To have iPhone message effects play automatically, such as balloons for “Happy birthday,” go to Settings > Accessibility > Motion and turn on Auto-Play Message Effects. When a message contains one of the trigger phrases, Messages plays the full-screen effect as soon as you open the conversation. Turn the setting off if you’d rather not see effects play on their own.
Automatic effects work in iMessage conversations (blue bubbles), not SMS text messages (green bubbles).
Quick Answer
Settings > Accessibility > Motion > turn on Auto-Play Message Effects.
Turn On Auto-Play Message Effects
- Open Settings and tap Accessibility.
- Tap Motion.
- Turn on Auto-Play Message Effects.
- If Reduce Motion is on, effects may be limited; turn it off to see full animations.
Phrases That Trigger Effects Automatically
| Type this in an iMessage | Effect |
|---|---|
| Happy birthday | Balloons |
| Congratulations | Confetti |
| Happy New Year | Fireworks |
Apple has added a few other seasonal and fun triggers over the years; they vary by iOS version and language.
Send an Effect Manually
- Type your message in an iMessage conversation.
- Touch and hold the Send button (the blue arrow).
- Tap Screen for full-screen effects such as Balloons, Confetti, Fireworks, or Lasers, or Bubble for effects like Slam or Invisible Ink.
- Tap the Send button to send it.
In iOS 18 and later, you can also select words and tap Text Effects to animate individual words, such as Big or Shake.
The same Motion menu also lets you turn video autoplay on or off across the iPhone.
Troubleshooting
- Effects don’t play: Make sure Auto-Play Message Effects is on, Reduce Motion is off, and the message is an iMessage.
- The other person doesn’t see the effect: They may have the setting off, use an older device, or receive the message as SMS.
- Replay an effect: Tap the Replay link under the message.
- Alerts themselves are the problem: See how to set text message vibration or turn off Announce Messages.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my iPhone show balloons when someone says happy birthday?
That phrase triggers the Balloons effect automatically in iMessage.
Can I turn off automatic effects?
Turn off Auto-Play Message Effects. You can still play an effect by tapping Replay.
Do message effects work on iPad and Mac?
Yes. Messages on iPad and Mac also show effects sent with iMessage.
Summary
- Open Settings > Accessibility > Motion.
- Turn on Auto-Play Message Effects.
- Type trigger phrases like Happy birthday in iMessage.
- Or hold the Send button to choose an effect.
Kermit Matthews is a freelance writer based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with more than a decade of experience writing technology guides. He has a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Computer Science and has spent much of his professional career in IT management.
He specializes in writing content about iPhones, Android devices, Microsoft Office, and many other popular applications and devices.