Jump to
If you are having trouble sending texts on your Android phone, it could be that something is wrong with your Android, the recipient, or the mobile service provider.
Fortunately, fixing the problem is usually pretty easy. In fact, the first thing you should do is ensure that you have a decent signal — without network connectivity, those texts aren’t going anywhere.
If the signal is good and the messages still aren’t going through, there are a few troubleshooting steps you can do to fix an Android that won’t send texts.
When restarting your phone, don’t use the standard method, which is holding the Lock button for three seconds, and then tapping Power off. Instead, press and hold the Lock button and the Volume Down button until the phone does a forced power cycle.
This method of shutting down your phone resets the device, and will often fix any glitches.
If the reset didn’t work, you should check if there are any updates you can install.
Note: When it comes to troubleshooting on Android in the Settings app, the steps depend on the device you’re using. However, they aren’t drastically different between devices.
1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap Software Update.
3. If an update is available, tap Download and install.
4. Tap Download now.
Next, it’s time to clear the Message app cache, which can become corrupted, especially after an update.
To clear your message cache, follow these quick steps:
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.
Next make sure that your phone’s SIM card is properly installed.
You can pop out the SIM tray using a dedicated tool or by unwinding a small paperclip pushing it into the tray’s eject hole.
If the card was physically out of place, that was likely the cause of the problem.
Quick tip: Check out our SIM card guide for more information.
If your text messages aren’t going through to a particular recipient, it could very well be that they have blocked your number. There’s no easy way to find out since you don’t get an alert when someone has done this. However, there are a few ways to check.
Try the following and keep an eye out for red flags of being blocked:
If too many people have reported your text messages as spam, which can happen if you’re using the number to text customers a lot, carriers could blacklist your number. That means every time you try to text a number belonging to those carriers, their spam filters will prevent your message from going out.
Depending on the severity of the spam reports, your number could be temporarily or permanently banned from texting.
Sometimes, if you’re unable to send a message, it could be that your mobile service provider is experiencing issues with their SMS service. Call them to find out if that is the case and when you can expect normal service to be restored so you can try sending the text messages again.