Rumor: iOS 18 Will Finally Let You React to iMessages With Any Emoji

Friday June 7, 2024 7:21 am PDT by Joe Rossignol

iOS 18 will introduce at least two changes to the Tapback feature in the Messages app on the iPhone, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

An emoji Tapback menu on iOS 18 (concept)

Introduced with iOS 10, Tapback icons are the heart, thumbs up, thumbs down, "HA HA" symbol, exclamation marks, and question mark that can be added to messages. In a report outlining his WWDC expectations, Gurman said these icons will look more colorful on iOS 18, whereas they currently have very basic designs.

More significantly, he said the Tapback system will work with any emoji starting on iOS 18, providing users with hundreds of new options to choose from. This means the Messages app would finally support in-line emoji reactions, a feature that other messaging apps like WhatsApp, Messenger, and Telegram have offered for a long time. Currently, the Messages app only allows emoji to be added to messages as stickers.

It is unclear if the revamped Tapback system will also work with the AI-generated emoji feature previously reported to be coming with iOS 18.

Another much-requested feature coming to the Messages app with iOS 18 is the ability to schedule a message to be sent later, according to Gurman.

Apple will unveil iOS 18 and other major software updates for its platforms during its WWDC keynote, which will be live streamed via the Apple Events website, YouTube, Apple TV app, and Apple Developer app on June 10 starting at 10 a.m. Pacific Time. The new Messages features would extend to the iPad and Mac.

Tag: Messages

Related Forums: iOS 18, iPadOS 18

Popular Stories

Here's When iOS 27 Rolls Out Today in Every Time Zone [Update: It's Out]

Sunday September 13, 2026 3:00 am PDT by Eric Slivka

Update 10:04 a.m.: iOS 27 is rolling out now, though it may take a bit for all users to see it, so keep checking! Apple is about to release iOS 27, which will finally deliver more advanced Siri AI capabilities as well as a variety of other refinements, improvements, and new features to iPhones. It's Apple's biggest software update of the year, and Apple announced at Wednesday's iPhone event...

• 151 comments

iOS 27 Available Now With These 8 New Features

Monday September 14, 2026 9:00 am PDT by Joe Rossignol

Update — 10 a.m. Pacific Time: Apple has released iOS 27. During its iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo event last week, Apple announced that iOS 27 will be released widely on Monday, September 14. iOS 27 should be available around 10 a.m. Pacific Time / 1 p.m. Eastern Time today via the Settings app, under General → Software Update. Below, we have highlighted eight new features and...

• 111 comments

iCloud+ Now Includes Apple TV, Apple Arcade, and Curated Apple Music Stations in Over 100 Countries

Tuesday September 15, 2026 1:43 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

Apple today announced a new subscription initiative that turns paid iCloud+ subscriptions into a broader services bundle in more than 100 countries. In select countries, Apple says every paid iCloud+ plan, including the cheapest 50GB tier, now includes Apple TV and Apple Arcade "at no additional cost," while family sharing extends the storage, TV and Arcade access to up to five people....

• 103 comments

Top Rated Comments

The Clark

30 months ago

That's cool, I've wanted this for a long time now.

Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)

glsillygili

30 months ago

Killer feature

Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)

phenste

30 months ago

The "Add Sticker" and then selecting any emoji gives us that ability right now yea?

in the most stilted, awkward fashion possible. stickers appear lazily slapped over the message, giving horribly uneven margins to everything in the thread. emojis can’t be found using the search function, limiting you to scrolling through the emoji and praying you don’t accidentally tap on the wrong one, otherwise you’re pretty much stuck with it. this was my attempt to show you using an iMessage thread with myself. the two emoji besides the facepalm were accidental.

this is an embarrassingly overdue update when Apple consistently touts themselves as having best-in-class messaging. other apps have made inline emoji reaction incredibly simple for years where Apple has not.