While we tap, send, and swipe our way through billions of messages daily, the staggering scale and intimate role of texting is revealed in numbers that show over 2.5 trillion SMS messages fly globally each year, 81% of which are opened within three minutes, proving this decades-old technology still dominates the heart of digital communication.
Key Takeaways
- In 2023, global text message volume reached over 2.5 trillion messages annually
- US consumers sent approximately 2.2 trillion SMS messages in 2022
- Daily text messages in the US average 45 billion as of 2023
- 64% of US adults own smartphones used for texting in 2023
- Women send 20% more texts than men daily in the US
- 96% of 18-29 year olds text regularly
- Average American sends 1,787 texts monthly in 2023
- Teens text 167 messages per day on average
- Adults 30-49 send 75 texts daily
- 45% of texts contain emojis in 2023
- Average text length is 12 words globally
- 75% of texts use abbreviations like LOL
- Global SMS market projected to reach $102 billion by 2027
- RCS adoption expected to hit 50% by 2025
- SMS marketing ROI averages 25:1 in 2023
SMS remains a massive and vital communication channel globally in 2023.
Content Analysis
- 45% of texts contain emojis in 2023
- Average text length is 12 words globally
- 75% of texts use abbreviations like LOL
- 30% of SMS include links or media
- Profanity appears in 5% of peer texts
- 60% of romantic texts have hearts emoji
- Business SMS 80% promotional content
- 25% of texts are apologies or conflicts
- Punctuation omission in 70% of casual texts
- 40% include GIFs or stickers in Gen Z texts
- Average emoji per text is 1.5 for millennials
- 15% of texts are voice notes now
- Spam texts 90% contain money offers
- 55% of family texts are logistical (where are you)
- Political texts rose 200% in 2020 election
- 20% of texts deleted before sending
- Sarcasm detected in 10% via text only
- 65% use "k" as dismissive response
- Health reminders most common A2P content 35%
- 50% of dating app convos start with memes
- Ellipsis (...) in 25% indicating hesitation
- 70% of work texts are task reminders
- Phishing links in 8% of unsolicited SMS
- 42% include questions averaging 1.2 per text
- Nostalgic texts peak 40% on birthdays
Content Analysis Interpretation
Our global conversation has become a rapid, emoji-studded ballet of logistical pings, promotional blasts, and truncated affections, where nearly half our words are pictograms and a simple “k” can speak volumes of polite dismissal.
Demographics and Preferences
- 64% of US adults own smartphones used for texting in 2023
- Women send 20% more texts than men daily in the US
- 96% of 18-29 year olds text regularly
- 85% of Gen Z prefers texting over calling
- 37% of US adults aged 65+ never text
- Urban dwellers text 15% more than rural residents
- 92% of smartphone users aged 18-24 use SMS daily
- African Americans text at 2x rate of whites in US
- 78% of parents text with children daily
- College students average 100 texts per day
- 55% of seniors over 75 use texting weekly
- Men aged 30-49 send longest texts averaging 12 words
- 89% of women prefer SMS for customer service
- Hispanic US population texts 25% more during holidays
- 72% of low-income households rely on SMS for communication
- Teens 13-17 send 60 texts daily on average
- 81% of Boomers now text regularly vs 26% in 2011
- LGBTQ+ youth use emoji 30% more in texts
- Married couples aged 25-34 text 50 times daily
- 94% of employed adults text colleagues
- Rural women text 10% less than urban counterparts
- 66% of disabled adults prefer SMS accessibility
- Students in high school text 120 times/day peak
- 76% of voters under 30 got election info via SMS
- Asian Americans have 98% texting adoption rate
- Single parents text children 40% more
- 88% of 18-34 urban males use MMS weekly
Demographics and Preferences Interpretation
The silent generational conversation continues, as texting cements its role from teenage lifeline to senior citizen's weekly check-in, yet still reveals a world of nuance where urbanites text more, men write novels, and nearly everyone—from voters to grandparents—has learned to speak in taps.
