Choosing a mass texting app can be difficult. This guide will help you pick the best platform to send text messages to everyone you need.
You already know that you want to message all of your customers at once, and a mass texting app is the way to do it.
But if you open Google and search for “best mass text app,” you’ll see dozens of service providers claiming to be the best.
Who’s got time to go through all of them?
Below, we’ll break down the pros and cons of the top players in the mass texting industry (yes, even alternatives to our platform) and tell you everything to look for in the best mass texting service for your business.
Even if you decide not to go with SimpleTexting, we hope this guide saves you some time and helps you make an informed decision.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Not sure where to start with your search for the best mass texting service? I’ve got you. Here’s a quick rundown of the top 7 mass texting apps in the industry out of 14 I tested (with help from my team).
To shortlist the best mass texting apps, my team and I spent hours sending texts, creating templates, adding contacts, and testing out advanced features for 14 SMS platforms.
I was specially looking at how easy it is to:
These are core to any mass texting app worth its salt. I know this because besides working in the SMS marketing industry for nearly four years, I have experience owning and marketing a small business. You guessed it: I used text marketing as a tactic to grow that business.
Admittedly, I’m a little biased about how amazing SimpleTexting is, but I have the data and testimonials to back it up.
More than 17,000 small- and medium-sized businesses choose our platform because of its flexible pricing, user-friendly platform, and advanced features. From mass text-blasting services to one-on-one texting, we have it all for you.
In an in-depth review of SimpleTexting on Business.com, contributing writer Mark Farlie said that “Having the type of connected system SimpleTexting’s developers created could give your company a competitive edge. That’s why we’ve selected SimpleTexting as the ideal text message marketing supplier for small businesses.”
If you want your SMS marketing strategy to work seamlessly with other tools your business relies on, our team can create custom integrations for your unique needs. We’ve worked with restaurants, healthcare practices, nonprofits, schools, and other organizations to automate mass text message campaigns and sync their contact lists.
Pros
Cons
Pricing
SimpleTexting offers flexible pricing plans, with the lowest plan starting at $29/month for 500 messaging credits. Any unused credits in a given month roll over to the next month (but only for one month). You can add more credits at any time through the simple self-serve billing dashboard.
Free trial
To give users a chance to experience the platform’s features, SimpleTexting provides a 14-day free trial without requiring credit card information until you’re ready to upgrade.
Top features
SimpleTexting is best known for its:
Device availability
You can use SimpleTexting to text from your desktop, smartphones, tablets, or any other wifi-enabled device. Our mobile app is available for iOS and Android.
With its flexible pricing model and international capabilities, TextMagic is great for small businesses and those with customers within and outside the U.S. and Canada.
TextMagic can identify invalid numbers to improve message deliverability, and it has email-to-SMS capabilities that make communication convenient. With TextMagic, you can send audio files via text and use text-to-speech to make phone calls. This means you can communicate beyond just words on a screen.
While most mass SMS apps have pricing tiers, TextMagic charges $0.049 per text, making it a flexible option for businesses with variable sending volume.
Pros
Cons
Pricing
TextMagic’s pricing is pay-as-you-go. So, you only pay for the number of messages you send, rather than paying a fixed amount every month or year.
The cost begins at $0.049 per text to U.S. numbers. If you send more than 100,000 messages every month, you can request custom pricing.
Free trial
Try TextMagic free for 30 days with $0.40 in messaging credits.
Top features
TextMagic is best known for its:
Device availability
TextMagic offers a mobile app for iOS and Android that performs many of the same functions as its desktop app.
Textedly is a simple, yet effective, mass texting platform for businesses on a budget that are looking for a simple suite of features. If you’re looking for a straightforward SMS platform with a low price, add this one to your list.
When I was testing out Textedly, I noticed some of its features are add-ons. While most platforms include things like automated texts and personalization in their monthly subscriptions, Textedly offers them a la carte for a one-time fee.
Because its pricing tiers are so inexpensive, these add-on fees may not be a problem for businesses that need basic SMS functionality.
Pros
Cons
Pricing
Textedly’s seven pricing tiers range from a $26/month plan for 600 text messages and one custom keyword to the $349/month plan, which includes 18,000 text messages/month and seven keywords.
Free trial
Textedly’s 14-day free trial comes with 50 text messages.
Top features
Popular Textedly features include:
Device availability
Textedly has a standard desktop app, but they don’t have a mobile app for iOS or Android as of January 2024.
With its free onboarding session, SlickText is an excellent choice for business owners who want a personalized onboarding experience.
In addition to standard features like two-way messaging, mass texting, MMS, and keywords, SlickText provides advanced capabilities like automated workflows, personalization, and loyalty program software.
This last feature is helpful for retail companies, restaurants, and service-based businesses that want to keep customers coming back on a regular basis.
Pros
Cons
Pricing
Like SimpleTexting, SlickText’s plans start as low as $29/month for 500 messaging credits. This plan comes with two keywords but doesn’t include automated workflows. Its top-level plan — the Monstro — includes 50,000 messages for $1,250/month.
Free trial
Try SlickText out free for 14 days with 50 messaging credits.
