Business text message checker

Phones and carriers send long texts in pieces called segments. With plain characters, one segment holds 160 characters; past that, each segment holds 153. If your text has an emoji or a curly quote, one segment holds only 70, and each extra segment 67. Many texting plans bill per segment, so a short text is cheaper and easier to read.

GSM is the basic character set for texts: letters, numbers and common punctuation. Unicode covers everything else, like emoji, curly quotes and long dashes. One Unicode character turns the whole text into a Unicode text, which cuts the room in each segment by more than half. This checker shows which characters caused it.

Common practice is to include it in the first text you send someone, in every marketing text, and now and then in longer conversations. Carriers check for it when they review your registration. Short explanation, not legal advice. When in doubt, add it: it costs about 23 characters.

That is a marketing text, so the bar is higher. Under the TCPA, marketing texts sent with automated tools generally need the person's prior express written consent, for example a checked box on your form or invoice that says you may text offers. They also need an opt-out and should go out between 8 am and 9 pm their time. Short explanation, not legal advice. Ask a lawyer before a big send.

Carriers do not publish their filters. Texts that read like spam tend to get flagged: prize and winner language, "act now" pressure, lots of exclamation marks, cash, loan and credit words, and restricted topics like alcohol, tobacco, cannabis and firearms. This tool flags those as commonly filtered. It cannot tell you for certain what a carrier will do.

Yes, one link is normal, for example your booking page or your Google review link. Use your own domain or a Google link so people can see where it goes. Public link shorteners are shared by spammers, so carriers often treat them with suspicion. Two or more links in one text look less like a personal message.

A2P 10DLC is the US carrier system for businesses that text from a normal 10-digit number. You register your business (the brand) and what you send (the campaign), including sample messages and how people opt in and opt out. Unregistered business texts are often blocked or slowed. Our texting policy page shows how we describe our own texts, as one example.

Federal TCPA rules say no telephone solicitations before 8 am or after 9 pm in the local time of the person you are contacting. Some states set tighter hours or limit weekends and holidays. If your customers live in more than one time zone, go by theirs, not yours. Short explanation, not legal advice.

One can be friendly. More than that makes a text look like marketing, and any emoji switches the text to Unicode, so it splits into more segments. For a missed-call reply or a review request, plain words usually work best.

Many businesses treat one reply to someone who just called them as a response to that person's request, not marketing. Keep it about their call, say who you are, and give a way to opt out. Do not add them to a promo list unless they agree to it. Short explanation, not legal advice.

No. This tool checks common patterns in the words you paste. Delivery also depends on your registration, your sending number, how many texts you send and how people respond. Treat every result here as a guide, not a promise.

No. Every check runs in your browser. Your draft is kept only in this browser on this device so it is still there next time. Clear your browser data to remove it.