Apple released the first public beta of iOS 18 on July 15, just over a month after the tech giant announced the software at its Worldwide Developers Conference in June. Apple said the update will bring a host of new features to your iPhone, including RCS messaging and more ways to customize your Home screen. And in big news for people who like nuance in their texting, you’ll also be able to make your texts pop with new text effects so your messages can be as loud as you want them to be.
Text effects range from making your text bold to making the letters explode in your message. You can also use these effects on a single word or phrase in a message to add emphasis to what you’re saying. Before these effects, all you could do was capitalize a word or phrase, which is fine in some cases, but sometimes I want to make my words dance on the screen because I’m dancing—badly—while I type.
Learn more: Everything you need to know about the iOS 18 public beta
However, iOS 18 is still in beta, and we recommend downloading a beta only on a device other than your primary device. Since this is not the final version of iOS 18, the update may be buggy and battery life may be short, so it’s best to keep these issues on a secondary device.
Note that the beta is not the final version of iOS 18, so you may see more features available on your iPhone when iOS 18 is released. Apple has said that iOS 18 will be available to the public this fall, but there is no firm date yet.
Here’s how you can make your writing as expressive as you are.
How to access text effects
1. Open messages.
2. Join a discussion.
3. Tap the text box.
4. Press the A with dashes on its left side, which are found above the P on the keyboard.
This opens the text effects menu. At the top of the menu are the formatting options for bold, italic, underline, and strikethrough. Below that are eight different effects: Large, Small, Shake, Nod, Explode, Ripple, Glow, and Jitter.
You can select and use any combination of formatting options at once, including all of them together. However, you can only use one text effect at a time. Text effects also clear any formatting options you’ve selected, so you can’t bold your message and then use the Large effect (which temporarily inflates the size of your message) to show off your enthusiasm.
Most of the effects seem like they could be used in a variety of situations, but a few seem to be well-suited to certain emotions or contexts. Ripple, for example, seems tailor-made for sarcasm, especially when used on a word like “really.”
But be aware that if you select formatting options, you will have to tap the text box again for your keyboard to return to its original state. If you choose a text effect, your keyboard will automatically return to its original state after you tap the desired effect.
How to use multiple text effects in a message
While you can only select one text effect at a time, you can use multiple effects in a single message. Here’s how.
1. Open messages.
2. Join a discussion.
3. Tap the text box.
4. Write your message in full.
5. Highlight the word(s) you want to add an effect to.
6. Press the A with dashes on its left side, which are found above the P on the keyboard.
7. Tap the formatting options or text effect you want to use.
The text formatting or effect will be applied to whatever you have highlighted. You can then highlight and apply additional formatting or effects to other words in the message. This means that you can use all the text effects in a single message if you try hard enough – I believe in you.
To learn more about iOS 18, here’s my hands-on experience with it the first public betawhat you need to know about RCS Messaging and how to customize your home screen.
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