How to send SMS message with Python
I can’t beleive all the things that you can do with Python. Obviously, whatever you can do with Python, you can do with a whole bunch of programming languages out there. What I am really impressed with, is the ease.
Few weeks ago I was looking for a way to programatically send myself SMS on certain occasions. I was (and still) developing a system that would check for certain conditions on a server and alert me when something is wrong.
Eventually, I came up with a Python script, 40 lines long 
Note that you have to pay for the messages, but thats just few pennies. I bet there’s a way to plug into ICQ’s protocol and send SMS for free, but I don’t think you can do this with only 40 lines of code.
Here is the idea. There are firms on the internet, that provide service called SMS gateway. These firms has special devices plugged into GSM network on one end and has some programmable interface on the other end.
Here’s what you do. You open an account with such a firm. Then you either pay for one message or buy some credits and then spend them by sending messages.
SMS gateway I used called world-text. Please, by all means I have nothing to do with these guys. I found them on the internet, just as you would.
There are couple of nice things about this particular company, although I bet if you spend some time researching you will find a better and probably cheaper one.
I don’t think there’s a standard for SMS gateways. Each company does something of its own. World-text provide web based gateway and this is what makes it so easy to use with Python.
Python code that I’ve written, simply sends properly formatted HTTP request to their web interface. Here’s the code.
#!/usr/bin/python
import sys
import time
import glob
import httplib
import urllib
recepients = []
recepients.append("-------------")
world_text_username = "your@email.com"
world_text_password = "your password"
def usage():
print "alertme.py <message to send>"
sys.exit(0)
def send_sms(msg):
global recepients, world_text_username, world_text_password
print "Asked to send sms: %s" % msg
for r in recepients:
params = ""
params = params + "username=" + world_text_username
params = params + "&password=" + world_text_password
params = params + "&" + urllib.urlencode({'message': msg})
params = params + "&sourceaddr=SMSAlert"
params = params + "&mobile=" + r
headers = {"Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded"}
conn = httplib.HTTPConnection("sms.world-text.com:1081")
conn.request("POST", "/sendsms", params, headers)
conn.close();
if len(sys.argv) != 2:
usage()
send_sms(sys.argv[1])
To use the script, just append your phone number, including country and regional code to the recepients list – make sure to delete the “———-” from it. Next change world_text_username and world_text_password to something meaningful and you are ready to bombard yourself with SMS messages
In case you have further questions, email me at alex@alexonlinux.com.
Have fun! 
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Oh. Here we have an example of bad programming. usage() by all means should not do sys.exit(0)
Pretty interesting!
I may try it later.
Just FYI, I’ve found Clickatell to be an inexpensive SMS gateway, especially if you’re sending to the US (4 cents/msg Clickatell, > 8p per message world-text). I use them, but I don’t work for them, and that’s not an affiliate link.
@Rick Copeland
Thanks for the info. I’ll keep this in mind
To just send sms why not use smtp and skip third party services? And you don’t have to pay to send the message. The recipient’s cost is based on their contract with the carrier.
====================================
===========================================
I think they have another page for other cell carriers.
T-Mobile:phonenumber@tmomail.net
Virgin Mobile:phonenumber@vmobl.com
Cingular:phonenumber@cingularme.com
Sprint:phonenumber@messaging.sprintpcs.com
Verizon: phonenumber@vtext.com
Nextel: phonenumber@messaging.nextel.com
where phonenumber = your 10 digit phone number
(above copied from
http://www.tech-recipes.com/rx/939/sms_email_cingular_nextel_sprint_tmobile_verizon_virgin )
@Thomas Bennett
You’re right of course. However, there are couple of reasons not to work with services you suggested.
1. Such services are not available everywhere. Even if they are, they usually have limitations – number of messages and recipients.
2. If you’re looking for reliable service you better pay for it – with free services you get as much as you pay.
While I agree that using those particular carriers isn’t necessarily a good idea (mostly since who knows how well each carrier will continue to support it and whether you’ll get any indication when they’re changed or dropped), your second point is completely ridiculous.
You’re writing Python (free) and you use Linux (free); this site is or was built in WordPress (free)… yet despite building your professional life and web presence on free products, you “get as much as you pay” for free services. Open-source development is a free service provided to the community; was your kernel work worthless just because people who may have used it didn’t pay you for it?
