Twilio SMS Character Limit: A Comprehensive Guide for Developers

When working with Twilio SMS, it's essential to understand the character limit for each message. The standard character limit for a Twilio SMS message is 1600 characters, but this can be broken down into smaller chunks if needed.

This character limit is divided into two parts: the message body and the sender ID. The message body can be up to 1600 characters, while the sender ID can be up to 20 characters.

Developers should note that the character limit also applies to URLs and other types of content that may be included in the message.

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The Twilio SMS character limit is a crucial aspect to consider when sending messages through Twilio. Standard SMS messages have a 160 character limit, which is derived from the GSM-7 encoding standard.

Staying below this limit ensures a higher rate of deliverability while preserving your intended formatting. If you're sending messages in languages other than English, the character limit can be as low as 70 due to the way Twilio's SMS Partner manages message encoding.

Adding just one Unicode character, like an emoji, can drop the character limit to 70. This is because Unicode encoding requires more data than the standard GSM-7 encoding.

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Standard SMS messages have a 160 character limit, which is derived from the GSM-7 encoding standard.

This limit ensures a higher rate of deliverability while preserving your intended formatting. Staying below this limit is crucial for effective communication.

Letters, symbols, and characters that are not natively part of the GSM-7 coding standard typically count as 2 characters instead of 1, resulting in a character limit of 70 for messages sent in languages other than English.

Concatenated messages have a max character limit of 153 per message, and 67 characters per message segment for languages other than English.

Messages over 1,600 characters will automatically fail to send, and translated messages have a character limit failure of 700.

SMS messages are designed to be short and concise, and exceeding the character limit can disrupt the flow of the text and create confusion for customers.

Avoid using excessive punctuation, as it takes up valuable space and can make your message appear cluttered.

You can send messages longer than the 160 character limit, but they will be charged as two or more messages, and the calculation for the maximum length of a bundled SMS can vary depending on the operator and encoding used.

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If you send an SMS message that exceeds the 160 character limit, it will be sent as multiple individual messages, often referred to as concatenated messages.

Concatenated messages can have a max character limit of 153 per message, but this limit is typically lower for languages other than English, at around 67 characters per message segment.

Major carriers like AT&T, T-Mobile/Sprint, and Verizon support concatenated messages, but some smaller carriers may not, instead presenting the message in multiple segments.

The type of cellular device can also impact whether or not the recipient can receive a concatenated series as a single message.

If you send a concatenated message that exceeds the 1,600 character limit, it will automatically fail to send.

For translated messages, the character limit failure is even lower, at 700 characters.

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A single SMS message is 160 characters, enforced across all mobile carriers.

If your message exceeds 160 characters, it will be broken down into 153 character SMS message segments in transit, even if the carriers rejoin it to deliver it as a single text.

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The character count includes emojis, which count as 2 characters each and reduce the message encoding, causing the SMS segment character count to reduce further.

Non-Latin characters also require special encoding, reducing the character count to 70 characters per SMS message.

Our platform allows you to compose up to a 600 character text, preserving the ability to send longer form messages to mobile contacts without forcing you to compose individual 160 character SMS segments.

We've enhanced our character counter to provide real-time feedback as you type your message on how many characters you've included and how many SMS messages it will count as.

Here's a breakdown of the character limits and message segments:

The character counter will update with each character, informing you proactively how many SMS messages will be created in the carrier system and how many you will be billed for.

This feature is available in our interface and API, providing real-time feedback as you type your message.

To ensure your SMS messages reach their destination without any hiccups, it's essential to keep them concise. The SMS character limit is 160 characters per message, and exceeding this limit can lead to concatenated messages, which are sent as multiple individual messages.

Major carriers like AT&T, T-Mobile/Sprint, and Verizon support concatenated messages, but smaller carriers may not. Instead, they'll present the message in multiple segments with numerical order markers.

To maintain message clarity and conciseness, it's crucial to understand and adhere to the SMS character count. This will prevent disruption to the flow of the text and potential confusion for your customers.

Avoid excessive punctuation, as it takes up valuable space and can make your message exceed the character limit.

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If additional characters not included in GSM-7 are required, you can use UCS-2 encoding to send the message. This allows for characters such as emojis or characters from alphabets that don't originate from Latin.

UCS-2 takes up more space, so the number of characters per SMS drops to 70 as the maximum. This restriction may be even greater, as many emojis take up more than one character.

The limit becomes 67 characters for each message after the first if several SMS messages are to be merged. This is something to keep in mind when planning your messaging strategy.

We recommend sticking to GSM-7 where possible, as you get the most characters for your money that way. This is a good rule of thumb for maximizing your SMS character limit.