Messages does not offer a button that jumps to the first message in a conversation, but you can search for words, people, photos, links, and documents to find an older iMessage without manually scrolling through every message.
Open the Messages app and return to the list of conversations.
2
Reveal Search
In iOS 26, tap the search field at the bottom of the screen. In iOS 18 or earlier, swipe down in the conversation list to reveal the search field.
3
Enter a useful term
Search for a distinctive word, a contact name, a link, or a description of a photo that appears in the older message.
4
Review the results
Tap a matching result to open the relevant conversation and inspect the surrounding messages.
5
Narrow the search
Add another word, a person, or a content type such as Photos or Links to reduce a broad result list.
6
Search a specific conversation
Open the conversation, tap the contact or group name at the top, then choose a category such as Photos, Links, or Documents to find an attachment.
7
Recover only if needed
If the conversation was recently deleted, use Apple’s documented Messages recovery process. Recently deleted conversations do not appear in normal search results.
Video walkthrough
If it does not work
If Search finds nothing, try a different word or attachment category. The first message may not contain the term you chose.
Apple does not document a command to jump straight to the very first iMessage, so avoid apps that claim they can expose or reconstruct private message history.
ⓘ Sources and verification
Checked against official documentation on . Scope: iPhone & iPad.
Follow the linked first-party guidance if labels differ after a platform or app update.
