According to a method for displaying a message in a mobile terminal, message content that needs to be displayed may be obtained, then a visible area on a screen of a mobile terminal is determined, and a display length and a quantity of display lines of the message content are calculated according to the visible area, and the message content is displayed in the visible area in a scrolling manner according to the calculated display length of the message content if the quantity of the display lines exceeds a display range of the visible area. In this way, only a small area of a screen is occupied, and message content can be displayed automatically and completely without the need for a user to perform a further operation. An apparatus and a system for displaying a message in a mobile terminal are also provided.