Text Messages Not Sending? Platform, iPhone, Android [2024]

Let’s say you craft the perfect text message—carefully selecting each word to convey your thoughts with precision.

With a sense of anticipation, you hit “send,” expecting your message to reach its destination seamlessly. But alas, you see the dreaded notice either in your reports or on your device that the message was unable to be delivered.

Buy why? Why?? WHY??!!

(OK, calm down.)

The truth is that In the labyrinth of the digital realm, where bits and bytes traverse invisible pathways, numerous factors can conspire to thwart the delivery of your messages.

Here we’ll walk through some of the reasons messages fail—and what you can do about it.

General Reasons Your Text Messages Are Not Sending—for SMS Platform, Apple, and Android

There are several common reasons why your text messages may not be sending, whether you’re experiencing these issues on an SMS platform or an Apple or Android device.

Recipient Is a Landline Number

If your intended recipient number is a landline number, you may not be able to send it text messages.

Most landlines are not text-enabled, in which case your messages will be unable to be delivered.

SOLUTION:

Make sure you have the right mobile number for your recipient(s) and remove any landline numbers from your recipient list.

Recipient Phone Number Is Invalid

You may be trying to text a number that isn’t even valid.

This could happen if the phone number was inputted incorrectly or if the recipient provided incorrect information.

SOLUTION:

Confirm what the correct phone number is for your recipient. You could use a lookup service to help evaluate whether a phone number is valid.

Recipient Has Blocked the Phone Number

One of the more disheartening reasons for failed text message delivery is if the recipient has blocked your phone number.

Whether due to a misunderstanding, a disagreement, or simply a desire for privacy, blocking a phone number effectively prevents any messages or calls from that number from reaching the recipient's device.

SOLUTION:

Preemptively make sure you’re sending valuable and relevant content so that recipients won’t block your number. If your number has been blocked, reach out to the recipient through other channels (if appropriate) to address any potential issues or concerns.

Out of Service

If you or your recipient is out of service—for example, if they aren’t up-to-date on their mobile service bill or if their phone is turned off—you may run into issues when trying to send messages.

In some cases, the message may eventually be delivered once their device is back in service, but in some cases they may never end up receiving the message.

SOLUTION:

If you know the phone number is a valid mobile phone (not a landline), consider resending after a period of time if the message remains undelivered.

Out of Range

Aside from the issue of being generally out of service, a device could be out of range provided by a mobile carrier and thus unable to receive messages.

Again, in some cases, the message may eventually be delivered once their device is back in service, but it’s not a guarantee.

SOLUTION:

If you know the phone number is a valid mobile phone (not a landline), consider resending after a period of time if the message remains undelivered.

Device Issues

Another time you may run into issues is if you or your recipient's device is experiencing technical difficulties or malfunctions.

These types of issues could include software glitches, hardware failures, or low (or dead) battery levels.

SOLUTION:

Some simple solutions you can try include (1) restarting the device, (2) updating the device, (3) ejecting and re-inserting the device’s SIM card if applicable, (4) checking the device’s Messages settings to make sure no legitimate message settings have been turned off by mistake.

Messaging App Experiencing Issues

Another possibility to consider is that the messaging app on either your device or the recipient's device is experiencing technical issues.

Glitches or bugs within the messaging app can interfere with the sending and receiving of text messages.

SOLUTION:

Some simple solutions you can try include (1) restarting the device, (2) updating the device, (3) ejecting and re-inserting the device’s SIM card if applicable, (4) checking the device’s Messages settings to make sure no legitimate message settings have been turned off by mistake.

Mobile Carrier Is Experiencing Service Interruptions

There’s also the possibility of service interruptions on your mobile carrier's network.

Temporary outages or maintenance work by the carrier can disrupt the transmission of text messages, leading to failed delivery attempts.

SOLUTION:

Check for any reported service issues on the carrier's website/social media, or contact their customer support for assistance. If confirmed, you may need to wait until the issue is resolved before attempting to send your messages again.

Platform-Specific Reasons Your Text Messages Are Not Sending

If you’re using an SMS platform to send out text messages (for example, for your business), there are a few additional possibilities to consider.

Your Phone Number Is Not Registered

If you don’t register your brand with the mobile carriers for your phone number, there’s a much higher chance the mobile carriers will view your messages as spam and will prevent them from being delivered.

