Push Notifications vs SMS: What’s the Best Communication Channel for 2024?

In 2024, mobile is taking over. Nearly 60% of global internet traffic comes on mobile devices, and mobile commerce sales account for more than $2 trillion yearly, 57% of all eCommerce sales around the world.

It’s vital that brands understand these trends, and adjust their marketing and communications strategy accordingly. This means making use of mobile-first communication channels to interact with your customers, such as push notifications and SMS.

But of the two, which is better? Which is most efficient, which is most effective, and are there different situations where you should use one or the other?

These are all questions that we’ll answer in this article. Read on to learn all you need to know about the best way to get in front of mobile-first customers in 2024.

Key Differences Between SMS and Push Notifications

Let’s start by breaking down the most notable differences between push notifications and SMS (aka text messages).

On the surface, they appear very similar. Both send a notification, with a short bit of text, to a person’s mobile phone.

But once we dive deeper, there are some fundamental differences between how SMS and push notifications work, and how they can be used by brands for marketing and/or communications.

Let’s examine these differences now.

Delivery method

SMS messages are sent to a mobile device over a cellular network. More accurately, they’re sent to a mobile number – if the user switches their number to another phone, any messages sent to that number will go to the new device.

Push notifications are sent via an app. The user needs to download the app, and then the app facilitates the sending of notifications directly to the device it’s installed on.

(Note that push notifications can also be sent from websites, both on desktop or mobile, via the web browser. However, we’ll generally refer to mobile push notifications in this article, which are sent from mobile apps).

Deliverability & speed

Push notifications generally need an internet connection. Apps can send notifications offline, but for most commercial push notifications, it requires communication with an external server, which necessitates that the device is connected to the internet.

As long as there is an internet connection, delivery is more or less immediate.

SMS messages do not require an internet connection, just service from a mobile network. This makes the deliverability of SMS more reliable in some cases (it’s more likely that a phone will have mobile service than internet). 

However, it also means SMS messages can be delayed or lost due to network congestion or other issues with the user’s carrier.

Visibility & appearance

Both SMS and push notifications show up on the user’s lock screen, though SMS generally show up above push notifications, if there are multiple messages to show on the lock screen or notification center.

SMS notifications show up with the generic system design, and if the user has multiple unread SMS, they may be lumped together.

Push notifications, however, include the app’s logo and name, and stand out visually more so than SMS.

Content

Both SMS and push are designed for short-form content.

SMS are limited to 160 characters. Push notifications have a limit of 178 characters on iOS, or 65 characters for the title and 240 for the description on Android.

SMS are plain text, whereas push notifications have slightly more flexibility, with the ability to add rich content to your notifications to make them stand out.

Opt-in process

Brands can send SMS messages as long as they have someone’s phone number. While there’s no formal opt-in process, typically the user will give their number to the business, and consent to receiving text messages from them.

(Functionally, consent is not required to send someone an SMS, but sending unsolicited or unwanted messages to someone may be a violation of FCC laws.)

With push notifications, the user must have notifications enabled in the app’s settings.

Depending on the operating system, this may be enabled by default, or the user may be served an alert asking them if they’d like to receive notifications from the app.

User control

Users have limited control over what they get with SMS messages. They can usually unsubscribe from SMS messages (which relies upon the brand to honor their request not to receive SMS), or they can block a number altogether on their device.

Push notifications, however, give more options for the user to control and customize what they receive.

The user will generally have the ability to choose which types of notifications they receive from an app, and they can customize how these notifications show up (i.e. alert sound vs vibrate vs silent).

Interactivity

SMS allow two-way communication, meaning users can reply to a message and send an SMS back to the sender.

Push, on the other hand, is one-way. The user cannot directly reply to a push notification.

However, users can still interact with push notifications. They can tap on the notification to open the app, and brands can include shortcuts on a notification (e.g. a “shop now” button that takes them to a specific product page in the app).

For the user to take action from an SMS, they will need to open the message, and then they will need to click a link inside the message content.

Cost

SMS messages typically cost per message (a fraction of a cent per message, or bulk pricing for a certain number of messages).

Push notifications, on their own, are free to send. You may pay for a push notification service to set up and send push notifications (though many push providers, such as OneSignal for example, offer free plans).

Performance

SMS messages typically have very high open and clickthrough rates.

SMS open rates can be as high as 98%.

Data on clickthrough rates for SMS varies, but generally comes in at around 8-10% on average.

Open rate for push notifications is not the best measurement, as the content is more or less “open” by default.

In terms of engagement, push notifications have an average engagement rate of 7.8% (meaning the rate at which users click/tap on a push notification).

Advantages of Push Notifications

Now that we know how push notifications and SMS messages differ, let’s examine the practical advantages each channel has for brands.

We’ll start out with five reasons why push notifications are better than SMS.

Cheaper to send in bulk

Push notifications are usually cheaper than SMS, especially when sent in bulk. High-volume SMS campaigns can get a little expensive, while businesses can send a lot of push notifications for a very low cost (potentially even free).

