---
title: "Set Up SMS"
slug: "set-up-sms"
description: "Setting up SMS is a crucial step in establishing your workflow in Gladly. Get a step-by-step tutorial & best practices to ensure a smooth SMS setup."
updated: 2024-12-19T11:39:25Z
published: 2025-01-30T19:36:40Z
canonical: "help.gladly.com/set-up-sms"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.gladly.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Set Up SMS

## Background

SMS is one of the messaging entry points into Gladly. Customers will be able to interact with your Agents via text.

## Goals

Set up SMS number for inbound and outbound text messaging.

## Estimated Effort

1 hour for the Gladly implementation team to purchase and set up your SMS number.

## Step-by-Step Tutorial & Best Practices

1. Determine if you'd like to pursue a shortcode. Shortcodes are the best way to ensure deliverability but are charged at ~$10K / year and take ~8-12 weeks to be approved for usage. Speak with your implementations team further if this is of interest. Alternatively, toll-free numbers will also boost deliverability but are only capable of SMS (vs. MMS).
2. [Purchase and configure Voice phone numbers](https://help.gladly.com/docs/purchase-and-configure-voice-phone-numbers) directly in Gladly.
  - Voice desired area code, and toll-free vs local preferences. Toll-free numbers (and international numbers outside of Canada) are not capable of MMS, but local numbers are. For reference, this can be the same as your Gladly phone number if you'd like! You can also use the default Gladly number we set up in your environment too.
3. Link SMS to the correct Inbox on the [Entry Points settings](https://help.gladly.com/docs/configure-sms-entry-points) page.
4. Refer to the [Rules](https://help.gladly.com/docs/create-a-rule) article to set up Rules for SMS Conversations.[](https://www.notion.so/gladly/Set-Up-Your-Rules-f2cfaa8712a149f1a4cb53e049b60416)
5. Refer to the [Answers](https://help.gladly.com/docs/create-and-edit-answers) doc to set up Messaging Answers that cover both chat and SMS.