RCS vs. SMS: What’s the difference?

You probably call it text messaging, but there’s a good chance you’ve seen it called SMS and lately you may have heard the term RCS as well. So, what’s the difference between SMS and RCS? In this blog, we’ll cover the biggest differences between both messaging services and explain the benefits and potential drawbacks of both. 

What’s the difference between RCS and SMS?

SMS stands for Short Message Service, and it’s a text messaging technology that’s been around since the early ‘90s. Your basic text messages have been sent via SMS for many years. A brief explanation for SMS is that it has a strict character limit, works over cellular towers like phone calls and doesn’t allow you to send any media (photos or videos). A not-so-brief explanation for SMS can be found in our “What is SMS?” blog.

MMS followed SMS about a decade later, arriving in the early ‘00s. MMS stands for Multimedia Messaging Service which allows users to send (low resolution) picture and video messages. You can dive deeper into MMS in our “What is MMS?” blog if you like. Until recently, MMS was the only way to send media on a phone, which is why many people resorted to third-party social media or messaging apps to share photos and videos with friends. But now we have RCS.  

RCS stands for Rich Communication Services, and it’s the next evolution in text messaging. A brief explanation of what makes RCS different is that RCS doesn’t have a character limit, works over mobile data or Wi-Fi and allows you to send stuff like high-resolution photos, videos, voice notes, clickable links and more. Speaking of clickable links—yes, we also have a “What is RCS?” blog you can check out for another not-so-brief explanation.  

What are the pros and cons of RCS and SMS?

You may be thinking “well RCS is clearly the better option” but as with most technologies, there are pros and cons to each, depending on how you use them or what you need them to do. Let’s break down the benefits and potential drawbacks of both RCS and SMS. 

Benefits of RCS

• High-Res Multimedia Support
  • RCS enables you to send high-resolution pictures, videos & more without the need to download a third-party app. MMS supports sharing pictures & videos but at a very low resolution between iPhone and Android. 
• Improved Group Chats
  • RCS allows iPhone and Android users to enjoy enhanced group chat capabilities like adding & removing participants without having to create a new chat, naming the group chat and those beloved emoji reactions. Popular features like read receipts and typing indicators are also supported by RCS.
• Verified Businesses
  • Businesses are able to create verified profiles with RCS messaging, which should help reduce spam & phishing attacks
• Enhanced Security
  • While not fully end-to-end encrypted (yet), RCS messages are more secure than SMS messages

Potential drawbacks of RCS

• Requires Data for Full Benefits
  • RCS works over mobile data, so if you’re in a location with limited coverage and no internet connection, you won’t be able to send or receive RCS messages. In these scenarios where RCS can’t be used to the fullest, you can still send texts over Wi-Fi if a network is available. 
• Not Supported by Every Carrier
  • RCS is a service provided by your wireless carrier, and not all of them have adopted it just yet. Both parties in a convo must be on RCS-friendly carriers, so if your friend’s carrier doesn’t support RCS, you can’t message them via RCS.  
• Not Supported by Every Phone
  • RCS requires a smartphone to work, like iPhone (with iOS 18 or newer) or an up-to-date Android phone. So your uncle who refuses to move on from his flip phone can’t use RCS
• Ego Crushing
  • Hey, maybe some of us would rather not know if we’ve been left on read

Benefits of SMS

• Works Over Cellular Towers
  • Even with the most limited coverage, phones can usually still send & receive SMS and MMS messages, which is especially handy in case of an emergency (like if you’re lost in the woods with only one bar of signal)
• Supported by Every Carrier
  • The ability to send SMS messages comes standard with any wireless plan, so you can text any of your friends via SMS, even the ones you haven’t referred to Mint yet 
• Supported by Every Phone
  • SMS works on even the most primitive phones being used today, without the need to download a third-party app, so your uncle can still text you “happy birthday” three days late from his flip phone via SMS

Potential drawbacks of SMS

• No Hi-Res Multimedia Support
  • Sometimes you need to send a clear photo because there are things in this world that can’t be put into words alone. MMS will let you send a photo, but it won’t be nearly as high resolution as it would be via RCS
• No Additional Features
  • Without read receipts or typing indicators, you’ll never truly know if your friend is done with the conversation, actively ignoring you or just taking way too long thinking of a clever reply
• Not Encrypted
  • SMS isn’t encrypted like RCS is, and it doesn’t allow legitimate businesses to create verified profiles, making it difficult to know what unexpected SMS messages can be trusted 

Will RCS replace SMS?

RCS is widely considered the next generation of text messaging, but SMS ain’t going anywhere anytime soon. Until all carriers and all wireless devices support RCS, SMS will still be the standard for messaging friends & fam.

That’s the long & short (message service) of RCS vs. SMS

Now that you’ve got the message about the differences between these two services, you might be thinking “how can I test & compare them myself?” Well, you need a phone that supports RCS messaging, and then you need a wireless carrier that supports RCS messaging—like Mint Mobile. We know RCS is important to people, so we made sure to jump on board as soon as we could. That, combined with unlimited talk & text, flexible data plans and other features like free mobile hotspot and free Wi-Fi Calling make Mint Mobile the ideal carrier for people who love to stay connected as much as they love saving money. Click the link below to see why Mint Mobile makes the most sense for you.