How to Print Out Text Messages

Despite an increasingly digital world, there are still times when physical media is necessary. You’ve probably printed photos from your phone to decorate your home, share with friends and family, or keep for yourself. But printability doesn’t stop there; you can also print text messages.

As a writer, I coordinate content plans with small business owners. Most conversations are calls, but if there’s something specific or important to discuss, I use texts to create a record of it – and it has proven to be helpful plenty of times.

My client and I agreed on a price for content creation that started at one rate and increased after an initial trial period. However, after the trial period, I still received the lower rate. They had obviously forgotten about the rate change, so when we scheduled our meeting to discuss the next set of content I would create for them, I decided to bring physical proof of the agreement. This way, they wouldn’t think I was trying to mislead them by changing the price without notice.

So, I watched some guides and researched how to print out text messages on my iPhone X, brought the printout to the meeting, and resolved the miscommunication.

Whether it’s to prove yourself or remind yourself of something for personal or professional reasons, you should know how to print texts from your iPhone or Android – and I’m happy to share what I’ve learned to help you find the best method for you.

Why would you need to print text messages?

Digital channels like SMS and instant messaging make it easy to quickly and effectively communicate with friends, family, and customers. Plus, you can reference your conversation history to see old messages, double-check important information like appointments or billing details, and protect yourself from miscommunication.

But sometimes, we need to turn our digital text conversations into something more physical – and that’s where knowing how to print out text messages can help.

Personal reasons to print out text messages from your phone

There are plenty of personal reasons to print out texts from friends, family, role models, or even enemies. From accountability to keepsakes, sometimes having texts you can hold in your hand is more convenient or valuable than digital records.

Save cherished messages from friends and family

With so much conversation happening via instant messaging like iMessage or SMS, the messages we share with loved ones can often live on past us – as long as you don’t delete them. It’s a great reason to teach Grandma how to text!

You can print important text messages that you’ve had with someone you’ve lost, like a grandparent, friend, or loved one, and keep them somewhere safe. That way, you can make sure you have a copy just in case something happens to your phone or messages.

Motivate yourself to do something

Most of us have had posters up on our walls at some point in our lives (hang in there, anyone?). But, sometimes, that inspiration can come from a text message instead of an adorable kitten or celebrity quote.

If someone doubts your ability to do something or encourages you to try it, you can print and use those texts to motivate yourself to prove them right or wrong. Then, you can rub it in their face when you succeed.

Document communication for legal proceedings

Saving personal texts isn’t always for positive reasons; sometimes, you need to protect yourself by saving and printing messages for your own safety.

Domestic disputes, divorce proceedings, restraining orders, and various other legal processes may require you to prove that someone said or did something, like a threat or abusive language, which you can produce in court with a printed text.

Create a paper trail for group communication

We’ve all had group projects or work teams where someone isn’t pulling their weight. If you assign individual responsibilities to the project or task via texts and one of them is incomplete or done incorrectly, you can prove that you’re not the one at fault and protect yourself from disciplinary action or a poor grade with printed texts.

Business reasons to print out text messages

Business conversations frequently include information like pricing details or quotes for timelines. Fortunately, with physical copies, you can keep track of specific details to avoid misunderstandings with clients, amongst other things.

Improve customer service conversations

Customer service is a crucial but complex part of business. Finding the right way to communicate with customers and clients can dramatically impact the relationships your team forms with them, which is crucial for returning business and customer satisfaction (CSAT).

If your customer service team or representatives are experiencing low customer satisfaction, you can print the texts from your business texting platform and review them as a team to see where you can improve. You might find that you need to personalize texts more to improve engagement, including using custom fields like their name, business, services they receive, or other important information that’s a part of their customer profile in your messages.

Prove previous agreements

If you or your company use texting to communicate with customers or clients, you’ve probably provided quotes or discussed products and services with them via SMS like I do.

Misunderstandings can happen, especially if your customers and clients aren’t very familiar with texting and can’t access information themselves. But when you know how to print out text messages, you can bring solid evidence to back yourself up and resolve the situation.

Track inappropriate communication

Inappropriate communication has no place in business – neither between customers and agents nor among coworkers.

Unfortunately, not every customer conversation is pleasant. Dealing with angry customers is a difficult part of customer service, but it can also be a learning experience.

Whether an agent made a mistake or simply tried to “put out the fire,” you can print out these conversations and analyze them to figure out how to prevent or disarm abusive customer communication in the future.

Inappropriate communication can also happen between team members, especially when handling operations via text. In some cases, the direct communication that texting enables can make it easier for bullying or harassment to take place in private conversations.

If there’s an issue between coworkers, you can print out text messages as proof that inappropriate communication is taking place and use it to protect yourself or your team. Alternatively, if you’re accused of something, you can prove your innocence with printed text logs.

Document and track work progress

Large projects often include multiple working parts, including different teams and decision-makers. If your team is communicating via text message and you receive work instructions that end up being incorrect or causing a problem, you’re able to look back at the conversation and can print the texts to identify where the work went wrong.

