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AT&T Messages is shutting downand those who are still using Android texting apps are encouraged to switch to another texting app. AT&T Messages consists of two apps, Messages Backup and Sync on phones and Messages for Tablets.
While AT&T’s support page for the transition currently lists “end of 2024” as the timeframe, an AT&T representative told CNET that December 4th was the official sunset for the messaging apps. The carrier is encouraging customers to switch to Google Messages because the app will work on both Android phones and tablets while providing the same features. And unlike Verizon has shut down its Message Plus appthe switch to Google Messages can be done manually or automatically, which should help users make the switch without losing access to their texts.
The end of AT&T’s text messaging apps is happening in part to make way for the RCS texting standard, which now supports modern messaging features like typing indicators and high-quality media sharing on Android phones running Google Messages and Apple iPhones running iOS 18. AT&T has promised to support RCS by pre-loading Google Messages first to your phones in 2021 and beyond committing to the Jibe platform powering those better messaging features in 2023.
Watch this: Android 15: The best new features to try
What is AT&T Messaging and why is it shutting down?
AT&T Messages was a carrier-provided text messaging app available on Android phones and tablets. The AT&T Messages Backup and Sync app provided SMS and MMS messages on phones, while also backing up message history. AT&T Messages for Tablet lets you access the same text messages from your tablet, using that cloud backup.
AT&T began sending notices to customers about the shutdown earlier this year, with the tablet app starting alerting users on June 1 and the phone app starting providing notices three months before the shutdown.
In his support page about the shutdown, AT&T mentions that Google Messages can be used on both phones and tablets, and any saved messages will appear within Google Messages after the switch. However, one significant part that doesn’t carry over is cloud backup. After closing the AT&T apps, the carrier-provided cloud backup will be deleted.
In addition to shutting down AT&T Messages, the carrier is pushing Google Messages as the new default messaging app for Android users. That encourages customers who use other messaging apps to make the switch as well by providing instructions for switching from other messaging apps to Google Messages.
Most phones purchased from AT&T after February 25, 2022 should already have Google Messages available by default. Phones purchased before that may include AT&T Messages, while Galaxy phones may see Samsung Messages as their default messaging app.
How do I switch and what do I need to know about RCS messaging?
Switching from AT&T Messages to another messaging app is easy. According to AT&T’s support pagephones should automatically switch to a different default messaging app even if you don’t do anything proactively beforehand. This may include Google Messages, if pre-installed, or another text messaging app such as Samsung Messages depending on your device.
If you want to do the replacement yourself before the service shuts down, you can start by downloading Google Messages or another messaging app from the Play Store, in case your phone doesn’t already have the preferred alternative installed. When you launch this app for the first time, it should prompt you to set it as your new default messaging app. If not, you can also do it from your phone Settings application, tapping Default applicationsthen Default SMS application and from there select the desired messaging application.
Since different Android phones often have different menu layouts, you can also look for the default SMS option.
If you do switch to Google Messages, you’ll also get the option to turn on RCS messaging, which I’d recommend. This will enable a richer messaging experience between Android phones also running Google Messages and iPhone users running iOS 18. This includes typing indicators, read receipts, group chats and high-quality media sharing.
When you text other Android users via RCS on Google Messages, your texts will also be encrypted. At this time, RCS does not support encryption between iOS and Android, but that feature may come in the future.
However, it is an important distinction because it is recent The FBI and the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency are warning that wireless carriers are the target of ongoing cyberattacks, making them potentially vulnerable to hacking. The way to avoid this is to ensure that your texts are encrypted, which can be handled by the many chat apps available on iOS and Android such as WhatsApp, Signal and Facebook Messenger.
