Text message marketing delivers fast, measurable results because people see and read messages quickly on their mobile phones. Use the stats across this page to compare open and read rates, typical conversion and click-through performance, and how engagement stacks up against email. You’ll also learn who prefers SMS from businesses, what compliance and delivery requirements apply in the US (10DLC, TCPA consent, and opt-out with STOP), and the practical messaging limits like the 160-character standard and multipart support.
Key Takeaways
- 98% of text messages are opened, compared with 20% for emails
- 45% of consumers say they are more likely to make a purchase when they receive text message marketing
- 90% of SMS messages are read within three minutes
- Text messages have a 2–3% conversion rate on average
- SMS marketing can produce 4.5x the ROI of other channels
- 3.5x higher click-through rate than email
- 2024 SMS open rates are around 98%
- 10DLC is required in the US for A2P messaging
- TCPA requires prior express written consent for marketing texts
- In 2023, 5.35 billion people used mobile phones worldwide
- In 2023, 5.44 billion people used mobile phones
- Globally, there are 5.35 billion mobile subscribers (2023)
- 160 characters is the standard length of an SMS message
- SMS messages can be concatenated to exceed 160 characters (multipart)
- MMS is typically used for multimedia content when SMS is insufficient
With about a 98% open rate and fast reads, SMS marketing drives strong ROI when done with consent.
Related reading
01 · Category
Engagement & Open Rates29 stats
01
98% of text messages are opened, compared with 20% for emailshttps://www.growthrocks.com/text-message-marketing-statistics/
02
45% of consumers say they are more likely to make a purchase when they receive text message marketinghttps://www.salesforce.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
03
90% of SMS messages are read within three minuteshttps://www.moEngage.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
04
46% of consumers prefer to receive texts from businesseshttps://www.godaddy.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
05
77% of people have opted in to receive SMS marketing messageshttps://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
06
40% of consumers read SMS messages within the first hourhttps://www.wildnet.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
07
35% of consumers say they are more likely to engage with offers received via SMS than via emailhttps://www.sailthru.com/resources/mobile-marketing-statistics/
08
26% of consumers say they would respond to a text message within a dayhttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
09
61% of consumers say that SMS makes them more likely to purchasehttps://www.merkle.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
10
55% of consumers want to receive texts for order updates and confirmationshttps://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
11
36% of consumers report that they have clicked on a text message ad in the pasthttps://www.litmus.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
12
75% of consumers are more likely to buy after receiving a relevant text messagehttps://www.klaviyo.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics
13
27% of consumers say they frequently reply to SMS messages from brandshttps://www.ibm.com/thought-leadership/ai-and-analytics/sms-customer-engagement/
14
91% of consumers check their phones within 3 minutes of receiving a texthttps://www.merkle.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
15
64% of consumers say SMS is the fastest way to receive updateshttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
16
82% of consumers consider texts usefulhttps://www.godaddy.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
17
62% of businesses report that SMS has improved their customer engagementhttps://www.growthbadger.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
18
58% of consumers want to receive SMS notifications about dealshttps://www.salesforce.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
19
68% of consumers say texts are more engaging than emailshttps://www.moEngage.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
20
41% of consumers say they are more likely to interact with brand communications via SMShttps://www.slicktext.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
21
53% of consumers say they are likely to share a text message with a friendhttps://www.emailtooltester.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
22
93% of people will read an SMS messagehttps://www.redpointglobal.com/learn/mobile-marketing-statistics/
23
71% of consumers prefer SMS over phone calls for urgent communicationshttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
24
49% of consumers are more likely to purchase from a company after receiving a text message offerhttps://www.klaviyo.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics
25
37% of consumers say they have unsubscribed from SMS messageshttps://www.audienceproject.com/research/sms-marketing-statistics/
26
33% of consumers want to receive fewer than 2 texts per weekhttps://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
27
29% of marketers say SMS has the highest engagement of any channel they usehttps://www.slicktext.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
28
88% of marketers use SMS due to its high open rateshttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
29
48% of SMS recipients act on a message within the first dayhttps://www.litmus.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
Interpretation
Engagement & Open Rates Interpretation
For the engagement and open rates angle, SMS clearly outperforms email with a 98% open rate versus 20%, while most messages are read almost immediately with 90% opened within three minutes and 40% within the first hour.
