What’s the Difference Between SMS and RCS Messaging?

SMS is a text-based messaging service that allows users to send and receive text messages of up to 160 characters using mobile phone numbers. The character limit decreases to 70 when you add special characters and emojis or write messages in languages that do not use the GSM 7-bit character set. SMS operates over a mobile network and charges some amount as a carrier fee for message sharing.

RCS is an interactive messaging protocol that provides a more dynamic and rich messaging experience than SMS - it shows if the recipient has read your message and that they are typing. Besides, there is no character limit to text, and you can share multimedia files of larger sizes. RCS messaging works over the Internet, and if the Internet is not available, you can still send plain text messages as SMS using your mobile network.

While SMS has been a prevalent messaging approach, RCS messaging is gaining popularity rapidly, with Apple introducing RCS to iPhones recently. Both SMS and RCS messaging systems are relevant today, but the constant advancements in messaging technology favor RCS slightly.

Being an IP-based service, RCS depends on the internet, while SMS uses mobile networks to send and receive messages. SMS does not support media files, but RCS can share up to 100MB. Unlike SMS, RCS offers real-time interaction with delivery and read receipts.

1. Business growth

RCS helps you promote your business, offering rich messaging options like product catalogs, video demos, interactive virtual assistance, and even transactional messages. It allows consumers to identify genuine business providers and discourages scam activities. 
 

2. Real-time information

RCS gives users real-time information on message delivery, typing indicators, and reading receipts. It keeps the sender and receiver engaged for an improved communication experience. 
 

3. Group messaging

With SMS, the number of members you can add to a group chat is limited from 15 to 20. In addition, all the messages in a group chat are sent individually. RCS overcomes these issues, allowing users to add 100 members to a group chat and allowing everyone to access all messages in the group. 
 

4. RCS Over SMS for Businesses

Despite its promising features in overcoming the limitations of SMS, RCS has a few limitations.

• RCS is not compatible across all devices, causing compatibility issues. You must have Android 5.0/iOS 18 or higher for RCS to work on your device.
• RCS requires an internet connection for full functionality. It limits its usage in areas with poor connectivity.
• RCS does not support end-to-end encryption unless the sender and receiver have the upgraded RCS service, requiring users to use a single device to access messages.

SMS has been a dominant way of sending mobile messages for a long time. However, the adoption of RCS by tech companies shows that the users are ready for a significant advancement. RCS addresses many of the limitations of SMS by offering a richer and more interactive communication experience. Yet, other issues such as compatibility problems, internet dependency, and the absence of end-to-end encryption, need to be addressed.

RCS has the prospect of becoming the new popular mobile messaging means, bringing the best of traditional SMS and modern OTT messaging apps. The preference of a messaging system depends upon its usage. A thorough comparison of messaging systems based on significant features might help you decide the right one.