How to Send a Text Message from Email

If your cell phone plan does not include unlimited texting, consider using email to send your text messages. Sending your text messages through email is easy to do and can help you save money on texting charges. All you need is the phone number of the person you want to text, their cell phone service provider and internet access. Here are steps involved to send a text from email.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Internet Access

1. Determine the cell phone provider of the person you want to text. Don't worry if you aren't sure, there are resources online to help you figure out who their provider is. If you don't know your recipient's cell phone service provider, enter the phone number at one of the following websites to retrieve it:
   
   http://www.primeris.com/fonefind/
   
   http://freesms.1888usa.com/revcell.htm

2. Find out what domain name the cell phone provider uses for text messaging. You will use the domain name to address your email like this: [e-mail], e.g. [e-mail]. This information can usually be found in the faq section of your cell phone provider's website. Here are the domain names used for some of the more popular phone providers:
   
   Us Cellular - email.uscc.net
   Verizon - vtext.com
   Virgin - vmobl.com
   AT&T - txt.att.net
   Nextel - messaging.nextel.com
   Sprint - messaging.sprintpcs.com
   T-Mobile - tmomail.net

3. Open your email client program and start a new message. In the to: field, use the phone number of the person you are texting followed by the domain name you found in step 2. For example, if you are sending a text message to a Nextel subscriber with the phone number [phone], you would put: [e-mail] in the to field of your email.

4. Enter your subject in the subject line if you wish (subject line is optional) and compose your text message in the body of your email. Make sure to keep it brief as most cell phones can only display 160 characters.

5. Send your email after composing your message and that's it!

Tips & Warnings

• When replying to a text, compose a new email rather than using the reply to feature. When you use "reply to" the previous subject line is included and eats into your 160 character limit.