Frequently asked questions

A virtual number is a real phone number that you use through SmsGrab instead of the SIM card in your own phone. You enter it where an app or a website asks for a phone number, and the verification SMS appears in SmsGrab. A one-time number lasts 20 minutes and is meant for one sign-up. If no code arrives, you get the full price back. See What is SmsGrab?

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The catalogue covers hundreds of services, from WhatsApp, Telegram and Google to shops, games and finance apps. What you can buy depends on the country and on stock: the catalogue only shows offers that are available right now. If your service is not listed, some countries offer Any other service. Each service decides for itself whether it accepts a number, and if no code arrives, the price is refunded. Browse the services or read Choosing a country and a service.

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Yes. The Android app and smsgrab.com use the same account, so you see the same balance, active numbers and history on both, and a code shows up on both. Sign in on the website with your e-mail and password, or with a one-time code from the app under Settings > Sign in on the web. That also works for guest accounts. See Using the app and the website together.

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Every combination of service and country is a separate offer with its own price and stock, and both change over time. A popular service in a country with few numbers usually costs more than one with plenty of supply. The exact price in US dollars is always shown before you confirm, and you are never charged more than the price you saw: if it rises in the meantime, the purchase stops and nothing is charged.

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A one-time number is active for 20 minutes from the moment you buy it. During that time it receives every SMS sent to it, including extra codes after the first one. If no code arrives in time, the number is released and refunded automatically. If you need a number for longer, look at rentals when they are offered. See When a number expires.

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No. A one-time number ends after its 20 minutes, and after that it can be given to someone else. Get again in your history buys a new number for the same service and country, but it will be a different phone number. That is why you should never use a temporary number for accounts you may need to recover later, such as banking, government services or your main e-mail.

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Up to 10 numbers can wait for a code at the same time. When you reach the limit, finish or cancel one of them to buy the next one; a cancelled number is refunded in full. Developer API accounts can have up to 100 numbers waiting at once. See How many requests can I send to the API?

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The catalogue shows a country only while it has numbers in stock, and a service only while it is available in that country. Stock changes all the time, so a country can disappear and come back later. Some countries are not offered at all, for example Turkey. Try again later, or choose another country for the same service in the country list.

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SmsGrab shows every number in international format, for example +62 812 3456 7890. Copy number copies the whole number. Many services have a separate country selector: choose the same country there (Indonesia, +62) and enter only the rest of the number (81234567890), without the dial code and without an extra leading zero. If the service has a single field, paste the full number including the +.

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Once a message has been delivered, the number counts as used and is not refunded, because the service did send the code. While the timer is still running you can usually fix it: ask the service to send a new code, which arrives on the same number, and enter the newest one. Check that you are entering it in the right app and before it expires there. See Receiving more than one code.

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Sometimes new numbers are unavailable for a short time, for example during maintenance or when numbers cannot be supplied. SmsGrab then shows a notice, and buttons for new numbers are disabled. Nothing is charged, you can keep browsing, and numbers you already have keep working. Buying turns back on by itself; you do not need to do anything. The status page shows the current state.

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You do not need to do anything to get your money back. If no code arrives within 20 minutes, the number expires and the full price is refunded automatically. If you do not want to wait, tap Cancel number while you are waiting for the first code: the refund is immediate. The refund appears in your Wallet as its own entry. If you still see no refund after the 20 minutes, contact support with the receipt number.

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When you cancel a number before its first code, the refund is immediate. When a number expires without a code, it is refunded automatically at the end of its 20 minutes. If a number cannot be delivered after payment, the charge is refunded in the same step. Refunds always go to your SmsGrab balance, in US dollars, and each has its own receipt. See When you get your money back.

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SmsGrab always charges in US dollars. When you display another currency, prices are converted with current exchange rates and rounded up, so the price you see is never lower than the real charge. Your balance is rounded down, so it never shows more than you have. Rates change, so a converted amount can shift a little from day to day. See Prices in your own currency.