SOLUTION:

If you’re using Mobile Text Alerts, all that you need to do to submit your brand registration is to log in to your account and fill out the brief form that appears on your online dashboard. It will ask you some information about your company or organization and will ask you to provide some examples of the types of messages you’ll be sending.

Content Relates to SHAFT or Other Regulated Topics

Unless you’re sending for personal reasons, mobile carriers are strict about not allowing messages containing certain types of content.

Specifically, mobile carriers don’t allow content related to SHAFT (Sex, Hate, Alcohol, Firearms, or Tobacco), as well as other controversial topics such as cannabis, gambling, and loans. So if your messages contain mentions of these types of topics, it is likely to get blocked from being delivered by the mobile carriers.

SOLUTION:

Avoid sending content related directly to SHAFT or other controversial topics. Chat with an SMS expert for advice on how you can use texting if your business has a legitimate use case for these topics.

Content Does Not Match Use Case Described During Registration

If you’ve already filled out your brand registration form and are still having issues with messages not sending, one thing to check is whether your message content matches the use case you described when filling out your form.

If the messages you’re sending are too different from what you described in your registration, mobile carriers may view that as a red flag and may block your messages from being delivered.

SOLUTION:

Make sure to be transparent when filling out your brand registration form. If your use case has changed or you need to add use cases, contact Mobile Text Alerts support for advice on next steps.

Message Has Been Flagged as Possible Spam

In addition to the reasons mentioned above, mobile carriers may block your messages from being delivered if they generally believe it to be spam.

SOLUTION:

Make sure your messages feel authentic and not “spammy.” Avoid being overly pushy or salesy, making outlandish claims, promoting questionable products, or including suspicious-looking links.

Message Includes Link to Publicly Shortened URL

Although links are allowed in messages sent through SMS platforms, you aren’t able to include links shortened by public URL shortener services, such as bit.ly. Any links you include must be either a full link or a link that contains a brand name within the URL.

Including a publicly shortened URL will almost certainly mean the mobile carriers will block your message from being delivered.

SOLUTION:

Use full links or branded shortened links. (Mobile Text Alerts allows you to use a built-in branded link for free.)

Recipient Has Opted Out

One final reason why your message may be blocked from being delivered is if the recipient has previously opted out of receiving messages from you.

If a recipient has previously responded STOP or UNSUBSCRIBE, your SMS platform will be able to recognize that and will prevent the message from sending, unless the recipient re-subscribes themselves to your text list.

(Note that some SMS platforms, such as Mobile Text Alerts, will automatically remove opted-out subscribers entirely from your database and won’t allow them to be added back in.)

SOLUTION:

Ask unsubscribed recipients to opt back in if they want to continue receiving messages.

FAQ

Here are some more succinct answers to some commonly asked questions regarding text messages not sending.

Why Are My Texts Not Sending?

On a personal level, your texts may not be sending for a variety of reasons:

• Your recipient has a landline number
• Your recipient’s phone number is invalid
• Your recipient has blocked your phone number
• Your recipient doesn’t have service for one reason or another
• Your recipient is out of range
• You or your recipient are experiencing device issues
• You or your recipient are experiencing issues with your messaging app
• You or your recipient’s mobile carrier is experiencing issues

On a business level, if you use an SMS platform to send messages, your texts may not be sending for a variety of reasons:

• Your phone number is not registered with the mobile carriers
• Your content relates to SHAFT or other regulated topics
• Your content does not match use case described during registration
• Your message has been flagged as possible spam
• Your message includes a link to a publicly shortened URL
• Your recipient has opted out.

iPhone Texts Not Sending?

iPhone texts may have issues sending for any of the reasons mentioned above. They may particularly have issues if iMessage is not working properly.

You can check your phone settings, and particularly your “Messages” settings, to make sure everything that you want to be enabled is enabled.

Android Texts Not Sending?

Android texts may also have issues sending for any of the reasons mentioned above. Like iPhones, you could also be having issues with Google Messages in particular (or whatever other messaging app you use).

You can check your phone settings, and particularly your settings for Google Messages, to make sure everything that you want to be enabled is enabled.

Try a Business Texting Platform

So those are some reasons why you may be running into problems with text messages not sending!

If you’re interested in sending text messages for your business or organization, get a free SMS platform trial account now to test it out for yourself.