How to Fix: iMessages Not Syncing Between Mac and iPhone

For some reason my iMessage just started not syncing to my MacBook Air. I can ‘send’ iMessages but not receive on my MacBook Air.

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——A User from Apple Community

With iMessage enabled on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac that share the same Apple ID, you can reach the same iMessages threads on both your iDevice and Mac. But you may notice that some iPhone messages not sync with Mac after updating to the latest iOS. In fact, you can see a lot of discussion about iMessage/Message problems in the Apple community, and most Apple users will encounter.

In this article, we are going to show you some possible fixes to solve the problem of iMessage not syncing on the Mac issue. Applied to all iPhone and Mac models, including the latest iPhone 15 and MacBook. Here we present you with 6 possible solutions to fix the iMessage not syncing between your Mac and iPhone problem.

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Solution 1. Turn Off iMessage and Turn On It Again

How do I sync messages from my Mac to my iPhone? The first thing you should do when faced with this problem is try to turn off iMessage on both the Mac and the iPhone and then turn it back on.

1. On your iPhone: Go to Settings > Messages > Toggle off iMessage > Wait a few seconds and turn it back on.
2. On your Mac: Open the Messages app and click on Preferences > Choose Accounts> Click Sign Out > Wait a few seconds then sign back in.
3. After the process completes, enable iMessage on both Mac and iPhone, you can check if the iMessages sync properly.

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Solution 2. Check iMessage Settings on iPhone

Make sure you have activated all email addresses you want to use with iMessage:

1. On your iPhone or iPad, go to Settings > Tap on Messages.
2. Choose Send & Receive.
3. Under “YOU CAN BE REACHED BY IMESSAGE AT”, make sure the phone number or email address is checked.

Solution 3. Check iMessage Settings on Mac

1. Open the Messages app on your Mac > Click “Messages” in the top menu.
2. Click “preferences > Choose “Accounts”.
3. Under the “You can be reached for messages at” section, make sure the phone number and Apple ID match the settings on your iPhone.

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Solution 4. Reliable Way to Sync iMessages Between iPhone and Mac

If the above methods could not help you fix iMessage not syncing between iPhone and Mac problem. You can manually transfer messages from your iPhone or iPad to your computer with an iPhone transfer tool named AnyTrans. It is a one-stop iPhone data manager that enables you to transfer iPhone Messages to PC/Mac in a Readable Format very easily [iOS 17 supported].

AnyTrans also supports transferring photos, videos, music, contacts, notes, call history, and more, from iPhone to computer and vice versa, or between iPhones.

Step 1. Free download AnyTrans on your computer. Click on the messages.

Step 2. Preview and select the messages that you want to send to Mac. After being transferred successfully, you can view all iPhone messages on your Mac.

Solution 5. Confirm the Mobile Phone Number with Apple ID

1. Go to appleid.apple.com and log in with your Apple ID and password
2. Under “Account” make sure you are reachable at the correct phone numbers and email addresses.

Solution 6. Log in with the same Apple ID

On your Mac make sure you log in with the same Apple ID as you used on the iPhone:

1. Open the “Messages” app > Go to “Preferences”.
2. Click on the “Accounts” button > Click Enable this account.
3. Select the email address you have registered with the Apple ID.

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Solution 7. Using the Device that is not Syncing to Send out Messages

Sometimes, it is because one of your devices may only be delayed during the update, so using that device can also trigger a message update. The following steps are how to do that:

1. Check which of your devices is not updated correctly.
2. If it’s your iPhone, try using your iPhone to send a message, if it’s your Mac, use your Mac to send a message.
3. After the message is sent, this usually prompts the device to start updating the message so that iMessage is properly synchronized on all devices.

The Bottom Line

That’s all about how to fix the message not syncing between iPhone and Mac. The above methods also can be used to fix the message sync issues, like iMessage on Mac not updating, iMessage not working on Mac, etc. If you have any other advice on solving the iPhone messages not syncing problem, please share it in the comment section below. At the same time, don’t forget to download AnyTrans to give it a try.