r/GoogleMessages

I wanted to make a standalone post for this because I've been working at fixing this for days and the solution posted in some comments by u/starcowboy26 worked and it needs to be screamed from the rooftops!

u/starcowboy26:

Try the following as it was the only thing that worked for me:

I know this is gonna sound insane but after trying every single troubleshooting tip on the Internet and spending over 6 hours on Verizon support, the only thing that finally worked was:

- turn off RCS

- connect to any vpn server in paris france

- turn RCS back on, voila it connects

- turn VPN off

Hi fellow redditors. I’ve been increasingly frustrated with how Google Messages handles conversation organization.

Google appears to be leaning on Archive + Search instead of offering folders or categories like Personal, Health, Work, OTPs, Promotions, etc. I can live with that approach in theory—but there’s a major problem: search doesn’t appear to include archived conversations.

So if I archive a conversation with a doctor, pharmacy, insurance company, business, or other contact to keep my inbox manageable, I may later search for that provider and get nothing. The only option is manually scrolling through a potentially huge archive.

That defeats the purpose of both archiving and search.

For me, this isn’t just an aesthetic preference. Having hundreds of unrelated conversations in one list creates significant cognitive clutter, while archiving them makes important information harder to retrieve. I am personally disabled, live with cancer, work, and have a personal life. This issue isn't just frustrating but it is affecting my cognitive overload, my mental and physical health, my capacity and time, and my autonomy.

I’ve submitted feedback to Google, but I’m curious:

- How are other people managing this?

- Is there some workaround I’m missing?

- How can users effectively push Google to address this?

- Are there alternative SMS/RCS apps with genuinely better organization without sacrificing core functionality?

At minimum, I think Google Messages needs searchable archives. Ideally, it also needs user-defined folders or conversation categories.

Edit/Correction: I was mistaken about the title part of this post: Google Messages search does appear to search archived conversations. My broader concern about organization remains. Search works when you remember enough about a conversation to know what to search for; folders/categories help when you only remember the context and need to visually narrow down a large conversation list.

I had the Google messages themes..wake up this morning and it's gone! Clicking the three dots pulls up only the "change colors" option and the themes I had set, also gone. 😡

Recently switched my entire family line over from T-Mobile to Verizon... I didn't get a new phone (stayed on Pixel 8 Pro) and 4 out the total lines are Samsung Galaxy S26s - and ever since we switched, RCS has not been able to connect for 5 out 7 lines. The only ones that are stick working fine are the iPhones...

Idk how to fix this... I've tried every Reddit method incl. clearing cache, disabling Google chat, resetting network settings, trying IMEI 2, reactivating SIM, deleting the T-Mobile esim, and have been on the phone with multiple support people for hours already... How do I even know if it will work if I turn off RCS for 3 days (the last thing support said to try). For reference this is my 5th day with my phone (which is not a new phone - still the same phone I was using) and for the rest of my family they have all switched to new phones - so I have 5 out of 7 total lines that all have the RCS issue.

My account manager has said things repeatedly like oh this is an easy fix, these support people will fix it within 30 min... If you go to a store they will be able to fix it immediately... Oh only the Pixel 8 Pro will have this problem, the rest of your phones will be fine (they weren't)...

Nothing is working... I've never had so many issues switching to a carrier before and I've done ATT to T-Mobile and vice versa... And I don't even know if I should cancel this whole Verizon plan because returning the phones will be $50 per line...

So I'm on day 5 of RCS issues with my Fold8. I'm curious, can anyone with other carriers who got unlocked Fold8s confirm if their RCS activated with no issues?

Hi all - i switched from a galaxy fold 6 (with RCS working) to a fold 8 and for some reason my RCS refuses to connect. It shows as tryign to connect, followed by an error code 3100. Things i have done to try and resolve this:

1. turn on airplane mode, delete cache and data from carrier services and carrier communications and also delete cache from messages, and then turn airplane mode off and open messages

2. uninstall all updates to messages

3. call verizon (my carrier) and get a new esim and ensure that RCS is turned on on the new esim

4. disable RCS here: https://messages.google.com/disable-chat

5. sent google feedback via the submit feedback button.

Nothing seems to be working (obviously i restarted my phone a bunch of times too).

Last night i turned off RCS all night and turned it back on this morning, hoping it would connect but its still stuck in the same loop of trying to connect and then failing.

