Turn your Android phone into an SMS gateway.
No gateway fees, no new hardware. textbee is the open-source Twilio alternative: send and receive SMS text messages from your apps through your own phone, with one REST API. Perfect for OTPs, notifications, and two-way messaging.
- Cost savings
- 98%
- vs. traditional SMS gateways
- Setup time
- 3 min
- on average
- Messages
- 1M+
- sent per month
- Source
- Open source
- MIT licensed, self-hostable
Features
Everything you need to send & receive SMS
Send and receive SMS online with your Android phone. Simple API, webhooks, and bulk messaging. Learn how to send SMS or receive SMS in the docs, or try our SMS tools. Start on the free SMS API tier: 300 messages a month, no credit card. Prefer the other name? The text message API page walks through the same calls.
SMS API
Send SMS from any app with a single REST call. No SDKs to wrestle, no vendor lock-in, and it works with Node, Python, cURL, or anything that speaks HTTP.
Read the send docsReceive SMS online
Receive inbound texts via webhooks or the API. Build OTP verification, support inboxes, and true two-way messaging.
Read the receive docsBulk messaging
Reach many recipients in a single API call: campaigns, alerts, and broadcasts without writing loops.
SMS templates
Reusable templates with dynamic variables so your team ships consistent messages faster.
Advanced analytics
See delivery, volume, and performance at a glance with detailed reports.
Multi-device support
Connect up to 5 Android phones to spread load and stay reliable at higher volume.
Open source
The whole stack is on GitHub: audit it, self-host it, and trust exactly what you run.
Open source SMS gateway guideMessage scheduling
Queue messages for a specific time up to 72 hours ahead and let textbee send them.
How it works
Live in under 5 minutes
Install the app to turn your Android device into an SMS gateway, then call the API from your own applications. No carrier contracts, no hardware.
- 0130 seconds
Download the Android app
Install the free, open-source textbee app on any Android phone.
Get the app - 021 minute
Generate an API key
Create a secure API key from your dashboard. Unlimited keys per account.
Open dashboard - 031 minute
Scan the QR code
Scan the code in the app (or paste the key) and enable the gateway.
- 04Instant
Start sending
Fire your first SMS from the dashboard or the API. You are live.
View API docs
Use cases
From OTPs to two-way support
One API, many jobs. Developers use textbee anywhere SMS needs to reach a real phone.
OTP and 2FA
Send time-sensitive verification codes to secure logins and accounts.
Order notifications
Confirmations, shipping updates, and delivery alerts your customers actually read.
Appointment reminders
Cut no-shows with automated reminders for clinics, salons, and services.
Alerts and monitoring
Push critical system, weather, and on-call alerts the moment they happen.
Marketing and reminders
Run opt-in promotions, offers, and bulk campaigns from your own number.
Two-way support
Receive replies over webhooks and hold real conversations with customers.
Demo
Watch the demo
See how textbee turns an Android phone into an SMS gateway in minutes.
Developer friendly
Simple integration in minutes
Our REST API makes it easy to integrate SMS capabilities into any application. Just a few lines of code is all you need.
Send an SMS message
Choose your preferred language
1import axios from 'axios'
2
3const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY'
4
5const response = await axios.post(`https://api.textbee.dev/api/v1/gateway/send-sms`, {
6 recipients: [ '+1234567890' ],
7 message: 'Hello from textbee.dev!',
8}, {
9 headers: {
10 'x-api-key': API_KEY,
11 },
12})
13
14console.log(response.data)Pricing reality
Same SMS, different bill
Twilio is carrier-grade throughput you rent. textbee is the phone you already own. Here is the honest trade-off.
Twilio figures are approximate US list prices and change over time. If you send millions of messages a month, Twilio is the right tool. For everything below that, keep the money.
Pricing
Simple, transparent pricing
Flat pricing with no per-message fees. Plans that grow with you, cancel anytime. Save 44% with annual billing.
Switch to yearly billing and save 44%, up to $159.89 a year
Free
Get started with basic SMS gateway features
No credit card required
- Send and receive SMS Messages
- Register 1 active device
- Max 50 messages per day
- Up to 300 messages per month
- Webhook notifications
- Basic support
Pro
Perfect for businesses and serious users
- Everything in Free plan
- Register up to 5 active devices
- Unlimited daily messages
- Up to 5,000 messages per month
- Message templates with variables
- Priority support
Scale
For growing teams sending at volume
- Everything in Pro plan
- Register up to 15 active devices
- Unlimited daily messages
- Up to 25,000 messages per month
- Message templates with variables
- Priority support
Custom
Let's talk about your needs
Tailored solutions for high-volume needs and specific requirements.
- Everything in Pro plan
- Custom message volume limits
- White-labeled solution
- Custom integrations
- SLA with uptime guarantees
- Dedicated account manager
- Volume discounts
Frequently asked questions
In the wild
Old phones, real workloads
Real answers from our 10,000-developer milestone survey. Nonprofits, salons, universities, and indie builders running production SMS on hardware they already had.
Your phone is already an SMS gateway. Switch it on.
Set up in minutes and send your first message for free. No credit card, no per-message fees, no carrier contracts.
Need self-hosting help or a custom integration? See services