SMS vs MMS: How do they differ?

Despite the availability of online texting apps, SMS vs MMS messaging remains relevant as to which one is the right choice at different stages for different businesses.

sms vs mms

Although SMS and MMS share a comparable technological foundation, they have a significant difference.

However, this is just a surface-level explanation; we should go deeper into these messaging alternatives because they have other characteristics that contribute to their considerable impact and relevance in our interpersonal communication.

What is SMS?

Without a doubt, SMS texts have revolutionized how we humans interact.

Nowadays, almost everyone prefers sending texts instead of making phone calls, mainly due to the convenience of maintaining communication throughout the busy daily schedule.

Consider Twilio or any other text messaging platform as your esteemed collaborator in democratizing communication channels, encompassing voice, text, chat, video, and email, all through convenient APIs.

Short Message Service, also known as SMS, acted as the core indicator of the development of the social media apps we’re using today, like WhatsApp, iMessage, and Messenger.

These apps’ development was based on the same model used with SMS messaging; however, how they are transferred makes them different from SMS messages.

Life of a Text Message

Web-Based
Platform

Aggregator

Carrier Network

Short Message
Service Center
(SMSC)

Message
Recipient

The Text delivery through these social apps is performed using an internet connection – WiFi or cellular data, while the interchange of SMS messages is played out through the cellular network.

Notably, SMS texts have a character limit of 160, which in case of sending a longer text, it will be split into multiple portions of text messages.

Who uses SMS?

First developed in the 1980s, SMS messaging was initially used for transmuting automated messages like voicemail notifications, which it still does today.

But now, it’s also used for personal conversations.

Its navigation can be complex, and it often encounters disruptions affecting message and call delivery.

Still, you don’t need to hesitate to switch since most of these alternatives offer the same (and even far more great features) for half of Twilio’s price range.

So, if Twilio does not meet your requirements, let us present our selection of companies similar to Twilio.

We also made a throughout comparison between them on what you can expect if you decide to switch.

How much does SMS cost?

Mobile service providers and worldwide network operators often provide plans that include free SMS text messages, although the specific features and offerings vary by operator.

SMS messaging rates vary depending on the texting plan you choose.

You should expect to pay extra if your plan excludes unlimited texting or involves locations outside of its coverage.

Still, you don’t need to hesitate to switch since most of these alternatives offer the same (and even far more great features) for half of Twilio’s price range.

Carriers often charge comparable fees for SMS communications in general.

Coming from the latest reports, T-Mobile and Verizon mobile operators charge about 30 cents per text, US Cellular 50 cents, and AT&T about 20 cents.

What is MMS?

Back then, conventional methods of communication, such as phone calls and emails, were standard. Still, with the debut of SMS messaging, it quickly became the go-to method of instant communication.

However, new developments in telecommunications also brought alternative options such as MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service).

In contrast to sending simple text messages, MMS messaging brings a more expressive way of virtual interaction enabling an exchange of multimedia files such as photos, videos, GIFs, and voice recordings.

Unlike SMS messaging, MMS also relies on a cellular data connection phone provider. However, a VoIP phone has two integrated options for sending MMS: mobile data or WiFi.

Who uses MMS?

With MMS messaging, you can make your texts more personalized and unique.

With a limit of 1,600 characters, you can send messages longer than 160 characters.

It’s far more cost-effective and user-friendly to send a single MMS message instead of multiple SMS texts.

Companies find it way more advantageous to share product images, videos, and promotional material for marketing purposes.

Teams and collaborators also find sharing projects, and visual materials, providing feedback, and exchanging ideas especially convenient.

MMS is more convenient than SMS for remote communication and sharing updates with larger groups of people.

How much does MMS cost?

While multimedia messages may come with a slightly higher cost than regular text messages, they offer significant advantages for marketing purposes.

Regarding business, MMS messages have an undeniable advantage over SMS messages because they can generate better returns on investment, while helping you reach a larger and more diverse audience.

How does SMS work?