Frequency and Habits
- Average American sends 1,787 texts monthly in 2023
- Teens text 167 messages per day on average
- Adults 30-49 send 75 texts daily
- Users check texts 80 times daily globally
- 85% of people text before 9 AM
- Average response time to text is 90 seconds
- 70% of users text while driving despite laws
- Bedtime texting averages 10 messages per night
- Workday texting peaks at 12 PM with 20% increase
- 52% reply to texts within 5 minutes
- Weekend texting volume 25% higher than weekdays
- 40% of texts are group messages
- Average text session lasts 2 minutes
- 95% of urgent texts get replied in under 10 min
- Holiday texting spikes 50% on Christmas
- 60% text during meals daily
- Night owls text 30% more after 10 PM
- Commuters send 15 texts per hour on transit
- 75% ignore texts from unknown numbers
- Average user deletes 20 spam texts weekly
- 35% use voice-to-text daily
- Group chat participation averages 5 chats per user
- 82% text family members daily
- Texting during meetings occurs 45% of time
- 90% of daters text before first meeting
- Elderly text 5-10 times daily average
- 65% multitask while texting
- SMS marketing texts clicked 19% rate
Frequency and Habits Interpretation
The modern human condition is an endless, thumb-driven dance of urgency and avoidance, where we frantically respond to loved ones within 90 seconds yet coldly ignore strangers, proving we're not just addicted to connection but meticulously curating it between breakfast texts, bedtime threads, and furtive messages sent from meetings, cars, and dinner tables.
Industry Impact
- Global SMS market projected to reach $102 billion by 2027
- RCS adoption expected to hit 50% by 2025
- SMS marketing ROI averages 25:1 in 2023
- 4 billion A2P messages daily by 2025 forecast
- 70% of retailers use SMS for promotions
- Banking sector SMS fraud losses $1.2B in 2022
- Healthcare SMS reminders reduce no-shows 30%
- E-commerce SMS cart recovery at 26% success
- Telecom SMS revenue $80B annually 2023
- 90% of two-factor auth uses SMS
- Logistics firms send 1B tracking SMS yearly
- Political campaigns spent $1.5B on SMS in 2020
- Travel industry SMS abandonment recovery 40%
- 60% of nonprofits use SMS fundraising
- Enterprise SMS platforms market $15B by 2028
- 50% reduction in call center costs via SMS
- Gaming apps use SMS for 2FA 85% rate
- Insurance claims via SMS process 20% faster
- Ride-sharing SMS confirmations 99% delivery
- Education sector SMS attendance boosts 25%
- Real estate SMS leads convert 112% higher
- 75% customer preference for SMS updates
- SMS gateways handle 10T messages yearly
- Decline of voice SMS to 5% of traffic by 2025
- CPaaS market driven by SMS at $30B 2023
Industry Impact Interpretation
Even as SMS spawns everything from billion-dollar fraud losses and political campaign spam to life-saving medical reminders and 112% higher real estate lead conversions, it remains the digital world's deeply flawed but stubbornly indispensable glue that refuses to be replaced.
Usage and Volume
- In 2023, global text message volume reached over 2.5 trillion messages annually
- US consumers sent approximately 2.2 trillion SMS messages in 2022
- Daily text messages in the US average 45 billion as of 2023
- Worldwide, SMS traffic grew by 5.2% year-over-year in 2022
- In 2021, India led with 1.4 trillion SMS sent annually
- Brazil recorded 110 billion SMS per month in 2022
- UK SMS volume hit 75 billion messages in 2022
- SMS open rates average 98% globally in 2023
- 81% of SMS messages are read within 3 minutes of delivery
- RCS messaging volume surged 300% in 2022-2023
- Over 5 billion people use SMS worldwide as of 2023
- SMS accounts for 50% of mobile data traffic in emerging markets
- In 2023, average daily SMS per US user was 57
- Global A2P SMS market size was $79.1 billion in 2022
- P2P SMS volume dominates 90% of total traffic
- In Q4 2022, US SMS traffic peaked at 48 billion daily
- Africa's SMS usage grew 12% in 2023 due to mobile money
- China sent 900 billion SMS in 2022
- Europe SMS volume declined 3% YoY in 2023
- 95% of texts are read within 3 minutes in Australia
- Global SMS delivery success rate is 99.5% in 2023
- US millennials send 75 texts daily on average
- SMS traffic in Southeast Asia hit 500 billion annually in 2022
- 70% of global SMS is international roaming related
- In 2023, SMS replaced 20% of voice calls in low-bandwidth areas
- Canada SMS volume was 15 billion monthly in 2022
- SMS constitutes 45% of all mobile communications in 2023
- Peak SMS hours are 6-9 PM globally
- 2023 saw 10% rise in MMS volume worldwide
- Latin America SMS growth at 8% in 2023
Usage and Volume Interpretation
Despite the flashy rise of RCS and the constant buzz about new apps, the world still runs on the humble, ruthlessly efficient text message, where nearly every one sent is not only delivered and opened almost instantly but also quietly dominates half of all mobile chatter across the globe.
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