SMS
External users can communicate with Rocket.Chat through SMS.
- The Rocket.Chat SMS Settings offers the ability to configure SMS integration with several providers, but we are demonstrating with Twilio using Twilio Programmable Messaging API.
- You are required to have your workspace available on a public URL.
To be able to relay SMS, you need to get a Twilio number and create a messaging service.
- From your Twilio console, navigate to Messaging > Try it out > Get Set Up, click Start setup, and follow the process to configure a Twilio messaging service

Twilio Programming Message Setup
- Fill in the service name and Create Messaging Service

Twilio Messaging Service name
- Twilio will automatically provision a number for you so Provision and add this number

Twilio provisioned number
With the configuration complete, you can go ahead and Try sending an SMS to make sure the number works.
After configuring your Twilio number for messaging, the next step is to link it to Rocket.Chat through an Omnichannel webhook endpoint.
- From your Twilio console, navigate to Phone Numbers > Manage > Active numbers. You will see your Twilio provisioned number and the messaging service it is linked to
- Click on the number to open its configuration page

Twilio Active numbers page
- Scroll down to the Messaging section and fill in the value of the A MESSAGE COMES IN with the URL of your publicly available Rocket.Chat workspace in this format
https://<SERVER_URL>/api/v1/livechat/sms-incoming/twilio
then hit Save

Twilio Phone Number webhook configuration
Make sure the action type selected above is
Webhook
and the method is HTTP POST
After getting all the settings on your Twilio Programmable Messaging number ready, it's time to connect it with your Rocket.Chat workspace.
- Open up Rocket.Chat and go to Administration > Workspace > Settings > SMS
- Select Twilio and the service type, then move down to the Twilio section and fill in your Twilio credentials. This can be gotten from the Twilio console
- With that done, enable the service and hit Save changes

Rocket.Chat SMS Setting
We have gone through configuring a Twilio Programmable Messaging number and linking it with Rocket.Chat through webhook. Now to test the two-way communication:
- The message is seen in your Rocket.Chat server, available for any Omnichannel Agent to continue the conversation
- Similarly, when a reply is sent from Rocket.Chat, it is received on the SMS senders end

Rocket.Chat SMS communication successful
External SMS messages sent to an Omnichannel department are identified by the green message icon on the side.
Last modified 2d ago