How to Send a Text from Gmail in 2021

Have you ever needed to send something from your computer to your phone? Maybe you’ve thought about using Gmail for that but weren’t sure how. Unfortunately Gmail no longer supports SMS directly but there are still ways to send a text from Gmail.

Send a Text From Gmail Using a Phone Number

Some wireless carriers provide email to SMS gateways that allow you to send text messages to a phone number via email. You’ll have to know the phone number and the carrier the device is on though. You’ll also need the carrier’s SMS gateway address, but we’ll explain how to find that below.

1. Open Gmail in your browser and compose a new message.
2. In the To field, type the 10 digit phone number followed by the @ symbol and then the carrier’s SMS gateway address.
   
   The SMS gateway address is different per carrier. If you know the device’s carrier, you can use this website to find their SMS gateway. An example would be something like 5551234567@vtext.com.
   
3. Click Send.
   

You can also use this method for other email clients like Outlook. Any device with the ability to send email can use this method to also deliver text messages.

Use Google Messages to Send a Text From Your Computer

Google Messages provides a web interface where you can access your phone’s text messages from your computer. You can also send text messages from your computer with it.

1. Install the Google Messages app on your phone if it’s not already your default messaging app.
2. Open the messages app and tap the 3 dots at the upper right and then tap Messages for web.
   
3. Switch over to your computer and open messages.google.com/web in your web browser. You should see a screen with instructions and a big QR code on the right.
4. Back on your phone, tap QR code scanner and scan the QR code shown on your computer.
   
5. Once paired, you will have access to all of your text message conversations on your computer.

To send a text message from your computer to your phone, compose a new text message to your own number. The message should appear on both your phone and your computer.

Disconnecting a Computer from Google Messages

If you want to un-pair your computer from your phone simply sign out on either device.

From your computer: Open messages.google.com/web in a browser then click the 3 dots to the right of Messages and select Sign out

From your phone: Open the Messages app and tap the 3 dots then tap Messages for web. Under the QR code scanner button, tap the X next to the signed in computer.