I'm trying to set up our app to send SMS with Twilio. The person who does a lot of our testing lives overseas, so I need to obtain a US phone number that she can use so she can do her testing. I got a number via TextMagic, but when I try to add it to the list of verified numbers on my Twilio dashboard, the verification code (seemingly) never gets sent to the TextMagic number. Is there some sort of restriction on Twilio's side regarding numbers generated from services like TextMagic? Any info would be greatly appreciated!
Twilio developer evangelist here.
I'm not aware of anything that would necessarily restrict things between Twilio and TextMagic.
Can I suggest using another Twilio number to test things? It does work to send between Twilio numbers and you'll need the same knowledge to setup the Twilio number as to use it as a test number.
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I have had a couple of customers wondering if they can use their own phone numbers to send out SMS using Twilio.
I am wondering if this is possible?
What are the carrier charges in this case and do I need to verify this number before enabling this functionality for an individual user?
The number you want to send messages from (or to) needs to be controlled by Twilio. However, it is possible to port your number from your current provider over to Twilio and thus give Twilio control over that number. This is possible, at least in some countries.
This support article here describes how this can be done for US numbers.
So I'm using Zapier to send text messages to people added to a MailChimp mailing list. A lot of the subscribers are from other countries so I'm just wondering how the interaction works with Twilio.
Will I need a separate number for each country?
Twilio developer evangelist here.
You don't necessarily need another number, Twilio numbers can send internationally (mostly, check the individual settings on the number to be sure, UK landline numbers, for example, can't send internationally).
However, receiving a message from an international number may not be a good experience for your users as they might expect a local number. Good news is that it is easy to build this.
You can create yourself an SMS messaging service. Messaging services are a combination of a number pool along with smart uses of the number pool. You can start your messaging service with one number and add others later. When you add more than one number the messaging service will geomatch between the people you are sending to and the numbers available in the pool, picking the best number for the user.
I'm not entirely sure how this works with Zapier, whether you can set a messaging service ID for your Zap. If that's not possible, you could use Zapier to send a webhook to something like a Twilio Function which you could set up to send the message.
Let me know if that helps at all.
Is there anyway to send the same text to multiple contacts not as a group text. I have been told that it would need a server to accomplish this. If that is the case I would like to be able to still send texts from my current number not a new number. I have checked out Twilio but have not gotten very far.
Twilio developer evangelist here.
You cannot send mass text messages using Twilio and your existing phone number.
One option you might have is, if you have a Mac you can control the SMS app programmatically to send lots of SMS messages. Here's a blog post with some example code to do that: https://www.twilio.com/blog/2017/06/drawing-pixel-art-text-messages-signal-video-wall.html
That might not be of much help, but while you can send lots of SMS messages with Twilio, you cannot do so using your existing number.
Yes you could send mass texts out to different numbers using twilio. No you could not use your current number.
You would have to purchase a new twilio number that has SMS messaging enabled.
Look at the Twilio documentation and their get started guide, figure out the language you want to create your server in and you will be sending texts in no time. https://www.twilio.com/docs/quickstart/node/programmable-sms You would run the webserver. Twilio does not offer a swift or ios based SMS solution.
https://www.twilio.com/docs/quickstart?filter-language=swift
I want to verify mobile phone numbers. The mobile phone numbers can be from anywhere, I mean any country. My idea is to send an sms with a code, and then ask for that code.
I am not sure if Twilio is a correct choice for doing that, because I do not understand if with a phone number from Twilio I am able to send messages around the world. I am also not sure about the costs of sending messages.
Is Twilio right for this or should I look for another service?
Thanks
Twilio developer evangelist here.
You're totally on the right track. With a Twilio number you can send SMS messages to over 200 countries, and get local numbers in over 40 countries. Have a look at this FAQ for more information.
Have a look at this blog post where we show you how to use Twilio to verify phone numbers on the way you asked.
You will find pricing information in this page, and it will vary slightly from country to country.
Hope this answers your question.
You can also test other similar verification service.
www.foneverify.com is one such service providing verification across the globe.
You can try our services by signing up for free.
Disclosure: I am the product manager of foneverify.
Thanks,
Shivam
I want to implement an SMS messaging system (using Twilio account) on my PHP web application using a US Number. So how can I test using a US number?
Twilio developer evangelist here.
You have a few options:
Firstly, Twilio numbers, particularly US numbers, are available internationally. So you can test this with your local number, wherever you are.
Alternatively, you could buy a US phone and test with that.
Or, with a bit more work, you could buy a second US Twilio number and build a small app for sending and receiving SMS messages with it and use that number to interact with your first Twilio number.
Let me know if this helps at all!