> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.chattermate.chat/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# SMS

> Connect SMS to ChatterMate through Twilio, Vonage, MessageBird, Plivo, Brevo or AWS SNS — bring your own provider account and let your AI agent answer text messages.

# SMS

Let customers text your AI agent. SMS is a single ChatterMate channel backed by **six providers** — pick the one you already use (or the one with the best rates in your country), bring your own account, and enter its API credentials.

| Provider               | Credentials ChatterMate asks for                                         |
| ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Twilio**             | Account SID, Auth token                                                  |
| **Vonage (Nexmo)**     | API key, API secret, Signature secret *(optional)*                       |
| **MessageBird (Bird)** | Access key, Signing key *(optional)*                                     |
| **Plivo**              | Auth ID, Auth token                                                      |
| **Brevo**              | API key                                                                  |
| **AWS SNS**            | AWS access key ID, AWS secret access key, Region, Topic ARN *(optional)* |

The *(optional)* signing fields enable webhook signature verification — recommended in production so only your provider can post messages to ChatterMate.

## Step 1 — Get your provider credentials

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Twilio">
    1. Sign in at [console.twilio.com](https://console.twilio.com).
    2. From the dashboard, copy your **Account SID** and **Auth Token**.
    3. Buy or choose an SMS-capable **phone number** (Phone Numbers → Manage → Active numbers), in E.164 format (e.g. `+14155551234`).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Vonage (Nexmo)">
    1. Sign in at [dashboard.nexmo.com](https://dashboard.nexmo.com).
    2. Copy your **API key** and **API secret** from the dashboard.
    3. (Recommended) Under **Settings**, set the signature method to **SHA-256 HMAC** and copy the **Signature secret** so ChatterMate can verify inbound webhooks.
    4. Have a Vonage virtual **number** ready.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="MessageBird (Bird)">
    1. Sign in at [dashboard.messagebird.com](https://dashboard.messagebird.com).
    2. Create and copy a live **Access key** (Developers → API access).
    3. (Recommended) Copy your **Signing key** for webhook verification.
    4. Have a purchased **number** ready.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Plivo">
    1. Sign in at [console.plivo.com](https://console.plivo.com).
    2. Copy your **Auth ID** and **Auth Token** from the overview page.
    3. Buy an SMS-capable **number** (Phone Numbers → Buy Numbers).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Brevo">
    1. Sign in at [app.brevo.com](https://app.brevo.com).
    2. Create an **API key** (Settings → SMS/API keys).
    3. Set up a **sender** / number for transactional SMS.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="AWS SNS">
    1. In the [AWS Console](https://console.aws.amazon.com), create an IAM user with SNS publish permissions and copy its **Access key ID** and **Secret access key**.
    2. Note your **region** (e.g. `us-east-1`).
    3. For inbound (two-way) SMS, create an **SNS topic** for incoming messages and copy its **Topic ARN**.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Step 2 — Connect in ChatterMate

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the SMS card">
    Go to **Settings → Integrations** and click **Connect** on the **SMS** card.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose provider and enter credentials">
    Select your **provider** from the dropdown — the credential fields update to match it (see the table above). Enter your sending **phone number** (E.164) and the API credentials.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Copy the inbound webhook URL">
    After connecting, ChatterMate shows an inbound webhook URL like:

    `https://<your-domain>/api/v1/webhooks/sms/<provider>/<account-id>`
  </Step>

  <Step title="Assign an AI agent">
    Pick the AI agent that answers SMS and click **Assign agent**.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Step 3 — Point your number's inbound webhook at ChatterMate

Set the URL from step 2 as your number's incoming-message webhook:

* **Twilio** — Phone number → Messaging → **"A message comes in"** → Webhook (HTTP POST).
* **Vonage** — set the number's **Inbound SMS webhook**.
* **MessageBird / Plivo** — attach the number to an application/flow whose inbound URL is the ChatterMate webhook.
* **Brevo** — set the inbound SMS webhook URL.
* **AWS SNS** — subscribe your inbound SMS topic to the ChatterMate URL as an **HTTPS subscription**. ChatterMate confirms the subscription automatically.

## Carrier registration (important for the US)

Carriers filter unregistered traffic. To send reliably in the US:

* **A2P 10DLC** — register a **Brand** and **Campaign** with your provider (a Twilio/Plivo/etc. console step). Approval takes days to \~2 weeks.
* **Toll-free** — submit toll-free verification instead.

<Note>
  This registration is done by the number's owner (you), on the provider side — it isn't a ChatterMate step. Requirements outside the US vary by country (sender IDs, local number rules) — check your provider's country guidelines.
</Note>

## Test it

Text your connected number. The AI agent replies, and the conversation appears in **Conversations** with an **SMS** badge. **Take Over Chat** hands the conversation to a human, whose replies go back out as SMS.