Verizon was at the end of their rope and didn't have any more ideas and thinks its an issue at google but i don't know how to contact google or get any help from them so would really appreciate some help from all of you.

Thank you!

There are now THREE threads on my google messaging app between my fiance and i. On my fiances side, its all one thread. I am so beyond frustrated. Samsung forced me to switch to this app a couple months ago and its been nothing but problems since then. PLEASE tell me how to fix this, I hate hate hate it.

Hi everyone, I messed up my WhatsApp migration and desperately need advice on recovering my chats.What Happened:The Switch · Moved from an old Samsung phone to a new OnePlus Nord Lite.The Mistake · Forgot to do the QR code scan transfer. I just swapped the SIM card instead.The Result · New phone loaded a blank slate. I then opened WhatsApp on my old Samsung, and it updated to a blank slate too.Current Data State:The Good · I have a local msgstore.db.crypt14 backup file saved on my old phone that goes up to December 2025.The Bad · I cannot find or access any chat data from January 2026 up until yesterday.Steps Taken · I tried using AI tools for fixes and requested a WhatsApp account report, but nothing has restored the actual chat logs.

My Questions: Is the data from Jan 2026 to yesterday gone forever since it wasn't backed up, or is it hidden somewhere in the local Android system files?Any guidance would be deeply appreciated!

Messaging my ex and his contact pfp disappeared. The message I sent still has double- check marks showing, so im assuming im not blocked? Likely archived, muted, read- receipts off. (But I was thrown off when his pfp suddenly disappeared when I sent my message)

Any insight would be appreciated since we hate this stupid app

I've been using the beta version for a few weeks. It still shows that I'm a beta tester for it on Google Play, but basically all the beta features are gone. I've restarted my phone (S24U) and still nothing. Anyone else having the same problem?

So title,

I've deleted updates reinstalled, rebooted my device, turned rcs chats on and off, and cleared the cache, tried everything that I could think of. When sending photos and the flash is enabled the flash does not activate at all. When I do the same thing on telegram, wechat, discord, the flash works perfectly. Same thing with videos, flash enabled and flash doesn't work when taking videos specifically for Google messages. This just started happening in the last 2 weeks or so.

I currently have the Google pixel 10 and it's up to date with updates.

I just switched over to Verizon (from AT&T) yesterday and haven't been able to my RCS connected on the new S26 ultra.

I currently have it off as I am trying the 24hr wait suggested. The error code that I keep receiving is 3100.

Also, on the older messages, whenever there's an image, sometimes it says, "Unable to load file." Are those gone? It's fine if they are, since a lot of the texts weren't too important, but I'm just wondering if it's still possible to retrieve them.

I have/had 13gb of text messages/pics/videos that I wanted to remove from my phone to clear up space in my S23.

I picked the text chat that held the 13gb of memory. Hit the delete button and it moved into the trash bin within seconds. No problem.

I then try to permanently delete the text chat from my phone and Google Messages suddenly became unstable and for 12 hours now, I haven't been able to open Google Messages properly.

Google Messages opens as a black screen. I sometimes open and close it multiple times and it manages to open into the actual app but then it becomes unstable and doesn't open any messages and becomes unstable again. I try the same thing again and I can go into my Google Messages Account but when I try hitting the trash folder, it becomes unstable and won't open it. Haven't tried any other setting option. And if I manage to open the app again after is "working", it stops working properly again.

I cannot send or receive messages since it I started the deleting process.

The memory is still on my phone and it hasn't reduced at all.

I tried clearing the cache and restarting my phone and it won't open the app properly. The clear data button is not highlighted so it doesn't allow me to press it. I have forced stop Google Messages and the problem still persists.

I switched over from Samsung messages to Google messages and I stopped complaining because none of the stuff that we put in the thread actually made a difference because Google truly doesn't care. With that being said is it really that hard to have an option under one name to press select all and go through the ones that you want to delete instead of doing it one by one? What a joke.

Unlocked Fold8 on Verizon. Precious phone was a Verizon S25+ with 0 issues.

Y'all I'm pulling my hair out. I've done everything. Cleared cache and data and Google Messages and Carrier Services. Turn it off and roll back updates and all that. I've gotten new eSIMs. Today I'm going to get a physical SIM to see if that makes and difference. But I'm worried it's the phone at this point.

If youve got any tips, please scream them at me lol.