PDU encoding: preparing the text message for transmission
When you send a text message before being delivered to the recipient, the messaging application stores it as it must undergo a specific process.
SMS messaging uses a protocol unit PDU that encodes the message for transmission over the network.
The PDU (Protocol Data Unit) serves as a container for a multitude of crucial information, meticulously encompassing the sender’s and receiver’s details, the message center address, message encoding, content, and an array of additional parameters.
Furthermore, the message is confined to a maximum character limit of 160, fostering a concise and focused mode of communication.
Each character within this limit is precisely defined by the 7-bit GSM alphabet that includes a diversity of Latin and Greek letters, among other linguistic elements.
For example, the word “Hello” GSM alphabet is 48656C6C6F.
Message handling by the SMSC
Next, your device’s messaging application sends the message to your mobile network operator’s Short Message Service Center or SMSC, which acts as a mediator for handling and routing SMS messages.
Here, the SMSC performs several tasks, like checking the sender’s information and verifying whether the recipient’s phone number and device network are reachable.
Routing the message to the receiver’s network operator
After completing the relevant steps and receiving SMSC approval, the message undergoes recipient network analysis based on their phone number, followed by routing to their network operator via interconnection agreements.
The sender’s operator delivers the message to the receiver’s operator.
Then the receiver’s SMSC stores the message temporarily until the recipient’s device is available or until it can be delivered.
The SMSC forwards the recipient’s message to their device if their phone is turned on and connected, but if they are unavailable, the SMSC holds the message until their device reconnects to the network.

Process Flowchart Steps

1

Click the floating action
button to add or remove a
step of the process

2

Drag the yellow diamond
handle to change the gap size
and vertical offset of the
steps.

3

Click menu Arc-type Display
Line-type Display to display
steps with arc-type/line-type
arrangement.

How does MMS work?

MMS text formatting

Unlike SMS, MMS allows the transmission of various content types, such as graphics, music, and video clips, with standardized formats for instant detection and handling by recipients and with no maximum size limits.

Sending the MMS to MMS-Rs the server

When you send an MMS, your MMS User Agent (MMS-UA) submits the message to the home MMS Relay Server (MMS-RS).

The message must include the recipient’s address and a MIME content type.

Additional parameters like message expiry time and priority can also be set.

The MMS-RS assigns a unique identification to the message and sends this identification back to the sender’s MMS-UA.

If supported, the MMS-RS stores a copy of the message in the sender’s MMBox and then routes the message to the recipients.

Receiving and handling the MMS

When a message is received, the recipient’s MMS-RS verifies the recipient’s profile and notifies the recipient’s MMS-UA.

The message is stored until it either reaches the expiry time, the recipient requests forwarding, or the message is successfully delivered or rejected.

If enabled, the MMS-RS also stores the message in an MMBox.

The recipient’s MMS-UA can reject or retrieve the received message using the message reference, either immediately or later, manually or automatically, depending on the operator’s settings and user preferences.

Adapting the MMS for recipient access

The next aspect of how MMS works is message adaptation.

The recipient’s MMS-UA can indicate its capabilities, such as supported media types and formats, to the recipient’s MMS-RS during the delivery request.

Based on this information, the recipient’s MMS-RS prepares the message for delivery to the recipient’s MMS-UA, which may involve removing or adapting unsupported media types and formats.

Streaming may be used for retrieving message contents, depending on the configuration and capabilities of the devices involved.

However, it’s important to determine the appropriate time to use SMS or MMS.

When is the right time to use SMS or MMS?

Now that you already understand how these texting methods affect your interactions with others,
it becomes pretty clear when you should use each one.

But if we are about to set some general rules, here is how you can make the most of each of these
communication methods:

SMS messaging is best suited for:

Budget-conscious users
When you look at MMS texts versus SMS messages, you’ll find that SMS offers great financial advantages.
If your budget is limited or you’re a new business aiming to find potential customers without spending too much money, SMS is the more affordable option.
Appointment and delivery reminders and confirmations
When sending appointment or delivery message confirmations to customers, SMS messages are a more suitable form of communication.
Since you can include links in SMS messages, you can directly share your website or social media pages with recipients via text.
Target audience using older phone models
The possibility that older phones won’t allow MMS messages should still be considered, even in this era of massive new technology consumption.
If your target market mainly consists of people who are unlikely to invest in the most recent technologies, you should take this limitation into account.
Important and urgent announcements
SMS is an excellent communication method for quickly delivering short texts because they are immediately opened on mobile devices and can be used for various purposes, such as bookings, sending reminders and notifications, and tracking deliveries.