How to print out text messages from your phone

Now that you know why you’d print a text, it’s time to learn how to print a text from your phone. While I used my iPhone to retrieve and print my text conversation, some of the strategies I considered can also work for Android devices, so we’ll go over those as well.

How to print out text message conversations on iPhone

Apple’s operating system and ecosystem of apps offer many of the same methods as Android but also include some unique methods of printing your texts.

I had limited options because my printer wasn’t wireless or Bluetooth-enabled, and I use a Windows PC. So, I had to email the screenshots to myself and then print them via my computer’s USB cable. However, you may have more options.

How to take a screenshot on your iPhone

Many iPhone printing options start with screenshots. While the exact way you take a screenshot will depend on the type of iPhone you have, most of the process looks like this:

1. Go to your Messages app and find the text messages you want to take a picture of
2. Scroll so that the messages are visible on your screen. Remember that a screenshot will only capture what you can see.
3. 1. (Home button) Press the ‘Home’ button and the ‘Lock’ button simultaneously. It’s better to press the home button slightly earlier to avoid locking your phone and having to start over.
   2. (No home button) Press the ‘Volume up’ button on the top left of your device and the ‘Lock’ button simultaneously. It’s also best to slightly prioritize the ‘Volume up’ button to avoid accidentally locking your phone.

Once you’ve taken the screenshot, it should appear in your Photos app, which you can access by going to ‘Albums’ and ‘Recent.’

Print iPhone texts using your computer

The simplest and most versatile option for printing iPhone texts is taking screenshots and emailing them to yourself, which was my choice. Here’s what it looks like:

1. Select your screenshot(s) from your photo album. You can choose more than one by pressing ‘Select’ in the top right corner.
2. Press the ‘Share’ icon (square box with an arrow up) in the bottom left corner.
3. Select ‘Mail’ from the bar
4. Enter your email and then press ‘Send’ in the top right corner

Alternatively, if you have a Mac computer, you can use iCloud Photos to automatically sync pictures from your phone to your computer without emailing them or AirDrop them from your phone to your Mac for easy access.

I plugged my laptop into my printer, but you can also print wirelessly from any connected computer.

Print texts with AirPrint

If your printer supports AirPrint, a native Apple tool, you can print right from your iPhone. After you make sure your printer offers AirPrint, you can start the process of printing from your iPhone:

1. Tap on your screenshot(s)
2. Tap the share symbol in the bottom-left corner of your screen. It looks like a box with an arrow.
3. Scroll all the way down (not across) the menu that pops up, and tap the “Print” option.
4. Click “Select Printer” in the upper right of the screen, then select your printer.
5. Tap “Print” in the top-right corner.

Printers have limited support for AirPrint, so if your device isn’t compatible, try another method.

Print texts from your Mac

If you have an iPhone and Mac, you can access iMessage through Apple’s Messages app on your computer, similar to your phone.

1. Download the Messages app on your Mac.
2. Go to ‘Settings’ > Messages’ on your iPhone.
3. Tap ‘Text Message Forwarding’ and enable your Mac on the device list.
4. Return to the Messages desktop app.
5. Choose the conversation you want to screenshot and position the texts on your screen.
6. 1. (Page Method) Press the ‘Command’ key + ‘P’ on your keyboard at the same time, then follow the printing dialog box.
   2. (Screenshot Method) Press the ‘Command’ key + ‘Shift’ + ‘4’ to capture a portion of your screen with the Apple snipping tool.
7. Click and drag the crosshair to encompass the texts you want to screenshot, then release the mouse to select the snippet.
8. Once it saves, go to your photos and find the screenshot.
9. 1. (Shortcut Print) With the image open, press ‘Command’ + ‘P’ at the same time, then follow the printing dialog box.
   2. (Manual Print) Select ‘File’ in the top left corner, choose ‘Print,’ then follow the printing dialog box.

Printing from your Mac is the most convenient option for iPhone users who don’t want to deal with emailing the images to themselves. However, you need both a Mac computer and an iPhone to make it work.

Print texts with your printer’s iPhone app

Some printer brands offer iPhone apps that simplify the printing process without email. Printing from an iPhone printer app may include:

1. Navigate to your printer brand’s app or download it from The App Store.
2. Access your photos and choose ‘Share’ to send them to the app, or select files through the app.
3. Choose the “Print” option and follow the instructions.

The exact steps will depend on how your printer’s app works, but it will usually allow you to choose images directly from the app and print using their interface. However, if it’s not clear, check your app’s guide.

Print texts via Bluetooth

If you enable Bluetooth, you can wirelessly print screenshots from your iPhone directly on your printer. Printing through Bluetooth should be similar to the following:

1. Enable the Bluetooth option for both your printer and your phone.
2. Go to ‘Settings’ > ‘Bluetooth’ and select your printer from the list.
3. Go to your photos and select your screenshot(s).
4. Tap on the share symbol in the bottom left and scroll to the bottom of the screen.
5. Select “Print.”
6. Choose your printer and confirm the print settings.

