Messages not working on your Mac

Why it happens

iMessage needs a working internet connection and a correct clock, because Apple's servers reject a Mac whose date is far off. Blue-bubble iMessages come straight to your Mac, but green-bubble texts (SMS) travel through your iPhone first. If the iPhone is off, far away or hasn't been told to forward texts, those never arrive. Now and then Apple's iMessage service itself has an outage.

How to fix it

1. Start fresh with a restart. Open the Apple menu and choose Restart, then wait for your Mac to come back.

   Apple menu›Restart…

2. Open any website in Safari to confirm your Mac is really online. If nothing loads, fix the Wi-Fi first, because Messages can't work without it.

3. In System Settings, go to General, then Date & Time, and make sure Set time and date automatically is on.

   General›Date & Time

4. Open Messages, choose Messages > Settings, and click iMessage. Your Apple Account should be shown there, with your phone number or email ticked under You can be reached for messages at.

   Messages›Settings…›iMessage

5. For green-bubble texts, pick up your iPhone and open Settings > Apps > Messages > Text Message Forwarding. Turn on the switch next to this Mac, and keep the iPhone switched on and connected.

Still not fixed?

1. Sign out and back in. In Messages > Settings > iMessage, click Sign Out, restart the Mac, then sign in again with the same Apple Account your iPhone uses.

   Messages›Settings…›iMessage

2. If messages show on your iPhone but not on the Mac, tick Enable Messages in iCloud in the same iMessage tab and click Sync Now.

   Messages›Settings…›iMessage

3. Turn off any VPN for a few minutes and try again. Some VPNs and work networks block the connection iMessage uses.

4. Look at Apple's System Status page at apple.com/support/systemstatus. If iMessage shows a problem there, the fix is on Apple's side and it usually clears within hours.

5. If Messages still says Waiting for activation or won't sign in after a day, contact Apple Support. They can check your Apple Account and iMessage registration.