How to keep track of messages on iPad

You can catch up on text messages you missed, mark messages as unread, and pin and unpin conversations to prioritize messages in the conversation list.

If messages arrive while notifications are paused or you’re away from your iPad, you can jump straight to the first one you haven’t read. And when you don’t have time to respond, marking a conversation as unread lets you come back to it later. You can also see a list of your unread messages.

Catch up on messages you missed

If messages came in while notifications were paused or you were away from your iPad, you can jump to the first one you haven’t seen in a conversation.

1. Go to the Messages app on your iPad.
2. Open an unread conversation and then tap the Catch up button.

   Your view of the conversation moves up to the first unread message.

Mark messages as unread

When you don’t have time to respond, you can mark conversations as unread so you can return to them later.

1. Start the Messages app on your iPad.
2. In the conversation list, do one of the following:
   • Swipe right on a conversation to mark it as unread.
   • Drag right and tap the Mark as Unread button.

Quick tip: It’s possible to mark several messages as unread at the same time, too. From the conversation list, tap Edit, tap Select Messages, and select the conversations to mark as unread. When you’re done selecting, tap Unread in the bottom-left corner.

See a list of your unread messages

1. Start the Messages app on your iPad.
2. In the conversation list, tap the Filter button and then tap Unread.

   A checkmark appears next to Unread, and the icon turns blue to indicate that filtering is on.

3. To see both your read and unread messages again, tap the Filter button. Then tap to deselect Unread.

Quick tip: You can mark all your unread messages as read at once: Tap Edit, tap Select Messages, then tap Read All.

Pin a conversation

Pinning specific conversations to the top of the conversation list keeps the people you contact most at the front. Pinned conversations show up as larger icons at the top of your conversation list.

1. Start the Messages app on your iPad.
2. Touch and hold a conversation, then tap Pin.

Unpin a conversation

You can unpin pinned conversations so that they no longer appear at the top of the conversation list.

1. Start the Messages app on your iPad.
2. Touch and hold a pinned conversation and then do one of the following:
   • Drag the message to the bottom of the list, and let go.
   • Tap Unpin.

Pin shared items

You can pin certain shared items—such as links or collaboration invitations—within a conversation.

1. Start the Messages app on your iPad.
2. Touch and hold a message and then tap Pin.
3. To find pinned items, tap the contact or group icon at the top of the conversation and then tap a category (such as Links). Pinned items appear at the top.

To unpin a pinned item, touch and hold it in the message, then tap Unpin. If you’re in the Links or Documents tab, touch and hold it, tap Show in Conversation, touch and hold it in the message, then tap Unpin.

Turn message summaries on or off

Apple Intelligence can summarize the key points of your conversations, with those summaries automatically replacing your message previews. If you’d rather see the most recent message in each conversation, turn off summaries.

Note: Apple Intelligence on iPadOS 27 or later is available on an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPad mini (A17 Pro) and iPad models with M1 or later. Apple Intelligence is not available in all languages or regions. Usage limits may apply.*

1. Start the Settings app on your iPad.
2. Tap Apps, then tap Messages.
3. Turn Summarize Messages on or off.
4. To view message summaries, open the Messages app. Then look for the Summary icon below a name in the conversation list. The text following the symbol is a summary of unread messages in that conversation.

*Apple Intelligence is available with Siri and device language set to Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, or Vietnamese. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Some devices may not be available in all regions. Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 and requires an Apple Intelligence–enabled device set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not be initially available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS. Certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts. Daily limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future. Use of these features is subject to the Apple Intelligence Terms and Conditions.

See also

• Delete messages and attachments in Messages on iPad
• Search in Messages on iPad
• Stop, mute, and change message notifications on iPad
• Screen and filter text messages on iPad