How to Text Someone

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: March 18, 2023 References

Texting has become a common way of communicating. Technically, it's called SMS (short message service). When you add multimedia, like photos or audio, it's called MMS (multimedia messaging service). It's not very difficult to do. It can be a lot faster to text someone than to pick up the phone and call them.

Part 1

Part 1 of 6:

Checking your Plan

1
Research your own phone's manual. Texting doesn't vary that much depending on the phone, but there can be some slight differences, especially between older cell phones and smart phones.
- For example, you might see “messaging” on a phone's menu to start the texting process. Or you might see “Send SMS” instead. It means the same thing.
- Newer smart phones will offer keyboards that are touch screens. You will use this to type the message. On older phones, you will need to use a keyboard built into the phone itself, that doubles as the buttons you press with numbers to call people.
2
Check the cost with your phone service provider. Be aware that you may have to pay to receive or send texts.^{[1]
X
Research source}
- Some cell phone plans have unlimited texting built into the plan. If you're going to be texting a lot, this might be a better idea. Some plans will only let you send a certain number of texts per month before incurring overcharges, though.
- If you don't have an unlimited plan, you could be charged something like 20 cents per text, so make sure you research the costs beforehand.

Part 2

Part 2 of 6:

Finding the Text Messaging Function

1
Go to your phone's home or menu page. Find the text messaging function in the menu. Usually you are looking for the icon that says “messages” or messaging” on the main menu of the phone.
- On some phones, it will say messages on the bottom of the screen. Choose it. Select “new text message.”
- With an iPhone, you may see a green messages box on the home page. Touch it or click OK, depending on the phone.^{[2]
  X
  Research source}
2
Click on the messages icon. You should see a list of your old texts organized by recipient if you've texted people before. If you haven't, it will take you to a blank page.
- To continue texting a person you've texted before, simply click on their name or phone number first.
- If you've never texted the person, you will need to have their phone number handy in order to text them. You will be texting directly to their cell phone (or landline).

Part 3

Part 3 of 6:

Opening a New Text Message Box

1
Open the spot to create a new text message. On newer smart phones, choose “new message” or “write message” or choose the icon for creating a new message.
- This icon is a + sign in some phones. In iPhones, it's a little square with a line. This should open up the new text message box.
- When you click on the icon, a new message box opens. This is where you will type your message. First you need to decide who you will be sending the text to and obtain their contact information.
2
Type in the phone number of the person you want to message. You will type this in the message's “To:” field at the top of the message box. Make sure to include the area code.
- You could also select the number from the contact list in your phone's address book. Just type their name in the field, and it might autofill the number in for you. If you've texted the person before, when you start typing in the number, it might also show up automatically for you.
- To send a text to more than one person with a smart phone, simply click on the plus sign icon. Or you can just add more contacts in the To: field by adding more phone numbers or names (if they are in your contact list).

Part 4

Part 4 of 6:

Writing the Text Message

1
Type the message. How you do this depends on your phone type. If you have a smart phone with a keyboard (push button or touch screen), you simply use that to type the message.
- If you have an older handset that has a numeric keypad, you will see letters under each of the numbers you use to call people. You may need to press the key several times to enter the letter you want if the number key has several letters on it.
- On some phones you will press “O” to type a space. If you have a newer smart phone, like an iPhone or Android, you can just tap out letters on a touch screen keyboard, so it will be a lot easier.
2
Add multimedia to your text. Perhaps you want to add a video or photo to your text. This is pretty easy to do.
- Click the camera icon for some newer smart phones. The phone's photo library will pop up. You can select a preexisting photo of video from it. Clicking on it will add it to your text.
- Some newer phones also have a “take photo or video” function. If you click it, you can take a photo or record a video right into the text message.
- Some phones also allow you to record an audio text. To do this, click on the little microphone sign (or similar icon) on the bottom right of the text message box. Tap and hold to send audio. This allows you to record your voice instead of texting via written word.

Part 5

Part 5 of 6:

Sending or Forwarding the Text Message

1
Send the text. To send the text, after you've typed in your message in the message box, you will simply need to hit “send.”
- If you want to reply to a text message, it works the same way. You click on the text you've received, and then type your reply in the smaller message box that appears at the bottom of the screen.
- Then hit “send” after you've completed your reply, and it will text the reply back to the person who wrote to you. The benefit of a text message is it should reach the recipient immediately.
- To forward a text message, tap and hold the message. Select the option to forward the message. You will probably find this under the “options” menu.
- Again you will have to type the recipient's phone number into the To: field and send it.
2
Stay short. Texting format is usually pretty short. In fact, you will be limited in how much you can write. The purpose of texting is to allow people to send short bursts of messages to each other quickly.
- You can only write 160 characters for each text, so get to the point. Think of a text email as a short email.
- You can keep texting, but the cell phone will break your text into multiple texts. Watch your tone. People can misperceive it, thinking you are angry when you are not. Stay polite in text messages and remember that people could save them to use against you.

Part 6

Part 6 of 6:

Using Special Features when Texting

1
Use texting language. Because texting is short and people are often texting others on the fly, a texting lingo has developed in which people use shorthand abbreviations for longer sentences.
- You may receive these codes from someone texting you, and you will need to know what they mean. Some common ones are: BRB (Be right back). BTW (by the way). IDK (I don't know). IMO (in my opinion).
- Other codes include LOL (laugh out loud). ILY (I love you). FWIW (For what it's worth). And CUL8R (See you later).^{[3]
  X
  Research source}
2
Add emoticons to your text. Sometimes people add emoticons to their texts to indicate their emotion. For example, you can choose a smiley face emoticon. This is the most common and would indicate you're happy.
- There are also emoticons for kisses, love, anger, sadness, crying, and basically every emotion you might be feeling. People use emoticons in texts to express how they are feeling in a way that is less ambiguous.^{[4]
  X
  Research source}
- Newer smart phones, such as iPhones, are going to have more complex and elaborate emoticons than the typical smiley faces. You will usually see the emoticons as a choice at the bottom of your keyboard screen or text message box when texting.
3
Sign up for text message alerts. It's possible to sign up to receive text alerts. Sometimes, commercial products will allow you to do this and will send you information about sales and things like that.
- Sometimes people sign up for text alerts because they want to receive information about breaking news, traffic, or weather information.
- Some television shows allow automated voting or contest participation via text messaging. It's also possible to forward your emails to your mobile device.
4
Send or receive a text from a landline. Some phone companies, like AT&T allow your to pay an extra charge to send and receive text messages from a landline.^{[5]
X
Research source}
- You can also send text messages to landline phones using “text to landline” services.^{[6]
  X
  Research source} The service will convert your text into a voicemail.
- You create and text the message the same way, simply plugging in the number of the landline. However, you may have to purchase the service first. Call your phone provider. Some phone plans include text to landline automatically. If the landline is eligible to receive the text, the message will be sent, usually with a recorded female voice. Some landline recipients can reply with voice message.

Community Q&A

Question

Should I type the text message all in CAPS?

Community Answer

THIS IS NOT A GOOD IDEA. It will make you sound like you are angry or shouting at the recipient.
Question

Is it possible to text to a landline?

Community Answer

Yes. In fact, some cell phones offer this service automatically. In other cases, contact your cell phone provider to see if it's available. You text to a landline the same way as to a cell phone. The service will convert the text into a voicemail that it sends to the landline. Just type in the phone number of the landline and send the text if you have the service automatically.
Question

Do I need the area code or just the last seven numbers?

Community Answer

You definitely need the area code. For example, if the area code is "123", you will need to include it before the other digits.