WWDC 2025: 4 Key Features Still Missing From Apple Messages

Years from now, WWDC 2025 will primarily be remembered for the introduction of Apple's freshly designed "Liquid Glass" cross-platform interface as well as Apple's decision to align the software iteration to match the year in which it will be primarily used. So, besides getting what most Android users would mockingly refer to as a glorified theme and icon pack, devices currently running iOS 18 will skip versions 19 through 25 and jump straight to iOS 26. 

Other notable feature additions to iOS 26 include the new visual intelligence feature (Apple's interpretation of Android's "circle to search" feature), live translation across several native apps, and a slew of updates to Apple Messages, including new backgrounds and the ability to post polls. For avid Apple Message users, these changes — in addition to the ones introduced with iOS 18 — should make the user experience inch closer to other popular messaging tools like WhatsApp and Telegram. 

Despite the additions, however, Apple Messages continues to lack several features considered essential by Android users and those contemplating a switch to iOS. Let's take a closer look at some of these features and discuss the possibility of these ever making it to some future iteration of iOS.

Apple has always had the upper hand over rival smartphone operating systems when it comes to privacy and security. It's ironic, therefore, to see that even in 2025, Apple's native messaging tool used across iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and WatchOS doesn't offer the ability to lock or hide individual conversations.

What Apple does offer is the ability to lock and passcode-protect individual apps. So, even if you are really concerned about messages from one specific person you do not want others to read, you'll need to gatekeep your entire messaging app, which, frankly, is a very inefficient way to go about doing things.

Apple Messages' arch-rival WhatsApp has offered this feature to its users for the past several years, while Telegram does something similar with its "Secret Chat" feature. Given that iOS 26 will only start rolling out after the release of the next gen iPhone a few months from now, we do not expect Apple to bring this feature to its Messages any time soon. We'd love to be surprised, though.

Deleting messages is a rather straightforward feature. It's the easiest way to get rid of messages you do not want to ever read again. That being said, sometimes, there are occasions you want to hold on to an old message but do not want it cluttering your main inbox. You need a place for them to be safely stored from where they can be retrieved once you feel like reading or accessing them again. 

This is precisely what the "Archive chats" feature does on competing messaging apps like WhatsApp and email apps like Gmail. It hides the message and chat thread from the main chat list, while still retaining all the contents of the chat in a separate section of the app. For reasons best known to Apple, archiving messages on Apple's native messaging tool is still not an option, despite people demanding it for several years.

Unsurprisingly, archiving messages is possible on several popular Instant Messaging apps. On WhatsApp, even receiving a message on the archived chat won't make it come back to the main chat list. Notifications for archived chats are also blocked on WhatsApp, unless you're mentioned or replied to.

There is no denying that Apple Messages works seamlessly across the entirety of the company's hardware ecosystem. This means you can switch from your iPhone to your MacBook, an iPad , or even an Apple Watch while accessing the same set of messages without losing continuity. However, things are quite different if you, for some reason, are outside of the Apple ecosystem.

As of mid-2025, the only way to access Apple Messages is via a piece of Apple hardware in your collection. For some reason, if you are on a Windows desktop, hoping to "log in" to Apple Messages and access your conversations, it is simply not possible. This is in contrast to apps like Google Messages, WhatsApp, and Telegram, which allow users to access a "Desktop/Web" or browser-based app and securely log in, access, and send and receive messages.

Apple does not have a stellar track record making apps and programs that work on non-Apple hardware. It is, therefore, unlikely that we'd see Apple change its stand on web apps for Messages anytime soon.

Over the years, Apple Messages has evolved from a simple one-on-one messaging tool to a more comprehensive, feature-rich chat tool that supports group chats. While the current group messaging experience within Apple Messages isn't too bad, there is some serious scope for improvement.

As of 2025, the group chat experience within Apple Messages falls short of the competition due to its lack of essential features, such as setting admin roles and granting member permissions. With Apple Messages, there is no concept of group admins or moderator roles. Therefore, it is not possible to designate one or more members as administrators with specific privileges. These privileges may include the ability to change the group name and photo, the ability to add/remove new members, and the ability to pin messages from specific users.

Also missing from the features list is the ability to temporarily restrict messaging to only administrators. While this might sound illogical at first; this one step is crucial for making important announcements in large groups without the information getting lost in a flood of immediate replies.