How to send a text from email to an AT&T cell phone number (SMS & MMS)

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Not many people know they can use their email to send a text message to an AT&T phone. Text messaging is one of the most preferred means of communication in today’s world of quick messaging. Most network carriers offer free gateways for Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) and Short Messaging Service (SMS).

If you need to send a text to an AT&T mobile number, AT&T has a gateway for both SMS and MMS messages that also allows you to use your computer via a standard email application to send messages to any AT&T wireless network cell phone.

Send text messages from email to an AT&T phone

Below is a step-by-step process you can follow to send text messages from your computer to anyone with an AT&T cell phone number. This can also save you money depending on your phone plan.

Step 1

Open and log in to your preferred email application such as Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo! Mail, or iCloud Mail.

Step 2

Click on “Compose” and draft the message you want to send. Keep in mind that text messages are limited to 160 characters so consider the character limit while typing your message. If the message is longer than 160, AT&T will break it into two or multiple parts depending on the length. You may optionally enter a subject, which is also included in the 160 characters.

Step 3

If you have any media file (image, video, and audio files) you wish to attach to the message; you can use the attachment tool in your email application the same way you’d attach files to an ordinary email. Bear in mind that the media size that can be delivered is cell-phone specific.

Step 4

Enter the recipient’s 10-digit phone number (including the area code) into the “To” field and type @txt.att.net immediately after the mobile number. For example, if the phone number is (123) 456-7891, the email address would be “[email protected]”. If it’s an MMS message, use the carrier gateway @mms.att.net. For MMS text, it will be “[email protected]”

Step 5

Click the “Send” button to complete the process and send the message through the AT&T network.

The email message will be delivered to the recipient as a text message.