Your steps may look a bit different, depending on your device and printer type. However, if you have a Bluetooth printer, it’s a quick and convenient option.

How to print out text messages on Android

The right method for printing out your text messages on Android will depend on your device type, the software you have available, and your printer. But most begin with taking a screenshot.

How to take a screenshot on your Android

If you’re printing directly from your phone, you’ll need to know how to take an Android screenshot for many of the different printing methods:

1. Go to your phone’s messaging app and find the text you want to screenshot
2. Position the texts on your screen so they’re visible. You’ll only be able to take a picture of what you can see.
3. 1. Press and hold the ‘Home’ and ‘Volume up’ buttons until you hear a shutter sound or see a flash confirmation that you took the screenshot.
   2. You can also use Google Assistant to take a screenshot by saying “Hey Google, take a screenshot” or typing “take a screenshot” into the Assistant’s command line.

Once you’ve taken the screenshot, it should appear in your photos. Then, you can proceed to one of the strategies below.

Print Android texts using email and your computer

If you have access to the screenshots on your computer, you can print from it wirelessly or using your printer’s USB cable.

1. Select your screenshot(s) from your photo app. You can choose more than one by pressing and holding them until a checkbox appears.
2. Press the ‘Share’ icon (‘v’ that opens to the right) in the bottom left corner or the ‘Send’ icon (square box with an arrow up)
3. Select ‘your email app from the bar
4. Draft your email and send it to your own email address

Once you’ve received the image on your computer, you can download it from the email and print the emailed picture like you would any other image on your computer.

Print texts with Google Messages for Web

If you’re having a hard time screenshotting from your phone or want to skip the emailing process, you can also take screenshots directly from your computer with Google Messages for Web.

1. Download the Google Messages app on your Android phone.
2. Pair your device on the Google Messages authenticator page.
3. Locate the conversation and texts you want to print, ensuring they’re visible on the screen.
4. 1. (Page Method) Click the three dots in the top right corner and choose ‘Print’ from the menu.
   2. Follow the printing dialog to print your texts.
5. 1. (Screenshot Method) Press the ‘Windows’ key + ‘Shift’ + ‘S’ to open the snipping tool, or search for ‘snipping tool’ in the file explorer in the bottom left of your computer.
   2. Select ‘New’ and create a box around the texts you want to capture.
   3. After you take your screenshot, click ‘File’ in the top left, then ‘Print.’
   4. Follow the printing dialog to print your texts

If you have a computer accessible, printing texts from Google Messages for Web is the fastest and easiest method for Android phones after you set the web app up.

Print texts with your printer’s Android app

There’s a chance your printer brand offers its own Android app. Printing from your printer’s app should look something like this:

1. Navigate to the printer’s app or download it from the Google Play store.
2. Access your photos or select files through the app.
3. Choose the “Print” option.

The exact process will vary depending on the printer type, your device, and the app, so be sure to check the instructions in the app.

Print texts via Bluetooth

You can use Bluetooth to print screenshots of texts from your Android device.  The process of printing through Bluetooth should look something like this:

1. Make sure the Bluetooth option is on for both your printer and your phone.
2. Navigate to the Bluetooth menu.
3. Select your printer.
4. Navigate to your photos, then find your screenshot.
5. Tap on the share symbol and scroll to the bottom of the screen.
6. Select “Print.”
7. Choose your printer, and confirm “Print.”

The exact process will depend on your device and may require you to pair your printer with your phone first, which is different for each printer brand.

Printing from a Business Text Messaging Platform

If you run a business and communicate with customers regularly, you’ll want to be able to print out texts easily. They can be critical for legal situations, like if you need to show texts in court or for compliance reviews.

Business text messaging services make it easy to print out conversations between you and your customers. Your business SMS platform never deletes messages, and allows you to search a message body or contact for the messages you need. Then, you can export and print that chat. To print from any business SMS platform, you will follow a process that should look something like this:

1. Navigate to “Administration” on your navigation bar.
2. Select the inbox you want to export chats from. This could be the inbox from your sales team, for example, or your customer service team. Alternatively, you may just have one inbox if you’re a smaller company.
3. Click “Settings” and scroll down to “Export Chats.” Then, you’ll be prompted to select the dates from which you’d like to export chats. You can also choose whether you want to export chats individually or all in one CSV.
4. Click “Export” on the bottom right of the window.
5. Click on the link next to the Export Chats link. You will download a .zip file with the CSV, which you can open in your spreadsheet management system and print.

Keeping a reliable record of text messages that you can print at any time is critical for a business. With a business SMS platform, you’ll know that you can print out important messages any time you need them.

Printing Texts from Your Phone or Computer

How do you print out text messages? There’s no need to wonder any longer. There are quite a few options for printing texts from your phone or computer. If you’re an individual who only needs to complete this process one or two times, you may want to print from your iPhone or send screenshots to your computer. If you’re a company, however, you’ll want to print right from your business SMS platform, which allows you to search through all of your undeleted customer messages, find just the one you’re looking for, and print on demand.