There has at all times been a relentless combat for buyer consideration, and the dilemma between push notifications vs. SMS has lengthy been a troublesome selection. In spite of everything, these are two of the most typical channels companies depend on to have a direct line with the shoppers.
Each have distinctive strengths and disadvantages. SMS is commonly valued for its excessive open charges, making it ultimate for pressing updates. Push notifications, however, assist drive app engagement and ship real-time updates.
The selection is dependent upon your viewers and the kind of message you wish to ship. On this publish, we’ll break down the variations between push notifications vs. SMS and discover when to make use of every that can assist you determine.
Push notifications vs. SMS: What’s the distinction?
Each SMS and push notifications are advertising channels that ship messages rapidly. To find out which is correct for your enterprise, it’s essential to know every.
What are push notifications?
Push notifications are quick messages despatched by cellular apps or web sites on to a consumer’s gadget. They seem as popup alerts on the lock display, notification bar, or contained in the app.
As a result of they’re tied to gadget utilization, push notification advertising is nice for sending customized reminders, promotional updates, or engagement triggers.
See an instance of a push notification by Dying Want Espresso under:
What’s SMS advertising?
SMS, or Quick Message Service, delivers textual content messages on to a consumer’s telephone quantity, no matter whether or not they have an app put in.
SMS advertising is efficient for time-sensitive alerts, order confirmations, or promotional provides.
Right here’s an instance of SMS from Rachel Riley, exhibiting a time-sensitive promotional textual content:
One distinction between push notifications and SMS lies in accessibility and attain. SMS can join with anybody with a cellular quantity, whereas push notifications require customers to have an app put in and choose in to obtain alerts.
It’s also possible to examine push notifications vs. textual content messages when it comes to visibility. SMS messages go on to the telephone’s inbox and keep there till deleted, whereas push notifications can disappear if ignored. Right here’s a fast comparability of push vs. SMS to focus on their core attributes:
| Attribute | Push notifications | SMS messages |
|---|---|---|
| Supply | Through cellular apps or web sites, proven on gadget screens | Despatched to telephone numbers by provider networks |
| Value | Free (after app setup) | Normally charged per message despatched |
| Attain | Restricted to app customers who choose in | Common, anybody with a cellular quantity |
| Choose in | Requires app set up and consumer permission | Requires telephone quantity and consent |
| Personalization | Extremely customized, behavior-based | Restricted to textual content content material, however dependable |
Attain and engagement: SMS vs. push notifications
If you examine push vs. textual content notification, one of many greatest variations is within the degree of attain and engagement:
- When it comes to attain, SMS messages are assured to be delivered to just about anybody with a legitimate cellular quantity who opts in to obtain messages. Per the 2025 Shopper Texting Conduct (CTB) report, 86% of customers have opted in to obtain enterprise texts.
- Push notifications require customers to put in the app or allow them on a web site and choose in to obtain alerts. In line with Airship Cell App Push Notifications Benchmarks for 2025, push notification opt-in fee for some industries was as excessive as 79.7% on Android gadgets and 74.1% on iOS gadgets.
- Evaluating push notifications vs. SMS when it comes to engagement, SMS sometimes outperforms push messages. SMS open charges are reported at about 98% per the beforehand cited CTB report. Alternatively, push notification common open fee throughout industries in 2024 was 10.7% on Android gadgets and eight% on iOS gadgets.
- Click on-through charges additionally spotlight a spot. Android push notifications common simply 2.75% CTR, and iOS is decrease at 1.71%, whereas SMS advertising sometimes achieves between 21 and 35%.
- Relating to immediacy of supply, push notifications seem nearly immediately, particularly if the gadget is on-line. SMS can be quick, however supply is dependent upon the cellular community. Some delays can occur throughout excessive visitors or community congestion.
- Nevertheless, SMS has the sting when it comes to reliability. Because it makes use of mobile networks, it really works even with out Wi-Fi or cellular knowledge. This makes it extra reliable in areas with poor web. Push notifications require the web, an app or browser permission, and sometimes energetic settings.
Value and ROI: Which channel pays off extra?
Value is one other essential issue to contemplate when evaluating push notifications vs. SMS advertising. SMS comes with a per-message charge that may add up quick, particularly for bulk SMS campaigns. Costs fluctuate by area and supplier, however a regular SMS message for US recipients utilizing Omnisend prices $0.015.
Regardless of this, SMS delivers a robust return on funding due to its reliability and excessive engagement charges. In reality, statistics present SMS campaigns obtain an ROI as excessive as 44.8%. Nicely-targeted campaigns, equivalent to deserted cart reminders or VIP alerts, can result in extra spectacular outcomes.