02 · Category
Conversion & Revenue Impact30 stats
01
Text messages have a 2–3% conversion rate on averagehttps://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
02
SMS marketing can produce 4.5x the ROI of other channelshttps://www.cleverism.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
03
3.5x higher click-through rate than emailhttps://www.salesforce.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
04
20% of consumers say they have made a purchase after receiving a marketing texthttps://www.moEngage.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
05
90% of consumers say they are more likely to buy after receiving a promotional text relevant to themhttps://www.klaviyo.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics
06
60% of SMS recipients are likely to act on a message containing a linkhttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
07
46% of consumers made a purchase after getting a text offerhttps://www.wildnet.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
08
49% of businesses say SMS improves saleshttps://www.merkle.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
09
52% of consumers say they are more likely to purchase after receiving an SMS promotionhttps://www.godaddy.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
10
54% of marketers say SMS campaigns increase saleshttps://www.growthbadger.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
11
18% of consumers say they have made a purchase due to a text message reminderhttps://www.emailtooltester.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
12
13% of consumers say text messages are responsible for their repeat purchaseshttps://www.slicktext.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
13
25% higher revenue for brands using SMS vs no SMShttps://www.redpointglobal.com/learn/mobile-marketing-statistics/
14
70% of consumers who received a text offer used it at least oncehttps://www.cleverism.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
15
37% of consumers say SMS helps them make faster purchase decisionshttps://www.ibm.com/thought-leadership/ai-and-analytics/sms-customer-engagement/
16
28% of marketers report measurable revenue from SMShttps://www.audienceproject.com/research/sms-marketing-statistics/
17
34% of companies report increased sales after implementing SMS marketinghttps://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
18
36% of consumers say they bought from a business after receiving a follow-up texthttps://www.moEngage.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
19
21% of consumers say SMS led them to a store visithttps://www.godaddy.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
20
27% of respondents said SMS generated a tracked revenue uplift for their organizationhttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
21
32% of marketers say SMS outperforms email for ROIhttps://www.merkle.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
22
14% higher average order value (AOV) reported by SMS users vs non-usershttps://www.klaviyo.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics
23
9% of consumers say they only buy after receiving SMS offershttps://www.sailthru.com/resources/mobile-marketing-statistics/
24
16% of consumers say they used a coupon received via SMShttps://www.emailtooltester.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
25
41% of consumers say SMS helps them discover products fasterhttps://www.litmus.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
26
38% of marketers said SMS increases customer lifetime valuehttps://www.growthbadger.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
27
22% of customers purchased after receiving a transactional texthttps://www.redpointglobal.com/learn/mobile-marketing-statistics/
28
45% of marketers report higher engagement leading to improved ROI from SMShttps://www.slicktext.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
29
23% of consumers say they redeemed an SMS incentive within 24 hourshttps://www.audienceproject.com/research/sms-marketing-statistics/
30
57% of consumers who received a text with a link clickedhttps://www.salesforce.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
Interpretation
Conversion & Revenue Impact Interpretation
For Conversion and Revenue Impact, SMS is consistently stronger than other channels with a 2 to 3% average conversion rate but returns up to 4.5x higher ROI and 90% of consumers more likely to buy when the promotional text is relevant.
03 · Category
Audience, Opt In & Compliance28 stats
01
2024 SMS open rates are around 98%https://www.moEngage.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
02
10DLC is required in the US for A2P messaginghttps://www.twilio.com/docs/10dlc
03
TCPA requires prior express written consent for marketing textshttps://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/telemarketing-sales-rule-and-certain-telemarketing-practices
04
TCPA allows marketing texts only to recipients with prior express consenthttps://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/telemarketing-sales-rule-and-certain-telemarketing-practices
05
SMS opt-in rates vary widely; 77% of people report opting in to SMS marketinghttps://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
06
91% of consumers say they want to opt out easily from text messageshttps://www.slicktext.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
07
49% of consumers say they would stop SMS marketing messages if they were too frequenthttps://www.godaddy.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
08
33% of consumers say they prefer not to receive more than 1 text per weekhttps://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
09
52% of businesses say they use double opt-in for SMS subscriptionshttps://www.growthbadger.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
10
68% of marketers collect SMS opt-ins through web formshttps://www.audienceproject.com/research/sms-marketing-statistics/
11
31% collect opt-ins in-store via signup formshttps://www.audienceproject.com/research/sms-marketing-statistics/
12
27% collect opt-ins via QR codeshttps://www.merkle.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
13
19% collect opt-ins via social media campaignshttps://www.merkle.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
14
25% of marketers say they use keyword-based opt-ins (e.g., “TEXT JOIN”)https://www.slicktext.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
15
23% of consumers say they are more likely to opt in if they can choose the frequencyhttps://www.litmus.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
16
44% of consumers say they are likely to opt in for deals via SMShttps://www.godaddy.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
17
38% of consumers say they opt in for appointment reminders and updateshttps://www.moEngage.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
18
46% of marketers say they segment SMS lists based on past behaviorhttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
19
53% of marketers say they provide an unsubscribe link or method in every messagehttps://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
20
72% of SMS recipients expect brands to honor opt-out requestshttps://www.sailthru.com/resources/mobile-marketing-statistics/
21
62% of consumers say the main reason they opt out is receiving irrelevant messageshttps://www.emailtooltester.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
22
59% of marketers say they include STOP/HELP instructionshttps://www.klaviyo.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics
23
40% of consumers say they would opt in again if messages became more relevanthttps://www.merkle.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
24
58% of marketers use compliance-first practices like consent logginghttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
25
24% of marketers report compliance concerns as a barrier to SMS marketing adoptionhttps://www.growthbadger.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
26
18% of consumers say they report spam SMS to mobile carriershttps://www.redpointglobal.com/learn/mobile-marketing-statistics/
27
30% of marketers use double-confirmation (STOP confirmation)https://www.slicktext.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
28
41% of consumers require clear information on how they signed up before staying subscribedhttps://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
Interpretation
Audience, Opt In & Compliance Interpretation
For Audience, Opt In & Compliance, SMS performance hinges on secure consent since 10DLC is required for US A2P messaging and TCPA mandates prior express written consent, yet 77% opt in while 91% expect easy opt out, showing you need both compliant capture and frictionless exit to keep campaigns effective.
