"Send Later" option not appearing in Message app iOS 18

As a matter of fact, there used to be all sorts of choices when you pressed the plus sign to the left. Now when I press it, I only get pictures to select immediately. This is definitely a glitch. I’ve been using the send later function quite often, so I really miss it. Please somebody fix this glitch. Yes I have the latest update. That’s when the issue started. Anyone found what to do?

skersey wrote:

Dear Apple, are there plans in the near future to make the “Send Later” option available always, to anyone with any kind of phone, etc.?

Sorry, you are not speaking to Apple here and they are not going to see your post. If you want to send Feedback to Apple, that can be done here:

Feedback - Messages for iOS and iPadOS - Apple

This “only available to other iPhone users” is really pushing me towards android. My husband is an android user and uses the feature regularly to help me remember things. I can’t do the same. Shame.

WhitenerR wrote:

I agree. It’s a hard pill to swallow. Why take the feature away? It feels like we’re constantly punished for getting an apple product.

No feature was taken away, it was a new feature that was added last September to Send Later to Apple devices. You are simply looking for an expansion of that feature to include Android devices. On Android the feature requires the phone to be on with an internet connection before it will send any message later, and on the iPhone it does not require the device to even be on or any internet connection and the recipient using an Apple device will receive the message. You have 2 implementations of the same feature each with their own limitation.

The same expansion for Android devices has been requested for the Send Later feature to work after the phone has been turned off, or even when Airplane mode is on, and that has not been made available to them either.

I have a workaround that I just discovered. Yesterday I was trying to send a photo from the photo app by iMessage to an individual. When the messages app opened it did not give me the + so that you could select from the menu. I tried it on two devices and had the same issue. I just found that if I launch the messages app, the plus icon is available and allows me to then attach the photo that I wanted to send later. So it seems that when iMessage is launched from within another app the problem is occurring.

I am experiencing the same thing! Is there a setting or some other step I need to take to allow the "send later" in iMessages app functionality?

This absolutely worked 👏🏽 Thank you so much!!!!!!

This absolutely worked. I thought ov everything else. Checked keyboards. Tried to send to other iPhone users. It’s the “focus” setting👏🏽 Thank you!!!

iMessage send later not an option on my iPhone ?

me too. Apple please fix.

I did do the same but no luck cant see the send later icon

I’m trying to set up a delayed text to another iPhone user but I don’t see the option. Do you know how to enable?

“Send Later” option is not showing on my iphone

please fix this.

Same here.