MMS messaging is best suited for:

Delivering more expressive messages
By investing in a full messaging plan that includes MMS, you can ensure uninterrupted creative expression in your text messages, especially when incorporating media elements.
Sending longer messages
MMS messages are a useful way to send lengthy messages without splitting them into many parts, allowing you to include all relevant information without restriction.
Target audience using older phone models
The possibility that older phones won’t allow MMS messages should still be considered, even in this era of massive new technology consumption.
If your target market mainly consists of people who are unlikely to invest in the most recent technologies, you should take this limitation into account.
Marketing campaigns and gaining potential clients’ attention
MMS communications can significantly increase client engagement despite the higher cost than SMS texts.
Adding graphics or GIFs in messages has proven to be an effective way for businesses to distinguish themselves, attract attention, and engage customers, particularly in marketing campaigns that include animated cards, holiday messages, and business card information.

Key differences between SMS and MMS

At a basic level, SMS messages are exclusively all text, while MMS messages are more versatile as they are mainly just multimedia.

However, the main difference between SMS messages vs MMS messages becomes more obvious and substantially significant when considering additional factors, which we will break down in more detail below:

	SMS	MMS
Available Media	Restricted to text-based communications and straightforward hyperlinks.	In addition to vCard files for exchanging contact information, emojis, photos, animated GIFs, movies, and audio files are all available via MMS. MMS supports various file formats like GIF, JPGJ/PEG, PNG, MP4, and VCF.
Text Character Limit	Limited to 160 characters or less.	ILimit is 500 KB of data (5,000 characters), which is equal to 30 seconds of video or audio and 5,00 characters.
Cost	Depending on the platform used, SMS messages are cheaper than MMS messages, often being charged roughly $0.01 per message.	Generally more expensive to send than SMS messages.The exact cost of an MMS message depends on your messaging provider but typically ranges around $0.30 per message.
Additional Carrier Fees	Include additional carrier fees if sent from a toll-free number.	Also come with additional carrier fees if sent from a toll-free number.
Delivery Time	Delivered instantaneously.	Depending on your messaging service provider and the carrier service used by the recipient, MMS messages can take a while to get delivered.
Compatibility and Usage	Compatible with Apple and Android phones;however, a user’s specific package will determine whether they may send or receive these messages.	Also compatible with Apple and Android phones; however, not all smartphone users have subscriptions to plans that include both SMS and MMS;A good majority of people nowadays only use SMS plans.
Compatibility and Usage	Typically, although not universally, users are required to grant consent or provide explicit authorization to companies before receiving promotional messages.	For companies looking to use message marketing to increase their reach, the consumers must provide written authorization before sending MMS messages, which can be done online by checking boxes on forms.Consumers’ specific written authorization is required for the bulk transmission of automated text messages and can be obtained electronically.

Available Media
Text Character Limit
Cost
Additional Carrier Fees
Delivery Time
Compatibility and Usage
Compatibility and Usage

SMS
Restricted to text-based communications and straightforward hyperlinks.
Limited to 160 characters or less.
Depending on the platform used, SMS messages are cheaper than MMS messages,
often being charged roughly $0.01 per message.
Include additional carrier fees if sent from a toll-free number.
Delivered instantaneously.
Compatible with Apple and Android phones; however, a user’s specific
package will determine whether they may send or receive these messages.
Typically, although not universally, users are required to grant consent
or provide explicit authorization to companies before receiving promotional messages.

