how can you tell that someone read your text message?

Text messages, i.e. SMS or MMS, do not have a "return receipt" feature. iMessages, however, do. If you're sending via the Messages app, your friends need to turn on the "Send Read Receipts" option in the Messages settings on their iOS devices.

Regards.

As mentioned, that is only true if the recipient has enabled the setting to send read receipts. That setting is under the control of the people receiving the iMessaage, not the person sending it. If the recipient has disabled read receipts, then the sender will never know when they read it.

not to mention your were responding tho a long dead thread - always a good thing to check the date of the post your search turns up (I've been guilty of not doing that too).

On IPad, you can see if someone's read your text by looking under what you wrote. In small print it'll say: Read on (and whatever day it was read on). If it hasn't been read, all it'll say is that it was delivered.On iPhone, if the message is in green, then they haven't read it. When it's blue, they have.

As stedman already told you, you can't. That is not a feature that the iPhone offers for text messaging. If you are using iMessage and the person you are messaging has enabled the read receipt feature, you will be able to tell.

Umm, First, you just answered a 3 year old post. Second, this does not answer the question. Turning on Read Receipts says your phone will SEND read receipts, not that it can receive them from a phone that has NOT turned on Read Receipts. Note that the actual setting is called Send Read Receipts, and the note under it says Allow others to be notified when you have read their messages.

How to turn read receipts on or off on iPhone, iPad, and

iPod touch

1. Launch the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Scroll down and tap on Messages.
3. Now either turn Read Receipts on or off depending on your preference.

You can't.

It may say delivered, it will not say read.

No, we're users here and will not do that