What Are the Best SMS Apps for Android?

What Are the Best SMS Apps for Android?

Email inboxes are overstuffed, with the average person receiving 121 marketing communications daily. Mailchimp found that just 21.33% of these emails get opened, which is why many businesses turn to SMS messaging to reach prospects. Marketing texts have open rates as high as 98%, which is cause to celebrate and seek the best Android SMS app to help you design and deliver 160-character attention-grabbers with efficiency.

Android SMS apps for business

The short-and-sweet, real-time Short Message Service (SMS) format lends itself perfectly to sharing purchase invoices, appointment or reservation confirmations, order updates, and surveys. The best SMS app for Android can provide an easy way to communicate directly with customers, whether it’s to offer a coupon, exclusive deal, sneak peek, or reengaging news update. Choosing the right mobile messaging interface will be the next step once you’ve settled on the best SMS app for Android. This may include text, pictures, live chat, push notifications, or social experiences.

Best Android SMS apps

If you’re looking specifically for the best SMS autoreply Android app or the best free SMS app for Android, generally speaking, the Android SMS apps that work best are those designed for both enterprise-scale and nontechnical users. These can facilitate 2-way conversations, integrate with other apps and services (like reservation reminders or survey tools) to allow for greater automation, and grow with your business as needed. All the apps on this list, if not free, are at least affordable for small business use.

1. TextMagic

TextMagic is the ideal choice if you’re looking to get started with an SMS service within minutes of sign-up. The intuitive setup wizard makes basic message sending easy, but there are advanced features like templates, contact list importing, audience targeting, message scheduling, third-party integrations, full campaign management, and analytical reporting. Small companies around the world can benefit from TextMagic’s high delivery and open rates without a long-term commitment.

2. EZ Texting

EZ Texting is another prime solution for nontechnical people who want a straightforward, step-by-step way to get started with SMS marketing the same day. New users get the choice to “delight customers,” “market & engage,” or “simplify operations.” The platform can reach out to individual customers or targeted segments with personalized 2-way communications. Features include the ability to autoschedule, test messages for efficiency, run contests, send out appointment reminders, and churn out keyword reports, all with complete and responsive support from EZ Texting’s support team. Over 165,000 small and medium-sized businesses have used this platform due to its intuitive dashboard, ease of use, and range of features for marketers of all levels.

3. SimpleTexting

Like the previous apps, SimpleTexting offers main screen accessibility and instant-run SMS marketing campaigns, with no need to watch tutorials before diving right in. Simply click on the “Campaigns” tab, name your new campaign, and get started. You can also segment prospects using the “Keywords” tab. So, for instance, someone might text “PIZZA” to 555999 to get added to the pizza offers list, and once they join the list, an autoresponder can immediately text them a discount code and ask if they want to receive more communications. The “Apps” tab lets you run surveys, polls, and sweepstakes, while the “Analytics” tab offers a detailed breakdown of new subscribers, trending keywords, unsubscribers, and responses received. With segmentation and automation tools, it’s easy to target the right audiences at the right times with your SMS campaigns.

4. Salesmsg

Salesmsg doesn’t offer global reach like the other platforms mentioned, but it offers a super streamlined interface geared toward small, local businesses using SMS in the US and Canada. Choose from 4 tabs: “Conversations,” “Contacts,” “Broadcasts,” or “Triggers” to set up your first campaign. One-click integration with Outlook, Google Calendar, HubSpot, Pipedrive, Calendly, and other apps provides power to import contacts, create a local SMS number with call forwarding, and automate sending. On-the-go teams can manage messages from a web interface or mobile app via a cloud-based platform. Customers big and small love the excellent deliverability rates and lack of lag or network errors.

5. Chomp SMS

Chomp SMS has been around since the earliest days of SMS marketing and remains popular due to its fun and free customization options, with over 100 themes and a vast database of emojis. You can also choose different LED colors, ringtones, and vibrant patterns for different senders. Advanced privacy options, a passcode app lock, backup protection, quick-reply pop-ups, message scheduling, and blocklisting text-blocking features add to the robustness of this fan favorite.

6. Pulse SMS

Pulse SMS provides the business class with great features and functionality. You can select individual contact-level customizations and choose from a wide variety of themes, sound effects, and GIFs. Send quick smart replies or manage campaigns across mobile and web platforms, advance-schedule messages, search keywords, and password-protect conversations. There’s not much hand-holding support, but it’s simple enough for nontechnical people to figure out.

7. Handcent Next SMS

Handcent Next SMS is more than a decade old but offers all the modern features businesses want from an Android SMS app: Individual and group message scheduling, blocklisting, cross-platform management, search functions, spell-check, password protection, full encryption, and free unlimited backup in the cloud. Customization options include free supported themes, stickers, animated emojis, fonts, ringtones, vibration patterns, and ecards. Handcent Next SMS users like the minimalist design that has remained fresh and evergreen over time.

8. QKSMS

QKSMS is one of the younger SMS developers, featuring a clean, beautiful open-source design with “Customize,” “Backup,” and “Scheduling” tabs. Choose from over 200 supported themes, including light and dark modes. You can also send communications to groups or individuals. When a recipient receives a message, you can reply directly through the pop-up window or your Android Wear device, without having to open the app or even get out your phone. Some of the advanced campaign features are lacking, but QKSMS is free from ads and free to use, so it’s a great platform for beginners.

Learn more about the Twilio WhatsApp Business API

If you’re still wondering, “What is the best SMS app for Android?” it’s a more comprehensive platform that can serve up all the goods. An SMS application programming interface (API) provides a simple, powerful connection between developers and an SMS gateway to send messages around the globe with ease. APIs also offer a flexible, visible, automated, and secure way to communicate with customers 24/7. When you outgrow a manual system, SMS APIs enable your business to evolve your text campaigns.

The Android-compatible Twilio WhatsApp Business API lets businesses orchestrate multichannel, multiparty interactions with built-in tools and software like template message management, visual workflows, interactive buttons, and analytics. You’ll be able to deliver appointment reminders, purchase confirmations, promotions, and tailored customer service using feature-rich snippets (like images, audio, video, PDFs, and call-to-action buttons) that drive engagement to your customers with Android devices. Twilio offers enterprise-grade security and reliability as the trusted method of scaling up SMS capacity for over 190,000 businesses. Get more details on the Twilio WhatsApp Business API to kick your marketing campaigns into high gear year-round.