In the macOS Dock, you frequently get badges on a number of apps drawing your attention to a new message or something important that you need to know about. However, sometimes the badge on the Massages tend to stick around even after you have opened, viewed, and sometimes even replied to the message.
That can be annoying as it constantly keeps drawing your attention away from other tasks you might be doing on your computer. It now becomes an itch that you cannot scratch away.
It mostly happens with the Messages app. Most people when they encounter this ‘itch’ turn to online Apple forums or discussion boards where you will get all assortment of recommendations. However, let us save you the time and pain of having to go through all the ‘discussions’ on such platforms. As some are wild and you will probably get distracted into reading stuff that you were not looking for in the first place.
The KillAll Dock command
Open the Terminal app and type in killall Dock. That command will restart the Dock and clear anything stuck. It will take a while for the app to respond, but if it fails, turn to the next suggestion below.
If the above trick fails to remove the persistent Messages badge icon on the macOS Dock, you need to send another message from your Mac and read it on your iPhone. Yes, you need to send yourself a message from your computer to your smartphone. The Messages badge icon should disappear.
