textbee.dev - android sms gateway

Send and receive SMS messages using your own Android phone - no Twilio, no per-message fees. Free, open-source, and self-hostable.

The open-source SMS gateway for developers, automations, and AI agents. Manage SMS messages through a web dashboard, a REST API, or the MCP server for AI agents. textbee is ideal for businesses, developers, and hobbyists looking for a reliable and cost-effective solution to automate SMS messaging.

Website: https://textbee.dev

Why textbee?

Features

• Send & receive SMS messages via API & dashboard
• Use your own Android phone as an SMS gateway
• REST API for easy integration with apps & services
• Send bulk SMS with CSV file
• Multi-device support for higher SMS throughput
• Secure API authentication with API keys
• Webhook support for incoming messages
• Self-hosting support for full control over your data

Getting Started

1. Go to textbee.dev and register or login with your account
2. Install the app on your Android phone from textbee.dev/download
3. Open the app and grant the permissions for SMS
4. Go to textbee.dev/dashboard and click register device / generate API key
5. Scan the QR code with the app or enter the API key manually
6. You're ready to send SMS from the dashboard or from your application via the REST API

Sending an SMS

Messages go out through your default device, or otherwise the enabled device with the most recent heartbeat. Pass an optional deviceId in the request body to send from a specific device instead. The older /gateway/devices/{deviceId}/send-sms route still works but is deprecated.

const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY';
 
await axios.post('https://api.textbee.dev/api/v1/gateway/send-sms', {
  recipients: [ '+12025550123' ],
  message: 'Hello World!',
}, {
  headers: { 'x-api-key': API_KEY },
});

API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY'

requests.post( 'https://api.textbee.dev/api/v1/gateway/send-sms', json={ 'recipients': ['+12025550123'], 'message': 'Hello World!', }, headers={'x-api-key': API_KEY}, )

 
</details>
<details>
<summary><b>curl</b></summary>
```bash
curl -X POST "https://api.textbee.dev/api/v1/gateway/send-sms" \
  -H 'x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "recipients": [ "+12025550123" ],
    "message": "Hello World!"
  }'

Enable SMS receiving in the mobile app, then access incoming messages via the REST API, the dashboard, or webhook notifications delivered to your preferred URL. Message history is account-level: one call covers every device, no device id needed.

const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY';
 
await axios.get('https://api.textbee.dev/api/v1/gateway/messages?direction=received', {
  headers: { 'x-api-key': API_KEY },
});

Use with AI agents (MCP)

The official textbee MCP server lets Claude, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible client send and read SMS through your account. Three tools: send_sms (send to one or many recipients), get_messages (read replies and verification codes, check delivery status), and list_devices. Plan limits apply server-side like any other send.

claude.ai, Claude Desktop, and the Claude mobile apps (nothing to install; the Free plan allows one custom connector):

1. In claude.ai or Claude Desktop, open Customize, then Connectors, then + Add and Add custom connector.
2. Enter the name textbee and the URL https://mcp.textbee.dev/mcp, then click Continue twice.
3. Choose Sign in now, leave the OAuth client on the recommended option, and click Add.
4. Paste your API key on the textbee sign-in page and click Connect.

The mobile apps use connectors added on the web or desktop. On Team and Enterprise plans, an owner adds the connector for the organization first.

Claude Code:

# Hosted: run /mcp afterwards and choose Authenticate to sign in with your API key
claude mcp add --transport http -s user textbee https://mcp.textbee.dev/mcp

# Or local: the key stays on your machine
claude mcp add textbee -s user -e TEXTBEE_API_KEY=YOUR_API_KEY -- npx -y @textbee/mcp

Cursor and other MCP clients (local server, the key stays on your machine):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "textbee": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@textbee/mcp"],
      "env": { "TEXTBEE_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY" }
    }
  }
}

With the hosted connector, textbee checks your key and does not store it. Self-hosted instances use the local server with TEXTBEE_BASE_URL. Full setup at textbee.dev/mcp and the MCP docs.

Use Cases

• OTP / 2FA delivery for your app
• Order and appointment notifications
• Alerts from servers, cron jobs, and home automation
• Form-to-SMS and lead follow-ups
• Bulk announcements to a contact list (CSV upload)

FAQ

Self-Hosting

Technology stack: React, Next.js, Node.js, NestJS, MongoDB, Android, Kotlin, Jetpack Compose, Java (legacy)

Setting Up Database

1. Install MongoDB on Your Server: Follow the official MongoDB installation guide for your operating system.
2. Using MongoDB Atlas: Alternatively, you can create a free database on MongoDB Atlas. Sign up at MongoDB Atlas and follow the instructions to set up your database.

Firebase Setup

1. Create a Firebase project.
2. Enable Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) in your Firebase project.
3. Obtain the Firebase credentials for backend use and the Android app.

Building the Android App

1. Clone the repository and navigate to the Android project directory.
2. Update the google-services.json file with your Firebase project configuration.
3. Update every occurrence of textbee.dev with your own domain in the project.
4. Build the app using Android Studio or the command line:

   ./gradlew assembleRelease
   

Building the Web

1. Navigate to the web directory.
2. Copy the .env.example file to .env:

   cp .env.example .env
   

3. Update the .env file with your own credentials.
4. Install dependencies:

   pnpm install
   

5. Build the web application:

   pnpm build
   

Building the API

1. Navigate to the api directory.
2. Copy the .env.example file to .env:

   cp .env.example .env
   

3. Update the .env file with your own credentials.
4. Install dependencies:

   pnpm install
   

5. Build the API:

   pnpm build
   

Analytics and telemetry

A self-hosted instance reports nothing to anyone by default. With no analytics environment variables set, the web app loads no analytics or ad-platform scripts and the API sends no analytics events to any external service. Every provider below is opt-in, and one that is listed without its id is skipped.

(This is separate from the services the API talks to when you configure them yourself: Firebase for push, Cloudflare Turnstile, Polar for billing, and your own SMTP server.)

Web (web/.env, and the marketing site if you run it):