You can use the Notes app on your iPhone to send secret messages

Have you ever wanted to send secret messages using your phone? Turns out, you can do it without resorting to shady third-party apps. If you have an iPhone, head straight to the built-in Notes app and get ready to have secret chats with any of your contacts.

No matter the nature of your private conversation, you have a lot of options available. Apps like Signal and WhatsApp are popular for their emphasis on privacy. Why complicate things when you don’t have to?

The built-in Notes app for iOS is a secret weapon for private conversations. It’s always cool when you find a way to use an app beyond its intended purpose. It’s almost like you’re using it in a sneaky way you shouldn’t, but all the pieces are there to make it an easy way to have private conversations with someone. We’ll break it all down below.

For more iOS tips, check out what’s new in iOS 17.5 and How to easily view and copy Wi-Fi passwords on iPhone or iPad .

Create a note in the Notes app

On your iPhone, launch the Notes app and tap Compose button in the lower right corner to create a new note. Then type anything into the note to keep it, otherwise it will be automatically deleted when you exit the note. You can also just go to an existing note, but it’s better to start over with a new one.

Customize your note sharing options to add collaborators

Once your note is done and ready to go, you can start the process of adding someone else as a collaborator, which means they can read and edit everything in the note. To get started, tap More button in the upper right corner, then press Share note.

Now touch Sharing options and make sure that Possibility of making changes option is selected in Permissions. You should also disable Anyone can add people in case you want to be the only person who can add collaborators to your note. Return to the last page when you are done configuring these settings.

Add people and share the link

Then choose a method to share the note: You can send it via text message, email, social media, and more. If you swipe through the sharing options, you can also choose Copy linkwhich copies the note link to the clipboard and allows you to paste it anywhere.

In this example I will choose Copy link note sharing option.

At the top of the Copy Link page, enter the email address or phone number of the person you want to access the note. You can also tap To add icon to search for contacts. Adding a contact to the note is required. If you share a link without adding a contact, the other person will not be able to see or edit the note, even with the link.

Finally, hit Copy To combine to copy the note link to your clipboard and share it with a colleague.

Send secret messages with Notes

The recipient now needs to open the note link and accept the invitation. If they accept, they will be redirected to the Notes app and the note you just created.

To communicate, simply type something into a note that the other person can see in real time without you having to click “send.” They’ll also be notified whenever the note is changed.

Each person in the note will have a corresponding color (just for a moment) so everyone knows who wrote what. You can also swipe right from the center of the note to see the name of the person who wrote the message, as well as the timestamp of when the message was written and any corresponding colors.

You can also touch Share note button (with a check mark icon), go to Manage shared note and then switch to Highlight all changesThis way, all messages will be permanently highlighted in their corresponding color, making the conversation easier to read.

If you want to be more reserved in your communication, delete your message or the other person’s message to cross it out of the note. This way, your conversation will be more like a Snapchat one, with fleeting or short-lived messages that strangers won’t see if they search your notes. You can do this with any text in your notes, as well as photos, videos, links, drawings, or other attachments you add to the note.

Delete Your Secret Chat For Good

Not all secret conversations can last forever, so it’s time to end them.

If you are the owner of a note and want to keep it intact for everyone but prevent them from editing it, you can easily do so. In the top right corner, tap See the participants button and press Manage shared noteTo remove a participant, you can swipe left on their name and then tap To remove or you can touch their name and then touch Remove access.

Additionally, you can touch Stop sharing option that will not only remove participants from the note, but also delete the note from all their devices.

If you don’t own a note, you can simply delete it from the Notes app.

For more tech tips, be sure to read up on how to save money by renting an Airtag for travel and two settings you can change on your iPhone to make it go to sleep faster.