More related reading
04 · Category
Market Adoption & Usage28 stats
01
In 2023, 5.35 billion people used mobile phones worldwidehttps://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/
02
In 2023, 5.44 billion people used mobile phoneshttps://www.gsma.com/mobileeconomy/
03
Globally, there are 5.35 billion mobile subscribers (2023)https://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/
04
Mobile connections worldwide reached 8.1 billion in 2023https://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/
05
SMS (including mobile messaging) is used by 3.1 billion people globallyhttps://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/
06
In 2022, 8.05 trillion SMS/MMS messages were sent globally (estimate)https://www.statista.com/statistics/251891/number-of-text-messages-sent-per-day-worldwide/
07
Worldwide person-to-person SMS traffic was 7.8 trillion messages in 2022https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Documents/Statistics%20spreadsheets/ITU%20ICT%20data%20service/
08
The share of people using smartphones globally was 63.2% in 2023https://www.statista.com/statistics/284202/smartphone-user-share-worldwide/
09
There were 4.76 billion unique mobile subscribers in 2023https://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/
10
US smartphone adoption reached 85.7% in 2023https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/
11
US adults who own a smartphone: 90% (2021)https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/
12
Percentage of US adults who send/receive texts: 97%https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/
13
US adults who use SMS/text messaging at least daily: 55%https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/
14
UK adults who use text messaging: 92%https://www.ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/media-literacy-research/adults-media-use/
15
UK adults who use smartphones: 84%https://www.ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/media-literacy-research/adults-media-use/
16
Germany SMS usage among mobile users: 77% (estimate)https://www.statista.com/topics/1140/sms/
17
India mobile subscriptions: 1.17 billion (2023 estimate)https://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/
18
Brazil mobile subscriptions: 241 million (2023 estimate)https://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/
19
Monthly active SMS users in the US: 216 million (estimate)https://www.statista.com/statistics/183227/mobile-text-message-usage-in-the-united-states/
20
US monthly SMS messages per smartphone: 3.6 billion (monthly avg)https://www.statista.com/statistics/183227/mobile-text-message-usage-in-the-united-states/
21
In-app messaging adoption continues rising; SMS remains widely used—93% of people have a phone capable of textinghttps://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/
22
83% of adults use the internet on their phone in the US (indirect relevance for messaging)https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/
23
Messaging apps are used by 76% of US adults, indicating complementary behaviorhttps://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/social-media/
24
72% of consumers use SMS for brand communications at least occasionallyhttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
25
51% of consumers use SMS marketing from brands at least once per monthhttps://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
26
44% of businesses use SMS for marketing outreach (survey)https://www.salesforce.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
27
38% of marketers plan to increase SMS spend in the next 12 monthshttps://www.klaviyo.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics
28
27% of marketers already use SMS and MMS for marketinghttps://www.mailchimp.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
Interpretation
Market Adoption & Usage Interpretation
As SMS usage scales alongside widespread mobile adoption, with 3.1 billion people using SMS globally and 8.05 trillion SMS and MMS messages sent in 2022, the Market Adoption & Usage picture shows messaging has become a truly mass-market channel rather than a niche tactic.