Push notifications, against this, are free to ship after getting an app or an online push system in place. There are not any per-message prices, which makes them interesting for companies on a decent finances.
However engagement potential is decrease, and the hidden price lies in sustaining viewers engagement. Additionally, opt-in fatigue is one other limiting issue, with many customers muting or disabling notifications over time.
For small companies, in case you solely want to succeed in a number of thousand subscribers, SMS could also be definitely worth the spend as a result of each message counts. Push can nonetheless play a task, however its influence is proscribed with out a big base of energetic customers.
For bigger companies with established apps or net platforms, push notifications can scale nicely.
Buyer expertise: SMS vs. push notifications
Whereas each push notifications vs. SMS ship fast communication, the way in which they’re acquired and perceived by prospects might be very totally different.
SMS is private and direct. Due to this, SMS feels pressing and essential. Nevertheless, the identical directness can really feel intrusive if SMS is overused. Pushy or too many texts can frustrate prospects, main them to unsubscribe or ignore future campaigns.
See how Vape Superstore makes use of SMS to make provides really feel private and fewer pushy, giving prospects the selection to answer sure for a reduction or no to skip:
Push notifications seem as alerts, usually prompting customers to take fast motion. Prospects sometimes view push messages as extra informal than SMS. As such, they work nicely for reminders, equivalent to a flash sale that’s beginning quickly or a mild nudge to take a look at new content material.
They’re additionally much less intrusive as a result of customers can rapidly swipe them away. Nevertheless, this ease of dismissal is usually a disadvantage. If push alerts aren’t related or frequent sufficient, they threat being ignored.
Right here’s an instance of how a push notification is used to focus on a reduction:
When to make use of SMS vs. push notifications
The selection between push notifications vs. SMS is dependent upon context, timing, and buyer expectations. Each channels have strengths that make them higher for particular conditions.
When SMS works greatest
SMS needs to be reserved for moments that require consideration instantly, which makes SMS ultimate for:
- Order updates: Transport confirmations or supply alerts
- Time-sensitive provides: Quick-term promotions or VIP reductions
- Deserted cart restoration: A reminder that nudges customers again to finish checkout
When push notifications work greatest
Push notifications are higher for reminders or engagement prompts that don’t want pressing motion. They’re efficient for:
- App reminders: Bringing customers again to discover options or full an motion
- New content material alerts: Notifying subscribers about recent weblog posts or articles
- Flash gross sales: Fast alerts that encourage engagement with out feeling too intrusive
The true energy comes while you use each channels. An omnichannel advertising technique ensures your message is delivered in the fitting manner on the proper time. For instance, you may ship a push notification first, and if the patron doesn’t interact, observe up with an SMS.
With Omnisend, a advertising automation software program, you may arrange automations that ship a push reminder first, then an automatic SMS message if the patron doesn’t interact, all from one dashboard.
Create omnichannel workflows for higher engagement with Omnisend
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“Our returning prospects already made up a good portion of our income, however Omnisend allowed us to interact them extra successfully by a number of channels. By pairing time-sensitive promotions with SMS and push notifications, we’ve seen unbelievable outcomes.”
Shan Jiang, Buyer Progress Supervisor at Kate Backdrop
Kate Backdrop now enjoys 1:300 ROI utilizing Omnisend omnichannel advertising and a 62% view fee for push notifications. Learn the complete case examine right here.
Push notifications vs. SMS: Which ought to your enterprise select?
Relating to push notifications vs. SMS, the choice is dependent upon your objectives. SMS is the extra dependable choice. Messages land within the buyer’s inbox, are nearly at all times opened, and are excellent for pressing updates.
Push notifications are a low-cost technique to attain prospects. They’re free to ship and nice for reminders or informal model touchpoints.
For many companies, the very best strategy isn’t about selecting between push notifications vs. SMS, however combining each. With Omnisend, you may consolidate SMS, push, and e-mail right into a single platform. That manner, you get the associated fee advantages of push messages with the reliability of SMS.
FAQs
Sure, many companies use each. Push is nice for reminders and low-cost engagement, whereas SMS ensures pressing messages are seen.
Prospects count on SMS for pressing and private updates. Push works higher for informal engagement. Nevertheless, push notifications vs. SMS comparability isn’t about buyer desire alone but additionally entails selecting the best message for every channel.
For pressing communication, sure. SMS has increased open charges, quicker reads, and stronger click-throughs. Push is more practical for light-weight engagement at scale. Effectiveness in push notifications vs. SMS is dependent upon your purpose.
Push notifications are cheaper since they’re free to ship after getting an app or system. SMS has a per-message price, which provides up with quantity. However when evaluating push notifications vs. SMS, price alone isn’t the complete image. SMS usually delivers increased ROI per message as a result of it drives extra dependable conversions.
