Why Are My Text Messages Not Sending?

Common causes of text messages not sending include poor network connection, spam filters, service restrictions, airplane mode, corrupted app cache, VoIP delays, and illegal content, as well as issues related to message status updates.

Mobile carriers can sometimes prevent your messages from being sent successfully, leading to a Text Message Not Delivered notification due to issues like server downtimes, outages, infrastructure problems, or maintenance on the carrier's end.

Messages containing offensive material that breaches guidelines are automatically marked as “spam”. When this happens, there's a high likelihood that your message won't reach the intended recipient.
 

Some universal reasons why your message is flagged as spam:

• If your SMS text contains suspicious links like bit.ly or tinyURL.com.
• If you send multiple SMS messages with the same content to different numbers.
• The recipient's carrier will flag the message if your SMS message length is too long, like an essay.

To identify scams or fake text messages, you must be careful about terms like unusual sender information, false sense of urgency, and poor grammar and spelling. Apart from that, most scam texts discus winning lottery prizes and other prizes you have not taken part in.

If you send illegal content, such as drug references, adult material, or anything related to criminal activities, the system or phone carrier will immediately block the SMS messages. In some cases, you might even see a Text Message Not Delivered when your message is flagged and rejected by the network. To avoid this, always ensure your messages follow proper guidelines and comply with messaging protocols.

The person you're trying to reach may restrict the service to send and receive messages. They may prevent calls and SMS messages, including international calls and MMS. The ability to send SMS messages is sometimes restricted to control billing issues, business policy control, and parental controls.

People often send too many messages to advertise their products, and sometimes, personal users send messages in bulk for one-on-one interactions. Sending large volumes of text may block your service, and the messages cannot be sent. To solve this problem, the limits to send messages should be minimized.

A phone stores information to run smoothly, known as a cache. The stored information or data can be corrupted while texting. If the issue is seen when sending and receiving messages, you can clear the message cache to solve this problem.

One common reason for text messages not sending is that carriers and messaging platforms flag suspicious or shortened links, like bit.ly or tinyurl.com, as spam or phishing threats. When they detect these links, they block your message to protect recipients, resulting in delivery failure. To ensure successful delivery, use clear and trusted URLs and avoid suspicious or overly shortened links.

If the recipient has blocked your number, your text messages will not send. When a number is blocked, the carrier prevents your messages from reaching the recipient’s device, often resulting in a "Text Message Not Delivered" notification. To resolve this, confirm with the recipient whether your number is blocked, or try contacting them through alternative means. And to text the blocked number, use the alternative number or send an anonymous text message to reach them through other means.

To fix message-sending issues, restart your phone, check your network connection, and ensure your SIM card is inserted correctly. You can also clear your messaging app's cache and reset message settings to their default values.

Simply restarting your phone means pressing and holding the lock button and volume down button until the phone performs a forced power cycle. This method helps shut down your phone and reset the devices, and it will often fix any glitches.

Verify if the SIM card is inserted into your phone correctly. If not, then you can pop out the SIM card and place it correctly.

On both iOS and Android phones, we can reset the message settings. To restore the default message settings, follow these steps:

Android Phones:

1. Open the settings app
2. Scroll down and tap on Apps
3. Find the messaging app and tap on it.
4. Tap on Storage.
5. Look for options like Clear Data or Clear Storage.
6. Confirm the action when prompted.

iOS Devices:

1. Go to the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Scroll down and find Messages.
3. Tap on the messaging app.
4. Look for an option to Reset or Reset Settings.
5. Confirm the action when prompted.

You should check if there is anything to update or not. If yes, then follow these steps:

1. Open the settings app
2. Tap software update
3. If an update is available, Tap Download and Install
4. At last, Tap Download now

After an update, clear the message app cache. There are some steps to clear the cache on your phone.

1. Open the settings app.
2. Scroll down and tap Apps.
3. Tap the Messages app.
4. Tap Storage.
5. Tap Clear cache in the bottom-right corner.

If clearing the cache on your phone doesn't work, then you need to clear system junk on your Android phone. Many Android users use third-party apps to clear the trash and free up phone storage.

You can follow these steps to force the messaging app to stop.

1. Open the Settings menu and open the Application.
2. In the Application Manager, swipe down to see all the applications.
3. Look for the Messaging app in the list and click on it.
4. When you open the app info, you will see an option that says Force Stop.
5. Tap on it and restart your device.

Having trouble sending a text message can be frustrating, but understanding why your message isn't sending can help. By understanding common causes, such as poor network connection, app issues, or carrier restrictions, you can quickly troubleshoot and resolve these problems to ensure your messages are delivered without delay.