Greater ability to customize

Push notifications look better than SMS messages, with a well-formatted heading and body, and the ability to add rich content, such as images, gifs and videos (which has been shown to increase open rates by 56%).

Display your company’s branding

The big advantage of push notifications is that they show up with your brand’s logo on the user’s screen.

This makes it easier for your notifications to stand out, and even if the user doesn’t really pay attention to the content or engage with the notification, seeing your brand name and logo pop up on their phone builds familiarity and keeps your company top-of-mind.

Easier for users to control

Greater control for the user makes for a better user experience, which means your users will likely prefer to receive push notifications over SMS messages.

You can give them the option to customize their push notification preferences, such as receiving only the kind of notifications that are relevant to their interests, and there’s less chance of bothering your users to the point that they turn off all communications altogether.

More trustworthy

Users are more likely to trust a push notification than a text message.

They’ve already downloaded the app, and they know where the notification is coming from. SMS messages can be easily spoofed, and are often used by scammers.

There’s a lot more risk involved in clicking a link in an SMS than engaging with a push notification, so push notifications are generally better if engagement is the goal.

Learn more: everything you need to know about Push Notifications vs Email.

Advantages of SMS

Let’s take a look at the arguments for using SMS over push notifications.

Can be received without an internet connection

As users can receive text messages whether or not they are connected to the internet, SMS can be better for messages or notifications that require immediate attention (such as alerts, OTPs).

Higher open rate

Users are more likely to open and read text messages, which will result in better performance for some use cases.

Users can reply

SMS is better if there’s a likelihood that the user will need to reply to the message (e.g. an appointment reminder where you want the user to confirm that they have received and read the message).

Don’t need an app to send

SMS are generally easier to implement and have a wider reach, because they don’t require an app download.

This means you can send SMS messages to both app users and non-app users, and you can utilize SMS notifications when you don’t have an app in the first place.

SMS vs Push Notifications: Which is Best?

It’s time to give our verdict on which channel is better: SMS or push notifications?

Ultimately, the answer is that both have their place. Both push notifications and SMS have advantages in certain situations.

In general, we’d argue that push notifications are better for brands running marketing campaigns or building relationships with their customers.

They’re more affordable, more trustworthy, less intrusive and offer a better experience for the user – they have more control over the notifications they receive, and it’s more straightforward for a user to tap on the notification and open the app, than to open a text message and click on a link.

Push notifications stand out more, and have your brand’s logo attached, which is a huge plus when it comes to building brand awareness and familiarity.

Push is amazing for promotional campaigns, abandoned cart notifications, new product alerts, and much more.

There are times when SMS may be the better option, though. SMS is ideal for urgent or time-sensitive notifications or alerts, or important communications where you absolutely want to maximize open/read rate.

“The power of push notifications is so strong. In a world where people open email less and less each day, everyone is jumping into SMS which is crazy expensive, and people are starting to tune these out too, being able to do push notifications is the reason you do an app.”

- David Cost, Rainbow Shops

How to Start Using Push Notifications

Push notifications are an amazing tool for brands, with smartphones today being a major fixture in our lives, and more and more consumers becoming mobile-first (or mobile-only).

However, there’s one big roadblock for a lot of brands to start utilizing mobile push notifications: a mobile app.

If you don’t already have a mobile app, now is a great time to build one. There are a ton of benefits to having your own app, and push notifications are just the cherry on the icing on the cake.

And if you’re concerned about the cost, complexity and time investment involved in building an app, MobiLoud takes all these concerns away.

MobiLoud helps convert your website into native apps for iOS and Android. The apps fully replicate the user experience, design and functionality of your website, and are fully synced with your website, for minimal maintenance and overhead.

You can get an app for just a fraction of the cost of hiring developers or an agency to build a custom app – and none of the complexity. We do all the work for you.

Here’s how to go live with your own mobile app (with push notifications enabled and ready to go) in less than a month:

1. Make sure your website is fast, responsive and mobile-friendly.
2. Get a free demo and discuss your project with one of our team of experts.
3. Sit back and wait while we compile, build, test and publish your app.

We even handle the app store submission process for you, and can guarantee your apps will be approved for publishing in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store (or we’ll refund your money!)

Our apps are built with push notifications already set up, using OneSignal, one of the market-leading push notification services.

“Push notifications give us a way to get in front of high-value customers within a walled environment. When you're on a browser you're jumping between websites, you can quickly lose your focus and you're off somewhere else. When we send a push notification, they're in the app, they're in a walled environment and we have their attention captured.”

- Damien Smith, BoozeBud

Whether push notifications are the reason you’re building an app or not, most brands today should have their own mobile app, and MobiLoud is the best way to build an app and get a positive ROI.

No hiring developers, no massive investment, no crippling overhead. Just an app your customers will love.

To learn more about launching an app and getting access to mobile push notifications, book a free demo now.