iOS 6 and OS X Mountain Lion: Link your phone number and Apple ID for use with FaceTime and iMessage

Summary

Learn how to link your iPhone telephone number to your Apple ID with iOS 6 for use with FaceTime and iMessage.

Products Affected

OS X Mountain Lion, iPad, iPhone, iPod touch

With iOS 6, your iPhone telephone number is linked to your Apple ID when you sign in to FaceTime or iMessage. This allows you to use your iPhone number with FaceTime and iMessage on other iOS devices with iOS 6 and on Macs with OS X v10.8.2 or later.

You can sign in to your Apple ID on an iPhone by tapping Settings > FaceTime and Settings > Messages > Send & Receive.

Find out which addresses are enabled with FaceTime and iMessage on your iOS devices by tapping:

  • Settings > Messages > Send & Receive > You can be reached by iMessage at:
  • Settings > FaceTime > You can be reached by FaceTime at:

On OS X, find out which addresses are enabled:

  • In Messages, choose Messages > Preferences > Accounts tab. Select iMessage in the left column, and your contact preferences should display under "You can be reached for messages at:".
  • In FaceTime, choose FaceTime > Preferences. Your contact preferences should display under "You can be reached for calls at:".

Using iMessage and FaceTime with multiple devices

Learn how to set up iMessage on multiple devices. The same steps apply when setting up FaceTime.

After signing in to an Apple ID on your iPhone, you will see all addresses that are verified with the account. Tap an address to enable it on the device. The telephone number will be dimmed when viewing these settings on an iPhone. If you do not want to use iMessage with your iPhone telephone number, tap Settings > Messages and turn iMessage off.

You can sign in to the same Apple ID on another device. These images show the iMessage settings on an iPad and OS X Mountain Lion when using the same Apple ID.

iPad:

OS X Mountain Lion:

After signing in to the Apple ID on another device, the iPhone will receive a notification. The notifications below explain that the Apple ID and phone number have been used with iMessage on a MacBook Pro. You will receive a notification for every address or phone number you enable on each additional device.

Additional Information

How to unlink a phone number

To remove a phone number from an Apple ID, sign out of FaceTime and Messages on your iPhone. Sign out in the following locations:

  • Settings > Messages > Send & Receive. Tap your Apple ID, then tap Sign Out.
  • Settings > FaceTime. Tap your Apple ID, then tap Sign Out.

This should remove your phone number from other devices using the same Apple ID with FaceTime and Messages.

If the phone number is still available on other devices after you sign out of FaceTime and iMessage on the iPhone, you may need to sign out of iMessage and FaceTime on all your devices, then sign in to FaceTime and Messages again on devices you want to use.

Note: If you no longer have access to the iPhone that is using the number you want to remove, reset your Apple ID password.

Phone number missing on iPad or iPod touch

If your phone number is not listed on an iPod touch or iPad, follow these steps:

  1. Update to the latest version of iOS.
  2. Verify that you're using the same Apple ID that you are using on your iPhone.
  3. On your iPad or iPod touch, sign out of your Apple ID in the following locations:
    • Settings > Messages > Send & Receive. Tap your Apple ID, then tap Sign Out.
    • Settings > FaceTime. Tap your Apple ID, then tap Sign Out.
  4. Sign in to your Apple ID with FaceTime and iMessage.

If your phone number is still not listed, follow these steps:

  1. Sign out of your Apple ID on all iOS devices, including your iPhone, in the following locations:
    • Settings > Messages > Send & Receive. Tap your Apple ID, then tap Sign Out.
    • Settings > FaceTime. Tap your Apple ID, then tap Sign Out.
  2. Sign in to your Apple ID on your iPhone.
  3. When activation is complete, your Apple ID and all verified email addresses should be visible in Settings > Messages > Receive At and also in Settings > FaceTime.
  4. Now sign in to your Apple ID on your other iOS devices.

Phone number missing on OS X

If your phone number is not listed in Mountain Lion, follow these steps:

  1. Update to the latest version of Mountain Lion on your mac.
  2. Verify that you're using the same Apple ID that you are using on your iPhone.
  3. Sign out of your Apple ID at these locations on your mac:
    • Messages > Preferences > Accounts tab. Click iMessage in the left column, then click Sign Out.
    • FaceTime > Preferences. Select your Apple ID, then click Sign Out.
  4. Close FaceTime and Messages on your mac.
  5. Open FaceTime and Messages, then sign in to your Apple ID in Preferences.

If your phone number is still not listed on your mac, try these steps:

  1. Sign out of your Apple ID on all iOS devices, including your iPhone, in the following locations:
    • Settings > Messages > Send & Receive, tap your Apple ID, then tap Sign Out.
    • Settings > FaceTime, tap your Apple ID, then tap Sign Out.
  2. Sign out of your Apple ID in Mountain Lion at the following locations:
    • Messages > Preferences > Accounts tab. Click iMessage in the left column, then click Sign Out.
    • FaceTime > Preferences. Select your Apple ID, then click Sign Out.
  3. Close FaceTime and Messages on your mac.
  4. Sign in to your Apple ID on your iPhone.
  5. When activation is complete, your Apple ID and all verified email addresses should be visible in Settings > Messages > Send & Receive and also in Settings > FaceTime.
  6. Open FaceTime and iMessage, then sign in to your Apple ID in the application's Preferences menu.
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