iOS 26.1 - SMS read/unread status not syncing across apple devices

Spent some quality time with Apple support on this issue. There definitely is a difference in read state synchronization between iMessages and standard text messages which now use the RCS standard.

If a conversation is *all* iMessage participants, read status is synchronized via iMessage protocol. If it's not working for you, a debug step is to turn off iMessages on both your phone and your Mac and then turn it back on. I, for example, am using the "set up Text Message Forwarding separately" instructions and do not have Messages turned on in iCloud. After the debug step, my iMessage read statuses are synced.

Forward text messages from your iPhone to other devices - Apple Support

Standard RCS text message read state is controlled by your phone carrier. So if a conversation is *not* iMessage (the incoming bubbles are green not blue) and your read status is not synchronized, you need to have a conversation with your phone carrier. I've not done that yet because I ran out of time today. I'll follow up once I have that resolved.

The secondary problem I was having was that one time codes sent via RCS were not showing up in my Mac Messages client. I'd get a notification of the code coming in and the code would be available for autofill in Safari but the message with the code would not appear in the Messages client. That, as it turns out, was because of the feature to automatically delete one time codes. That feature can be found by going to System Settings > General > AutoFill & Passwords > Verification Codes. It is a simple toggle switch. Once I turned "Delete after use" off, the messages with the codes were once again appearing in my Mac client. Now, I don't know when this switch got thrown for me. All I can say is that *I* never changed it and the codes used to appear in my Mac Messages client so I don't know if the issue is that the default changed or that the behavior changed.

So that's all I know for now.

So, as it turns out, no need to talk to my carrier about SMS/RCS message and message read state synchronization.

The sync problems I was having with iMessages (threads with blue bubbles) was fixed by resetting iMessages by turning iMessages off and on both my Mac and iPhone. After that, iMessages and message read state were synchronized.

For SMS/RCS messages (message threads with green vs blue bubbles) the culprit was the automatic deletion of verification codes. For instruction on turning that feature on and off, see the following URL way down at the bottom of the page:

Automatically fill in one-time verification codes on iPhone - Apple Support

I believe the trick is to make sure however you have this set, it needs to be consistent between devices. A mismatch causes the synchronization problem. The messages will be truly synchronized with the feature off. With the feature on, the verification message will only be deleted on the device that consumes the code. The code will still appear on the other devices but it's read state will be as having been read.

I have to admit, I'm a bit mystified why this is even an interesting feature. Once a verification code is used, it ceases to be valid for subsequent use. If it is unused, they typically time out in a matter of minutes so I'm at a bit of a loss to understand why Apple even bothers with this feature.

FWIW, I do *not* have Messages turned on in iCloud. I am using the text forwarding technique documented at:

Forward text messages from your iPhone to other devices - Apple Support

I'm curious if the folks experiencing this do or do not have Messages turned on in iCloud. I do not and until recently, synchronization always worked but in everything I'm surfing up when this started happening, all the articles *start* with making sure that Messages are on in iCloud. This was never a requirement before in as much as it *has* worked for years without iCloud synchronization. I have no desire to rent as much iCloud storage as I'd need to handle my Message history.

Same issue here. It only seems to be happening with SMS messages like 2FA codes etc. I have them set to auto delete but they only delete on the Apple device where the code is filled, not across all Apple devices.

For me, it seems that if I view the message on my iPhone first, eventually, it will appear on my iMac and iPad but not necessarily on my iWatch. If I view the message first on iWatch or iPad, it is my experience that the message will appear only after the person who sent the original message, sends me another message. Hope that this is not confusing. All devices are operating on Apple's most current versions. And now, even when I use "Sync Now", the issue continues.

Yea getting irriatating knowing when you sign into the Mac or iPad that you will have to go and clear the messages from yesterday . I just upgraded to a iPhone 17 pro from a 14+ just seems like this started after the update to IOS 26.1 and on the latest updates on my series 8 watch, iPad Pro M1 , Mac mini M4 .

Interesting. Thank you for letting me know. So the synchronization of message read state would then seem to have no relationship to iCloud synchronization or not. I recently used iMazing (https://imazing.com/) to archive old message threads off my iPhone so I could free up storage space but I still have all those messages in the Message client on my Mac. That ya'll are having issues with message read status even with iCloud message sync on allows me to avoid the problem of re-populating my phone with all the stuff I archived.

I have messages turned on in iCloud. So far, I have been using the minimum storage for several years.

I do have messages turned on in iCloud . And have had it since it was available . I do have messages I wish to keep. I did sign out of all my devices but it still happens after I sign back in.

I have this issue as well. In the last 2 weeks my messages between my iPhone and Mac no longer sync read/unread status.

I've been experiencing this issue as well after the update.

Thanks for the observation/confirmation. I was pretty sure that's what I was seeing too but I was doubting myself.

With any luck, somebody at Apple will take notice of this thread and weigh in.