Send SMS from your computer using your own phone number
Open the textbee dashboard in a browser on Windows, Mac, Linux or a Chromebook and send a text to one person or a whole list. The message leaves from the Android phone on your desk, so it comes from your own number and replies come back to you.
How it works
Your computer writes the message and your phone sends it. The phone needs Android 7.0 or later and a SIM that can send texts.
- 1
Install the app on your Android phone
Get the app from the download page and install it on an Android phone with a working SIM. Then scan the QR code from your dashboard to register the phone to your account. The quickstart walks through each step.
- 2
Open the dashboard on your computer
Sign in to the textbee dashboard in any browser. The phone stays on your desk, on a charger and connected, and shows as active in the dashboard.
- 3
Type the number and the message, then send
Enter the recipient and your text, and send. The phone picks up the message and sends it over its SIM, so it arrives from your own number.
Send one message to many people
The dashboard has a bulk SMS section that takes a CSV file. Each row is one recipient, and each person gets the message with the values from their own row.
- Upload a CSV with a phone number column and any extra columns you want in the message, such as name or order number.
- Select the phone that sends the messages.
- Choose the recipient column, for example phone.
- Write one template with placeholders, for example: Hello {{ name }}, your order is ready.
- Preview the message for one recipient to check the template, then send.
The full walkthrough is in the bulk SMS docs. To check a template before you send it, try the bulk SMS template preview.
Replies come back to you
Your messages come from a real number, so people can reply to them. Turn on Receive SMS in the textbee app, and texts sent to the phone show up in the message history of your dashboard, filtered as received, next to the ones you sent. Developers can have each incoming message sent to a webhook URL as it arrives.
Setup steps are in the receiving SMS docs.
What it costs
textbee plans are flat monthly prices with messages included. There is no per-message fee. Messages go out on your SIM, so your own mobile plan covers the carrier side.
| Plan | Price | Messages a month | Phones |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 300 (up to 50 a day) | 1 |
| Pro | $9.99 a month | Up to 5,000 | Up to 5 |
| Scale | $29.99 a month | Up to 25,000 | Up to 15 |
Honest limits
One phone sends roughly 10 to 15 messages a minute, so a large blast takes time to drain. Carriers can filter bulk patterns on consumer SIMs. Marketing messages still need consent from the recipient under the local rules.
- You need an Android phone that stays on, charged and connected. If the phone is off, nothing sends.
- Recipients see your real number. This is not a way to send anonymous messages.
- Carriers can filter consumer SIMs that look like bulk senders. Keep the pace and the wording human, and text people who expect to hear from you.
For developers
The same phone also works as an SMS gateway for your own code. Send with one REST call and receive by webhook: see the text message API, the free SMS API tier and the API reference.
Frequently asked questions
Does it work on Windows and Mac?
Yes. The textbee dashboard runs in a web browser, so it works on Windows, Mac, Linux and Chromebooks with nothing to install on the computer. The only install is the textbee app on the Android phone that sends the messages.
Does the phone have to stay on?
Yes. The phone is the part that sends, so it needs to stay on, charged and connected to the internet, with a working SIM. An older Android phone on a charger at your desk works well for this.
Can I send one message to many people at once?
Yes. Upload a CSV with a phone number column in the dashboard, write one template with placeholders such as {{ name }}, preview it and send. The phone sends the messages one at a time with a short pause between each, so a long list takes a while to go out.
Is it free?
Yes, to start. The Free plan sends 300 messages a month, up to 50 a day, from one phone, with no credit card. Pro is $9.99 a month for up to 5,000 messages and Scale is $29.99 for up to 25,000.
Do recipients see my number, and can they reply?
Yes. Each message goes out from the SIM in your phone, so recipients see your real number, the same as a text you send by hand. They can reply, and with receiving turned on in the app, replies show up in the message history of your dashboard.