I can’t imagine why you may need a text from a different phone number. And I hope and advise you never to do so for any illegal activities, like fraud, harassment, or insulting anyone; that’s beyond the law and illegal, so never do this.
But if you need to send a text for a lawful purpose, you have some options to do so:
- Use third-party apps, like Burner.
- Free services like TextNow and FreeTone.
- Spoof your phone number. That’s for Android only; the option isn’t available on iPhones.
- Buy a burner phone or use another person’s phone number.
Here’s every option in detail.
Third-party apps to send a text with a different phone number
There are a lot of services that allow you to send texts with another phone number. The most famous is Burner. This app is designed to send anonymous texts and calls.
Here’s how to start with Burner:
- Go to the Burner App website.
- Click Choose your phone number.
- Enter an area code for the area you want to get a number for.
- Click Find Numbers and choose the number you like.
- Choose the plan to subscribe to; you can choose between monthly and annual plans.
With Burner, you can send texts and receive calls with this new phone number.
But the Burner isn’t the only service that provides second anonymous numbers; other similar service is Hushed and CoverMe.
Also, you can use Google Voice. It provides a phone number, and you can use it to receive and make calls and texts. But when you sign in for Google Voice, the phone number probably would be the same area code as your location.
The good point about Google Voice is that it’s free to use (except for international calls and texts), so you need to pay a single penny to use this phone number. However, the number of locations where Google Voice works is quite short, including the US, Canada, the UK, and some EU countries (but not them all).
But what if you need to automate your texts? Like the ones automatically sent by companies and businesses. For this purpose, plenty of services exist, like Pilvo, Infobip, Twillo, and MessageBird. These services are used to program texts and other types of messages (like Messenger) and may be suitable for your business.
If you want to use them, you need to check all details first to choose the right service for your needs. Usually, such services work by a pay-as-you-go scheme, so you pay for the volume of texts sent.
Free services to send texts with a different phone number
A constellation of services will let you send texts with a different phone number for free. The 3 most popular are:
They work as apps for Android and iOS. And there are also web versions, but they usually have reduced functionality.
The services and usually monetize by ads, but for some of them, there are ad-free plans, so you can pay to get rid of ads.
Phone number spoofing
That method involves more ‘technical’ things; this way, you can spoof your number so that the receiver will see another phone number. The feature isn’t available for iPhones, but you can use it on Android phones.
However, be careful; that’s illegal in a lot of countries, so check the local laws before going this way.
Burner phone, second phone number, or your friend’s phone number
You can buy a burner phone to send texts from a different phone number. You can read my article about the burner phone here.
You can also just buy a second SIM card or use eSIM, and this way, send texts not from your main phone number.
And you can ask your friend for a phone to write a text. That’s, btw, the best option if you just need to send a text without involving in a long conversation.
What about the legal side?
If you don’t plan to break the law – there’s nothing illegal in using different phone numbers to send texts. But make sure to obey the law, as any illegal activity as fraud or harassment, is bad. So if you’re planning something like that, I advise you to step back and think about the consequences.
Any of the methods listed above doesn’t grant you 100% anonymity, and you can always be tracked and detected, especially if you will do something against the law.
So, always use your best judgment before making a decision, and always think of what you’re doing.