Anyway, it seems to me you could make far better arguments against sending messages directly through carriers than taking a largely-unrelated, overgeneralized pot shot at free services.
@Eric
I see your point, but you took what I said to some place where I didn’t mean it to be. By saying “you get as much as you pay” I didn’t mean to trample entire open source community. It is sort of a way to say
in one sentence.
So in essence I meant to say that you get no guarantee of service, no guarantee of quality of service. You may be disconnected from the service any moment for whatever reason the carrier will come up with (abuse for example). Etc.
Hi Alex,
That’s a very nice code to send SMS i have tried thanks, But I am looking for receive a SMS through python.
Will you please suggest me something if you can to receive SMS?
I found this very useful. I’ve updated it to work on python 3.2 and here it is:
import sys
import time
import glob
import http.client
import urllib.request, urllib.parse, urllib.error
from datetime import datetime
WORLD_TEXT_USERNAME = “your_username”
WORLD_TEXT_PASSWORD = “your_password”
def send_sms(msg, phone_no, source=’SMSAlert’, simulation = 1):
”’The Source address must match one setup on the account being used.
Put ‘&sim’ at the end of each phone number to use their simulator.
”’
params = “username=” + WORLD_TEXT_USERNAME
params += “&password=” + WORLD_TEXT_PASSWORD
params += “&” + urllib.parse.urlencode({‘message’: msg})
params +=”&sourceaddr=” + source
params += “&mobile=” + phone_no
if simulation == 1:
params += ‘&sim’
#print(‘Params: ‘, params)
headers = {“Content-Type”: “application/x-www-form-urlencoded”}
conn = http.client.HTTPConnection(“sms.world-text.com:1081″)
conn.request(“POST”, “/sendsms”, params, headers)
conn.close();
print(‘Sent to: ‘, phone_no, ‘at ‘, str(datetime.now()), ‘ Message: ‘,msg)
return #It would be good to have this return a sent/fail respsonse
please stop talk something like that.is it go for everyone?
Hi,
Thanks for the guide. The script can be improved, and made shorter as well by replacing lines
26 params = “”
27 params = params + “username=” + world_text_username
28 params = params + “&password=” + world_text_password
29 params = params + “&” + urllib.urlencode({‘message’: msg})
30 params = params + “&sourceaddr=SMSAlert”
31 params = params + “&mobile=” + r
with one line,
params = params + “&” + urllib.urlencode({ ‘username’:world_text_username, ‘password’:world_text_password, ‘message’: msg, ‘sourceaddr’:'SMSAlert’,'mobile’:r})
@Hamish –
my bad,
params = urllib.urlencode({ ‘username’:world_text_username, ‘password’:world_text_password, ‘message’: msg, ‘sourceaddr’:’SMSAlert’,’mobile’:r})
Fantastic points altogether, you just received a new reader. What may you suggest in regards to your publish that you made some days in the past? Any sure?
You guys’ code makes mine look like it was made by a 5 year old. If someone replies to your message it may (only tested on Gmail) go into your account’s inbox.
Anyway:
import sys
import smtplib
phone = raw_input(‘Phone number: ‘)
print ‘\n1) AT&T’
print ’2) Boost Mobile’
print ’3) Verizon’
print ’4) T-Mobile’
print ’5) Sprint\n’
choice = int(raw_input(‘Choose carrier: ‘))
if choice == 1:
carrier = ‘%s@txt.att.net’ % phone
if choice == 2:
carrier = ‘%s@myboostmobile.com’ % phone
if choice == 3:
carrier = ‘%s@vtext.com’ % phone
if choice == 4:
carrier = ‘%s@tmomail.net’ % phone
if choice == 5:
carrier = ‘%s@messaging.sprintpcs.com’ % phone
try:
SMS = smtplib.SMTP(‘smtp.website.com’, port) #no quotes around port number
SMS.starttls()
except IOError:
sys.exit(1)
try:
SMS.login(‘you@whatever.com’, ‘password’)
except BaseException:
sys.exit(1)
From = None
To = carrier
message = raw_input(“\nMessage: “)
SMS.sendmail(From, To, message)
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