Messaging is one of, if not the most, used forms of communication in the world. In the U.S., texting through your carrier is the most used form of messaging. Since texting is used for so much communication, you may need to print some text messages from a pleasant conversation you want to remember or if you need to use text messages as evidence in a court case. There isn’t a built-in feature to print text messages on your iPhone, but you can use a workaround to print images of your texts.
This guide discusses how to print text messages from an iPhone.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- To print text messages from your iPhone, screenshot the message and then go to the share options. Press print and select the printer on the Wi-Fi network you want to use. Ensure the printer is ready and then confirm.
- You.can also print messages from the Messages app on the Mac. You can set up to receive both iMessages and SMS messages on Mac.
This article assumes you already have a functioning printer.
Take screenshots to print messages
Since most messaging apps donāt have the option to print directly in the app, the quickest and easiest way to print text messages from your iPhone involves screenshotting the messages and then sending that image to the printer. Hereās how you do it:
- Open the Messages app.
- Select or search for the conversation you want to print messages from.
- Find the messages you would like to print.
- Take a screenshot by pressing the volume up and Side buttons simultaneously.
After taking the screenshot, you have two options to print it:
Print from the thumbnail:
As soon as you take the screenshot, a small thumbnail will appear in the lower-left corner. Tap the thumbnail to open it. You can do some editing, like cropping or annotating if you want. Tap the Share button.
Scroll down and tap the Print icon. This will now open up the print options.
Tap Select Printer and choose your printer.
Select the number of copies and/or other options.
Tap the Print button at the top of the screen.
Check your printer. Your texts should be printed and ready to share.
After printing, tap Done.
Print from the Photos app:
If you do nothing after taking the screenshot, the image will be saved to Photos. You can also swipe left to dismiss it. Again it will be sent to Photos.
Open the Photos app, and tap the screenshot to open it. Tap the Sharebutton and then tap Print. If you choose this option, you can edit your screenshot by cropping, rotating, etc., if you want before printing. Simply tap the Editbutton to edit it.
Use your Mac to print messages
This is a more practical and straightforward option. You can print multiple conversations easily. Again, this option requires the following:
- You have a Mac.
- You use the same Apple ID on your Mac and iPhone.
- Text Message Forwarding is enabled on your iPhone (Settings > Messages).
- iMessage is enabled on your Mac (Messages > Settings).
Here is how you can print your messages:
- Launch the Messages app on your Mac.
- Open the conversation you want to print.
- From the top menu bar, click File >Print.
- If you need to change the preferred settings do so, like how many copies you want to print. Then click the blue Print button.
Printing text messages for legal purposes
Do you need to print text messages for legal purposes, such as court evidence? Good news: The methods listed above should work just fine for legal purposes. However, we have a couple of bits of advice for this situation:
- Always ensure text conversations are carefully dated, even if you must manually add the dates. Don’t guess at dates if you don’t know for sure.
- In addition to hard copies, save your text conversations as a PDF file. PDFs are necessary to forward information to court clerks, your lawyer, and others.
- Contact a lawyer if you have any other questions about using texts for legal purposes.
Your texts in print
There could be several reasons why you would want to print your text messages. Whether it’s to keep a happy memory or as evidence for something, you have a few options to print texts from your iPhone.