Top features
SlickText offers its users:
Device availability
You can use SlickText on its iOS or Android apps, in addition to desktop.
EZ Texting is best for business owners with limited marketing experience who are looking for a robust, easy-to-use platform.
Customers rave about EZ Texting beginner’s guide, which helps you get up and running quickly without feeling overwhelmed. It’s not the cheapest platform on the market, but it’s built with busy marketers and business owners in mind. The ease of use could save you time and, ultimately, money.
Pros
Cons
Pricing
EZ Texting’s pricing plans range from $20/month for 500 credits and 500 contacts to $3,000/month for 60,000 credits and 50,000 contacts when paid annually.
Free trial
You can try EZ Texting free for 14 days with 50 messages and one keyword.
Top features
Popular EZ Texting features include:
Device availability
In addition to its desktop app, EZ Texting has an iOS app that lets you review campaign performance and delivery, send and receive texts, and manage your contacts.
Podium is excellent if you’re serving local markets and need a reliable mass texting platform. Beyond texting, I like how its reputation management system simplifies the collection and tracking of customer reviews. Podium also lets you respond to reviews from Google My Business and Facebook.
While Podium users like their ability to request and collect customer reviews via SMS, the catch is, Podium isn’t cheap. Its steep basic plan costs $249/month for 1,000 contacts. Other budget-friendly alternatives with similar features are DialMyCalls and MessageMedia.
Pros
Cons
Pricing
Podium has the essential, standard, and professional pricing packages. The essential plan costs $249/month for managing 1,000 contacts. This plan allows you to integrate 100+ apps and send up to 100 bulk messages monthly.
Free trial
None. Interested users have to book a demo to get started.
Top features
Podium has some brilliant functionalities, like:
Device availability
Podium is available on Android, iOS, and desktop apps.
Attentive is a conversational marketing platform with tools like SMS for e-commerce businesses. Their platform has responsive templates and integrates with eCommerce bigwigs like BigCommerce, Shopify, Gorgias, etc. Recently, they partnered with Stamped, a review management platform that enables you to request customer reviews via SMS.
Besides the regular features of any SMS marketing software, Attentive has AI capabilities for creating personalized SMS and email campaigns quickly. That’s why, among other reasons, business owners like Paul Goodman recommend it.
However, users like Dave Rekuc claim Attentive isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. What Dave says:
Pros
Cons
Pricing
Attentive pricing packages are available on request.
Free trial
Attentive SMS doesn’t offer a free trial. This is limiting because even a demo may be insufficient for you to understand how a platform works.
Top features
Device availability
Attentive, unlike other apps listed here, is only available on desktop.
Everyone promises their group messaging service or text message marketing platform is the best in the industry. And there are certainly several great ones out there.
To ensure you’re signing up for the best mass text app that’d give you a positive ROI, look out for this seven elements:
Every mass text app can send SMS messages to large groups of people at once. If you’re using text messaging for your business or organization, you probably want an app that goes beyond mass texting.
Before you sign up for a texting service, make sure it can deliver to multiple recipients and has the following features:
Use the features above as a rule of thumb to assess mass texting apps that make the cut. In some instances, you may need fewer features, and in others, you may need more. Check out everything you can do with SimpleTexting’s mass text messaging app here.
We’ve covered the how, the why, and the who. Now let’s review some real-life examples of companies who have seen success with a mass text message app.
All of the customers below used SimpleTexting (yes, that’s us.) You can download our app for free on the App Store or Google Play.
Delta Sonic is one of the largest car wash and convenience store chains in the U.S.
They use a mass text message app to communicate with thousands of customers every week. During slow seasons, they send out text blasts about promotions and services. Their text club was so well received by customers that they grew their list from zero to tens of thousands of subscribers in just a few years.
Get all the details about how Delta Sonic uses SMS.
Honey + Thyme is changing the way people think about food delivery services.
Their menu highlights local, in-season ingredients and changes every week. Text messages help them keep customers up-to-date on the latest items that are available to order. Read more about how they drive orders with text messages.
As we explained in this article, a mass text message app should do more than just send messages to lists of people.South Arkansas Community College uses the 2-way messaging feature of SimpleTexting to connect with current and prospective students. Check out their success story to see how they use texts for recruitment and organizing campus tours.
After working together with thousands of customers, including Fortune 500 companies and small businesses, we’ve learned exactly what makes a text message app the best.
We’re confident in our app, which is why we let anyone try it completely free for 14 days. No credit card needed.
Precious Oboidhe and Nathan Ellering contributed to this article.
Alfredo is SimpleTexting's brand manager. He's passionate about using his 10+ years of marketing experience to help small businesses grow.
More Posts from Alfredo SalkeldLearn how to set up an emergency SMS alert system to keep customers, employees, students, and others safe during dangerous situations.
ReadWe don't think twice about using our cellphones for texts and phone calls. Your business' landline doesn't have to be any different.
ReadStart a text marketing campaign or have a 1-on-1 conversation today. It's risk free. Sign up for a free 14-day trial today to see SimpleTexting in action.
No credit card required