MMS
In addition to vCard files for exchanging contact information, emojis, photos,
animated GIFs, movies, and audio files are all available via MMS. MMS supports various file formats like GIF, JPGJ/PEG, PNG, MP4, and VCF.
The limit is 500 KB of data (5,000 characters), which is equal to 30 seconds of video or audio and 5,000 characters.
Generally more expensive to send than SMS messages.
The exact cost of an MMS message depends on your messaging provider but typically ranges around $0.30 per message.
Also comes with additional carrier fees if sent from a toll-free number.
Depending on your messaging service provider and the carrier service used by the recipient,
MMS messages can take a while to get delivered.
Also compatible with Apple and Android phones; however, not all smartphone
users have subscriptions to plans that include both SMS and MMS;
A good majority of people nowadays only use SMS plans.
For companies looking to use message marketing to increase their reach, the consumers must provide written
authorization before sending MMS messages, which can be done online by checking boxes on forms.
Consumers’ specific written authorization is required for the bulk transmission of automated text
messages and can be obtained electronically.

SMS vs MMS in marketing

SMS and MMS messages have distinct purposes, and grasping their benefits is crucial in business communication and promotion.

While we assume that most marketers nowadays already utilize them regularly, it’s essential not to overlook the significance of SMS and MMS messaging if you’re inclined towards more contemporary forms of interaction with your clients.

Let’s see how each messaging method can strengthen your marketing strategy:

When and how to apply MMS to your marketing strategies:

Introduce new launches through MMS marketing
It’s essential to use MMS marketing correctly to create excitement and grab your audience’s interest in new products, as a simple text message with a character limit won’t have the same impact.
MMS marketing is a fantastic tool that increases your campaigns’ engagement and sparks people’s curiosity about your offer.
Announce a deal and promotions
MMS marketing is particularly effective for highlighting special deals and promotions.
You can use multimedia text messages to kick off a sale and boost awareness from the beginning of a campaign.
Additionally, you can conclude a sale with an MMS to reinforce your message one last time.
With time-sensitive sales and deals, MMS messages make your texts stand out in your audience’s notifications.
Lure customers back to complete their purchase
Abandoned carts pose a significant challenge for e-commerce businesses, and MMS marketing is a great way to bring customers back to complete their purchases.
By sending a short, simple text along with a visual element showcasing the items they left behind, you can personalize the message and somewhat lure them back in.
When you show subscribers exactly what they were shopping for and remind them of your brand, your MMS stands out among their other text messages.

When and how to apply SMS to your marketing strategies:

Transactional campaigns, customer feedback, and order confirmations
When is SMS more effective? In situations where a simple and straightforward text message is the best option.
This is particularly useful for informational or transactional marketing campaigns such as order confirmation sms, customer service prompts and two-way messaging, customer feedback requests, and shipping notifications and updates.
Send automated reminders
Sending automated reminders can be a lifesaver for customers who forget their scheduled activities.
Typically, reminders are sent using SMS, and it works successfully in most cases.
SMS provides a concise and direct approach, ideal for reminders that generally shouldn’t exceed 160 characters.
This ensures that the message gets straight to the point without unnecessary information.
Attract new prospects
SMS marketing is a powerful tool, as proven by the fact that 98% of text messages are read within three minutes of receiving them, making it a viable strategy for sending bulk messages.
The key to tangible business growth is a company’s capacity to intrigue future clients while cultivating long-term relationships with existing ones.

Combine both SMS and MMS to enhance customer engagement and encourage immediate purchase

SMS is undoubtedly the best option for brief, concise messages such as reminders, updates, or announcements.

On the other hand, MMS is perfect for longer messages that showcase your product and enhance customer engagement through graphics, audio, or video content.

However, it’s essential to acknowledge the drawbacks of MMS. It can be more expensive than SMS, and there may be limitations regarding image quality and delivery reliability.

The solution? Simple! Just combine both SMS and MMS.

This means including links to webpages where customers can view your products or services and encouraging them to make immediate online purchases.

You can also prompt them to reply with specific keywords to initiate bookings, calls, or support.

By combining SMS marketing campaigns with rich content of MMS marketing and calls to action, you can bet your messages will have the highest delivery rate, lowest cost, and maximum market exposure.

Ballance is always what works best!

SMS messaging vs MMS messaging dilemma resolved!

No matter how much online apps advance, SMS and MMS are here to stay; there is no doubt about that.

It’s somewhat intriguing how, even in this era of the massive social media influence on virtual communication, we often find ourselves returning to regular texts.

So what do you think?

Is there a possibility of any new non-usual methods that could make SMS and MMS messaging a thing of the past?

We’d love to hear your thoughts!