RCS
Rich Communication Services
A global industry standard for phone messaging and multimedia communication. It replaces SMS and MMS with a new platform that is more modern and flexible.
See: SMS
See: MMS
RCS is one component of a larger effort to update all mobile industry standards to be fully IP-based (like the Internet). 4G LTE was the foundation for this effort, which also included VoLTE for voice calls.
As a replacement for SMS/MMS, RCS includes modern chat features like presence, so you can see when the other party is offline, when they are typing, and whether they received messaged you have sent. The RCS standard also supports functions such as large file sharing and live video sharing.
RCS is intended to be built into phones as part of the default messaging app/experience, and is planned to be as ubiquitous and interoperable as SMS.
Apple added support for RCS to iOS in 2024. There are still messaging features that are exclusive to each platform, but basic rich-messaging functionality now works between Android and iPhones, thanks to RCS.
Last updated Thursday by Rich Brome
Editor in Chief Rich became fascinated with cell phones in 1999, creating mobile web sites for phones with tiny black-and-white displays and obsessing over new phone models. Realizing a need for better info about phones, he started Phone Scoop in 2001, and has been helming the site ever since. Rich has spent two decades researching and covering every detail of the phone industry, traveling the world to tour factories, interview CEOs, and get every last spec and photo Phone Scoop readers have come to expect. As an industry veteran, Rich is a respected voice on phone technology of the past, present, and future.
