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How to use bold text in your text messages on an iPhone by enabling subject lines

Written by Steven John
iPhone Lydia
You can use bold text in your iPhone text messages by creating a subject line. Hollis Johnson/Business Insider
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It would be great if there were a way to send iPhone text messages with bold, italicized, or underlined text. But for now, any text messages you send with the iPhone's default messages app will have to stay written in a standard font.

That is, except for their subject line. By editing your iPhone's message settings, you can give every text a bolded subject line.

And once you start sending text messages with bolded subject lines, you probably won't ever want to go back. Sending messages with bolded subjects helps them stand out, and can be an asset when texting in a professional context. 

Here's how to set it up.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

iPhone 11 (From $699.99 at Best Buy)

How to bold text in iPhone text messages using subject lines

1. Open your iPhone's Settings app and scroll down to and tap "Messages."

2. Near the bottom of the page, underneath the "SMS/MMS" heading, tap the toggle switch next to "Show Subject Field" so it turns green and is switched on.

Bold iPhone Text 1
Swipe the toggle to the right to turn it on.  Steven John/Business Insider

3. Now open your Messages app and start a new message or open an existing chain.

4. You will now see a "Subject" field added to the area where you enter text. Anything you type there will be bolded when you send the message.

Bold iPhone Text 2
There's no official limit to the length of an iPhone text message subject line.  Steven John/Business Insider

Note, however, that you can't just type your entire text message in this subject line. If you try, the bold text will be turned back into regular text.

Bold iPhone Text
You'll need a body text beneath your subject line to make the subject line text appear bold.  Steven John/Business Insider

Although the iPhone's standard text messaging app doesn't let you use bold text, there are a number of other texting apps that do. This includes popular apps like WhatsApp and Discord.

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Steven John
Steven John has been a freelance writer for more than a dozen years and has been a regular contributor to Business Insider since 2017. His work includes a focus on the tech world, covering companies including Apple, Microsoft, Meta, Google, and others. He also reviews restaurants, shares how-to cooking articles, and writes general interest pieces.Steven also writes for publications including Architectural Digest, The Daily Beast, Forbes, and more. In the past, he also wrote for New York Magazine, Mashed, U.S. News & World Report and other outlets. He runs his own outdoor lifestyle site, Dad Gear Review, and co-hosts the Fact Trekkers podcast with his son. He has had two novels published, Three A.M. and Outrider. He graduated from Emerson College with a degree in communications focused on filmmaking.He is an avid outdoorsman and can be frequently found in a kayak or on a mountain trail, often with his family along for the adventure.Expertise:Tech industryTech hardwareOutdoorsCookingRestaurantsDIYPopular articles:Microsoft: A history of the software giant co-founded by Bill Gates, its products and services, jobs, layoffs, and moreYouTube is a major entertainment force. Here's the platform's history, plus how to create a channel and upload videos.Inside the life and career of Bill Gates, the Microsoft co-founder, billionaire, and philanthropistTim Cook net worth: How the Apple leader earns and spends his moneyBecoming an Amazon seller is a simple process. Here's what's involved, plus how you make money and get paid.