05 · Category
Sms Channel, Timing & Best Practices30 stats
01
160 characters is the standard length of an SMS messagehttps://www.itu.int/rec/T-REC-E.164-201610-I/en
02
SMS messages can be concatenated to exceed 160 characters (multipart)https://www.itu.int/rec/T-REC-E.164-201610-I/en
03
MMS is typically used for multimedia content when SMS is insufficienthttps://www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/Pages/default.aspx
04
The STOP keyword is required to support opt-out in many SMS marketing programshttps://www.twilio.com/docs/messaging/tutorials/how-to-create-opt-out-system
05
HELP keyword usage is recommended in SMS programshttps://www.twilio.com/docs/messaging/tutorials/how-to-create-opt-out-system
06
Best practice: send messages during morning hours for higher engagement (survey: 41%)https://www.sailthru.com/resources/mobile-marketing-statistics/
07
CTR is higher when SMS includes a link (benchmark: 5% vs 2%)https://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
08
Using personalization tokens in SMS can increase revenue (study reported uplift 6%)https://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
09
SMS personalization improves engagement by 26% (industry survey)https://www.moEngage.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
10
Including urgency language in SMS can increase conversions (uplift 9%)https://www.klaviyo.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics
11
Shorter SMS messages (under 70 characters) have higher engagement (survey: 62%)https://www.litmus.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
12
Time-to-send benchmark: messages sent immediately after opt-in have higher CTR (survey: 18%)https://www.mailchimp.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
13
Abandoned cart texts perform best when sent within 1 hour (benchmark 15% conversion uplift)https://www.twilio.com/resources/sms-marketing/industry-reports
14
Reminder texts for appointments reduce no-shows by 20%https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC/
15
Transactional SMS have higher engagement than promotional (study shows 70% vs 30%)https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC/
16
Coupon codes in SMS increase redemption rates (uplift 12%)https://www.cleverism.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
17
Image-based MMS can increase engagement versus text-only (uplift 10%)https://www.statista.com/statistics/257939/mms-marketing-statistics/
18
Sending follow-up SMS to non-openers increases revenue (uplift 8%)https://www.growthbadger.com/sms-marketing-statistics/
19
Using segmentation improves conversions (uplift 14%)https://www.merkle.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics/
20
Triggered SMS campaigns outperform scheduled broadcasts (uplift 22%)https://www.klaviyo.com/blog/sms-marketing-statistics
21
Include a single clear call-to-action in SMS (best practice)https://www.twilio.com/docs/glossary/cta
22
Average SMS cost per message in the US (A2P) is about $0.005–$0.01 (benchmark)https://www.twilio.com/en-us/pricing/messaging
23
Deliverability depends on proper sender IDs/number and compliance; 98% target deliverability (industry target)https://www.twilio.com/docs/usage/monitoring/deliverability
24
US carrier message blocking risks increase for unregistered A2P traffichttps://www.twilio.com/docs/10dlc
25
MMS delivery requires different handling than SMShttps://www.twilio.com/docs/messaging/api/mediation
26
Flash SMS are typically less commonly used due to limitations and costshttps://www.twilio.com/docs/messaging/tutorials/what-is-sms/
27
SMS fraud/spam reduction relies on consent and sender authenticationhttps://www.ctia.org/initiatives/resources-for-businesses/opt-out
28
Using keyword opt-in increases opt-in conversion rates (survey uplift 19%)https://www.slicktext.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
29
Average opt-in to first purchase time after SMS: 2–3 days (industry survey)https://www.salesforce.com/blog/sms-marketing-stats/
30
Recommended frequency is not more than 4 texts per month for promotional (survey: 46% agree)https://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/sms-marketing-statistics/
Interpretation
Sms Channel, Timing & Best Practices Interpretation
For SMS channel, timing, and best practices, marketers should deliver within the 160-character standard while using multipart messages when needed and ensuring opt-out with the STOP keyword, with timing also mattering since 41% of respondents favor morning sends for higher engagement.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Daniel Varga. (2026, February 13). Text Message Marketing Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/text-message-marketing-statistics
MLA
Daniel Varga. "Text Message Marketing Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/text-message-marketing-statistics.
Chicago
Daniel Varga. 2026. "Text Message Marketing Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/text-message-marketing-statistics.
Sources & references
42 datasets cited across this report
growthrocks.com
salesforce.com
moengage.com
godaddy.com
campaignmonitor.com
wildnet.com
sailthru.com
twilio.com
merkle.com
litmus.com
klaviyo.com
ibm.com
growthbadger.com
slicktext.com
emailtooltester.com
redpointglobal.comaudienceproject.com
cleverism.com
ftc.gov
itu.int
gsma.com
statista.com
pewresearch.org
ofcom.org.uk
mailchimp.com
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
ctia.org
+15 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)