Why do character limits matter?
Understanding SMS character limits and message parts will help you to control costs and make sure that your message is delivered as intended.
SMS character limits
There are two types of SMS messages and each has a different character limit:
Standard SMS
A single SMS message can contain up to 160 characters. A standard SMS only uses characters from the standard GSM basic character set (e.g., standard English letters, numbers, and common symbols).
Unicode SMS
Unicode messages allow a maximum of 70 characters. If a message includes any character not in the GSM character set — such as emojis or non-Latin alphabets—it’s treated as unicode.
Character counts and long messages
When an SMS exceeds the character limit, it becomes a multi-part message. Each additional part has a slightly lower character limit because some characters are used to make sure the message parts are received in the correct order.
Character count per standard SMS
When you’re calculating message lengths, keep in mind that you’re charged per part.
1–160 characters | 1 part |
161–306 characters | 2 parts |
307–459 characters | 3 parts |
460–612 characters | 4 parts |
613–765 characters | 5 parts |
766–918 characters | 6 parts |
919–1071 characters | 7 parts |
1072–1224 characters | 8 parts |
Character count per Unicode SMS
When you’re calculating message lengths, keep in mind that you’re charged per part.
1–70 characters | 1 part |
71–134 characters | 2 parts |
135–201 characters | 3 parts |
202–268 characters | 4 parts |
269–335 characters | 5 parts |
336–402 characters | 6 parts |
403–469 characters | 7 parts |
470–536 characters | 8 parts |
The impact of emojis
You can include emojis and other non-GSM characters, but note:
Each emoji is counted as 2 Unicode characters.
Adding an emoji changes the message type to Unicode, which lowers the character limit per part to 70 characters.
Learn more about unicode vs standard GSM characters.
Update character settings
Managing SMS character limits and settings helps you control costs. Plus, it means your messages will show up as expected.
Force only GSM characters
To stick to GSM (standard) characters and avoid emojis or special characters that reduce your character count:
Go to your Unicode SMS Settings.
Select force non-Unicode.
Now, no one who uses your account can use emojis in text messages.
Support for non-English characters
You will need to enable non-English characters (UTF-8 characters) in the Dashboard. Once enabled, these characters are fully supported and you can send messages in any language from both the API and the Dashboard.
Login to your account Dashboard
Go to Profile in the top right hand corner.
Navigate to Messaging Settings > SMS/MMS > General > Unicode
Select Autodetect and click save.
With Unicode SMS enabled, you can send using any language from Arabic to Japanese, Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi and beyond.
Set a maximum character limit
If you want to control the length of your messages, you can set a maximum character limit. To adjust your character limit, visit your Character Limit Settings.