Group texts are a fast, affordable, and reliable way to send the same message to several people simultaneously. For example, if you host parties and want to notify all the invitees, sending them a single group text can save time and even phone bills.
Here's how to send group texts in the Google Messages app, and also on a Samsung phone.
How to Group Message on Android Using Google’s Messages App
Android Messages is a super fast and highly customizable text messaging app, and the default on many phones. Here’s how to a send group SMS using the app.
- Download Messages if you don't already have it installed. It's free.
- Open the app and tap Start chat to open the New conversation screen.
- Tap Create group to open the New group conversation screen.
- Tap the first few letters of each person you want to add to your group, then select their name when it pops up.
- When you're done, tap Next and enter a group name in the Add group name.
- Then, tap Next and type your message in the text box. If you receive a prompt to confirm your phone number, add it and hit OK. Your message will be sent to the group.
Sometimes, sending a group text won’t work unless you enable the group MMS option in the Messages app. To do this, open the Messages app and tap on the three vertical dots in the top-right corner, and select Settings. Then, go to Advanced and enable MMS under Group messaging.
You may need to turn on the Auto-retrieve (or Auto-download MMS on some devices) option to eliminate that annoying notification every time a member of the group replies.
Or, for a more feature-rich messaging experience, check out the best free messaging apps for Android instead.
Create Groups and Send Group Messages on Samsung Phones
On Samsung phones, you can create groups separately from within the Contacts app.
How to Create a Group in Contacts
In order to send a text to a group, we’ll first create a group to contact. Here’s how to create a contact list:
- Open the Contacts app.
- Tap on Groups > Create.
- Under Group name, type a name for the group.
- Tap + Add member to open your list of contacts. Touch the empty check box next to the contact you want to add to the group. If you accidentally add the wrong contact, tap the red minus icon beside the name to remove the contact from the group.
- Tap Done and hit Save to save the name of your group and members in it.
How to Send a Text to a Group on Samsung Phones
Now you've set up your group, here’s how to send a group message on Samsung phones.
- Launch the Messages app.
- Then, tap on the Compose icon at the bottom-right.
- In the Enter recipients box, touch the contact icon, then select the group you just created.
- Tap All, next to the group’s name, to include all contacts in the group. Then, tap Done so you can start writing your message.
- Type your text message in the Enter message field, then tap Send.
Note that group texting uses the SMS protocol, so group creators are the only ones who can receive recipients’ replies. If you want replies to a group conversation delivered to all recipients, then you should consider enabling MMS.
Also, the standard messaging app sets a limit (for this device, it's just 20) of how many recipients you can add to a single message. If you plan to send messages to hundreds of recipients, check out our list of best Android apps for sending SMS messages in bulk.
Is Group Texting Still Relevant Today?
Absolutely! When it comes to group texting, many apps out there can get the job done, but they might require an internet connection to work. That’s unlike Google's Messages and other SMS apps which don't require a data connection to send group texts.
