Meta’s Messenger app will no longer support SMS come September

Meta has started to notify users that Messenger will no longer support SMS come September. If you’re relying on Meta’s app for SMS, you’ll have to replace it with something else or simply use Android’s default app for this particular feature.

Messenger users who’ve already received notifications have taken to Reddit to complain about the change. Not to mention that Meta did not give them any reason for why it’s dropping SMS support. Perhaps it’s Google that suddenly decided that Meta’s Messenger should no longer support SMS and we should wait for the search giant to announce some sort of replacement.

Here is Meta’s support page regarding the upcoming changes: “if you use Messenger as your default SMS messaging app for your Android device, please note you will no longer be able to use Messenger to send and receive SMS messages sent by your cellular network when you update your app after September 28, 2023.”

Keep in mind that even if Meta’s Messenger will no longer support SMS, you will still be able to send and receive SMS messages through the cellular network through the phone’s default messaging app.

More importantly, even if you don’t choose another messaging app to redirect your SMS, they will automatically go to your phone’s default messaging app.

According to Meta, SMS will no longer be available on Messenger as early as September 28, 2023. An update should implement the change around that timeframe, so if you see a new version in the Google Play Store and download it, then you’ll no longer receive SMS in your Messenger app.