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Every movement of your balance has a receipt, with a number like SGR-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX. In the app, open Wallet and tap the transaction; on the website, open Account > Receipts. You can save each receipt as a PDF. Monthly statements for every month with activity are next to your receipts. See Receipts and monthly statements.

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A guest account is a real SmsGrab account without an e-mail address, created in the Android app. It has its own balance and history, and you can use it on the website with a code from the app. It has no password, so it cannot be recovered if you lose the phone, and signing out deletes it with its balance. Guest accounts that are never used for a purchase or credit are deleted after 30 days without use. Guests cannot use two-step verification or the developer API. For anything you want to keep, use an e-mail account.

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The messages your numbers receive are shown only in your own account, on the app and the website. Like any SMS, they travel through the phone network and our number supplier before they reach you. We keep them so you can read them, and delete them automatically 30 days after they arrive. On a locked phone, code notifications hide the code. Because a temporary number goes to someone else later, do not use it for sensitive accounts. See Privacy and your data.

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We usually answer within two working days. Replies arrive by e-mail, and when you are signed in, your tickets and our answers also appear in your account, with a notification when we reply. Include the service, the country, roughly when you bought the number and, if you have it, the receipt number. Never send us passwords or verification codes. Many answers are already in this help center, so a quick search can be faster.

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Choose Forgot password? on the sign-in screen and enter your e-mail address. If an account uses it, you receive a link that is valid for 1 hour; open it and choose a new password. This signs you out on every device. If two-step verification is on, it stays on. No mail? Check your spam folder and wait a few minutes before asking again. Guest accounts have no password and cannot be reset.

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Sign in with your password and, when you are asked for the code, choose to use a recovery code instead. Each of your 10 recovery codes works once. Once you are in, turn two-step verification off and on again with your new phone, and create a new set of recovery codes. If you have neither the app nor any recovery code, contact support from the e-mail address of your account. See Two-step verification.

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The message you see explains the reason. We couldn't find that code means a typo or a code that does not exist. This code has expired means the campaign has ended or not started. Fully claimed means all uses are taken, and already used means your account has used it as often as allowed. Can't be used on your account yet means the code has a condition your account does not meet yet. After several attempts in a row, wait a minute. Capital and small letters do not matter. See Promo codes.

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Both rewards are paid automatically once your friend has completed at least one number and spent at least 0.75 USD on completed numbers. With today's settings, you receive 0.50 USD and your friend 0.25 USD. Your friend must enter your code within 7 days of signing up. Until then the invite shows as pending on your referral dashboard. See Invite friends and earn credit.

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There is no subscription: you pay per number, from your normal balance. The developer price is the wholesale price plus a markup of 80 %, which falls to 70 % from 100 USD, 60 % from 500 USD and 50 % from 2,000 USD of developer spend in the last 30 days. It is never below 0.10 USD and never above the app price. Numbers without a code are refunded as usual. See Developer prices and volume tiers.

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By default each key can send 600 requests and make 60 purchases per minute, and all keys of an account together 3,000 requests per minute. Up to 100 numbers can wait for a code at once per account, and up to 20 waiting requests (?wait=) can be open per key. Beyond a limit you get 429 RATE_LIMITED with a Retry-After header; every answer also carries RateLimit-* headers. See Developer API quick start.

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Act at once: revoke the key in Account > Developers, or rotate it with a grace period of 0 hours. Revoking is immediate and needs no password. Then check the key's request log and your Wallet for activity you do not recognise, and create a new key with an IP allowlist and a daily spend cap. Keep keys only on servers, never in apps or web pages. See API keys and security.

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Yes, in most cases. Point the tool at https://smsgrab.com/api/stubs/handler_api.php and use your SmsGrab API key as api_key. The standard actions are supported, from getBalance and getNumber to setStatus and getStatus. Amounts are in US dollars at your developer price, not roubles, and rentals are not available. See The sms-activate compatible endpoint.

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