How do you send someone a voice message on iPhone?

iPhones allow you to send voice messages in addition to text messages through the Messages app. The voice messaging feature lets you quickly record and send short voice recordings to other iPhone users. This can be more convenient than typing out a text, especially for short messages.

Voice messages on iPhone allow you to capture tone and nuance that can be lost in text. They can convey emotion and personality in a way text cannot. Voice messages are also great for quick back-and-forth conversations without having to type responses. Overall, voice messaging is an easy and expressive way to communicate that complements standard text messaging.

Prerequisites

Before you can send voice messages on an iPhone, you need:

An iPhone model that supports voice messaging, such as iPhone 5 or later running iOS 8 or above.
Your iPhone must be updated to the latest iOS version that supports voice messaging. Go to Settings > General > Software Update to ensure you have the latest iOS.
A cellular data or WiFi connection. Voice messages require an internet connection to send and receive.

Open Messages App

The Messages app on iPhone allows you to send and receive text messages, photos, videos and more to your contacts. Here’s how to open the Messages app on your iPhone:

From your iPhone’s home screen, find and tap the Messages app icon. The Messages app icon looks like a white speech bubble on a green background.
If you don’t see the Messages app on your home screen, swipe left to find it on subsequent home screens or search for it using the iPhone’s search feature at the top of the home screen.

You can also open Messages by asking Siri to “Open Messages.”

Once you tap the Messages icon, the app will launch and you’ll be taken to your Messages inbox where you can view your conversations or start a new message thread.

Start a New Message

To start a new voice message on iPhone, first tap the compose icon which looks like a pen and paper in the top right corner of the Messages app. This will open a new message screen.

On this screen, enter the recipient’s name or phone number in the To field at the top. You can enter multiple recipients to send a group voice message. As you type the name, matching contacts will appear below – tap one to auto-fill the rest of their details.

Alternatively, you can tap the plus icon to the right of the To field to open your contacts list and select recipients from there.

Record a Voice Message

Recording and sending voice messages on iPhone is easy. Simply press and hold the mic icon located on the right side of the text box to record your message. You can record up to 2 minutes of audio. When you’re done, lift your finger off the mic icon to stop recording and automatically send the voice message.

Here are some tips for recording voice messages:

Speak clearly and enunciate your words to ensure your message is understandable.
Find a quiet location to avoid background noise.

Hold the phone microphone close to your mouth as you speak.
Listen to your recording before sending to confirm it’s clear.
Keep messages brief and focused to convey your thoughts.

The voice message will be sent immediately when you lift your finger off the mic icon. You’ll see a sound wave icon next to the message, indicating that it’s a voice message versus a text message.

Listen and Reply

When your recipient receives your voice message, it will appear in the conversation thread as an audio file they can play. To listen to a voice message you’ve received:

Open the Messages app and go to the conversation with the voice message.

Tap the play button on the voice message audio waveform.
The voice message will begin playing through your iPhone’s speaker.

To reply to a voice message, you have two options:

Tap and hold the microphone button and record a voice message in response. When finished, lift your finger to send.
Alternatively, you can reply with a text message as normal by typing in the text field at the bottom.

Replying by voice can help maintain the conversational flow when you want to respond quickly. Typing a text reply is useful if you need to provide more detail or prefer texting.

Other Options

In addition to recording and sending voice messages, you have several other options for editing and customizing your messages:

Delete and re-record: If you don’t like how a voice message turned out, you can delete it and record a new one before sending. Simply tap and hold the message bubble, then tap ‘Delete’ to remove it and try again.

Discard or retry: Before sending, if you want to start over, tap the ‘X’ icon to discard the message. If you want to review it or re-record, tap the play button.

Edit voice messages: After recording, you can tap the ‘up arrow’ button to see options for adding filters, text captions, stickers, and more to voice messages before sending.

With these options, you can delete recordings you don’t like, retry as many times as needed, and customize voice messages before sending to friends.

Sharing Outside Messages

While voice messages are designed to be sent and received within the Messages app, there are a few ways to share them outside the app if needed:

Saving Voice Messages

To save a voice message you’ve received, press and hold the message bubble, then tap “Save”. This will save the audio file to your Photos app, where you can access it like any other video or audio file.

Forwarding Voice Messages

To forward a voice message to someone who is not in the original message thread, press and hold the message bubble and tap “Forward”. This will allow you to select a new recipient to send the voice message to.

Converting to Text

While there is no direct way to convert a voice message to text within iOS, you can use a third-party app like Voice Notes to Text to transcribe the audio and access it as text outside of Messages.

Voice Message Settings

iPhone allows you to customize settings related to sending and receiving voice messages. This gives you control over voice message length, storage, and data usage. Here’s an overview of the key settings available for voice messages on iPhone:

Mute/Unmute – You can choose whether voice messages auto-play audio when opened. Muting can prevent unwanted audio from playing out loud when checking messages.

Keep/Discard – Allows you to save voice messages permanently or have them automatically discarded after 2 minutes or after being played. Keeping messages uses more storage space on your device.

Expire After – Sets a time limit for how long sent voice messages remain available for recipients to listen to before expiring. Choose a duration anywhere from 1 minute to 2 minutes.

Cellular/WiFi – You can restrict voice messages to only send over WiFi to reduce cellular data usage. This prevents large voice messages from eating through your monthly data allowance.

Take some time to review these settings to configure voice messaging to best suit your needs and preferences on iPhone.

Troubleshooting

If you’re having issues with sending or receiving voice messages on iPhone, here are some common problems and solutions:

Can’t Record a Voice Message

If you can’t record a voice message, the most likely culprit is a problem with mic access in the Messages app. Here are some things to try:

Make sure Messages has permission to use your microphone – go to Settings > Privacy > Microphone and check that Messages is enabled.

Force quit and restart the Messages app. Double click the home button, swipe up on the Messages preview to close it, then launch Messages again.
Check for any OS updates and install if available. Keeping your iPhone software up to date can resolve mic glitches.
Check for lint or debris in your phone’s mic port at the bottom. Carefully clean out anything that may be blocking the mic.

Voice Message Quality is Poor

Choppy, garbled, or unintelligible voice messages are often the result of a poor internet connection. Try the following:

Make sure you have a strong WiFi or cellular data connection when recording and sending voice messages.
Use WiFi instead of mobile data if available, as WiFi typically provides faster, more stable connections.

Move closer to your router if on WiFi to get a stronger signal.
If on mobile data, try moving near a window or stepping outside to improve signal strength.

If you’ve confirmed the connection is solid, the recipient may be experiencing poor reception on their end.