Apple Supports Android Message Reactions in iMessage Now

Apple has quietly improved messaging interactions for Android users, allowing their message reactions to display correctly on iOS. Now, when an Android user reacts to a message from an iPhone user, the selected emoji appears directly on the iMessage bubble instead of showing up as an awkward separate line like before (e.g., “to ‘that wasn’t supposed to happen.’”).

It’s unclear when Apple introduced this feature or if it required updates from Apple, Google, or both to achieve compatibility. Previously, Android reactions weren’t showing correctly on iPhones, even though iOS reactions displayed fine on Android.

Apple’s move to better support RCS (Rich Communication Services) surprised many, as the company had long resisted Google’s push to adopt RCS, only conceding after pressure from China and the EU. With the release of iOS 18, Apple began supporting the RCS Universal Profile, which includes emoji reactions as part of version 2.7. However, certain features like message editing still seem to be restricted.

Despite these improvements, Apple continues to reserve exclusive features for its iMessage service, maintaining distinct advantages for iPhone users as long as it isn’t compelled to make further changes.