schedule a text with Google Messages

On Android, the built-in route is Google Messages, the default texting app on most current phones. Google says scheduling works on Android 7.0 and up:

1. Open Google Messages and open the conversation.
2. Type your message, but do not tap Send yet.
3. Touch and hold Send. A scheduling menu opens.
4. Choose one of the suggested times, or pick your own date and time from the calendar and clock.
5. Tap Send. The message is marked as scheduled in the conversation.

To change a scheduled message, tap it (or its clock icon) in the conversation — you can edit the text, change the time, send it immediately or delete it. One difference from iPhone matters here: Google says your phone needs Wi-Fi or mobile data when the scheduled time arrives. If it is offline then, the message is sent when the device reconnects.

Samsung Galaxy: schedule a text with Samsung Messages

Samsung phones have their own scheduling option inside Samsung Messages:

1. Open the Messages app and open the conversation, or tap Compose and pick a contact.
2. Type your message, then tap the + icon beside the text field. If you do not see it, tap the arrow (>) and it appears.
3. Tap Schedule message, choose the date and time, then tap Done.
4. Tap Send. A small icon appears next to the scheduled message.

Samsung's guide says you can schedule up to a year ahead, which makes it handy for birthdays and anniversaries far in advance. As with Google Messages, the phone needs to be on and connected when the time arrives — if it is off or offline, the message goes out once it reconnects.

Older iPhone or a text to Android: the Shortcuts workaround

Send Later only works in iMessage chats, so it does not help when you text an Android phone from an iPhone, or when your iPhone runs iOS 17 or older. The workaround is a personal automation in the Shortcuts app:

1. Open Shortcuts, tap Automation, then tap New Automation.
2. Choose Time of Day, set the date and time, and tap Next.
3. Add the Send Message action, type your message and pick the recipient, then tap Done.

This sends the text at the time you set, but it is a workaround, not a real scheduler: the automation repeats on the schedule you set, so open Shortcuts after it runs once and delete or disable the automation — otherwise the same message goes out again. For a one-off text that must arrive on time, a reminder to send it yourself is the safer fallback.

Which method to use

If scheduling is not working

• Send Later is missing on iPhone. Check two things first: your iPhone needs iOS 18 or later (Settings > General > About), and iMessage must be on (Settings > Apps > Messages, then turn on iMessage). Then check the conversation — Send Later only appears in iMessage chats with blue bubbles. A green bubble means the chat uses SMS or RCS, and Send Later does not apply to it.
• Touch-and-hold Send does nothing on Android. Update Google Messages from the Play Store and make sure it is the default SMS app. If your phone maker's own messaging app is the default, its scheduling steps differ — check its menus, or switch the default to Google Messages.
• Samsung Messages is gone from your Galaxy. That is expected on Android 12 and newer: Samsung discontinued the app starting July 6, 2026. Install Google Messages from the Play Store and schedule from there.
• The message went out at the wrong time. Check the time shown above the scheduled message before it sends, and check AM versus PM when you pick the time. Scheduled times follow your phone's time zone.
• A scheduled message never arrived. On iPhone, Send Later is held by Apple and should deliver even if your devices are offline. On Android, the phone must be on and connected at the scheduled time — an offline phone sends the message when it reconnects, later than planned.

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