How to write an SMS that fits in 160 characters

Grasp the limit, then hold it without sacrificing the message.

Duration : 3 minCost : Free

The 160-character cap is nothing arbitrary: it comes from the 140 usable bytes of an SMS, split into 7-bit units by the GSM-7 alphabet. As soon as a sign leaves this alphabet — an emoji, a Cyrillic letter, an ideogram — the message switches to UCS-2 and the limit drops to 70 characters. A short, neutral text also helps let nothing superfluous show through.

The steps

1
Put the essential first
Open with the information the recipient absolutely must grasp. Even truncated or merely glanced at in the notification, this opening will be read.
2
Keep an eye on the counter
The field continuously shows the remaining characters and warns you the moment a sign tips the message into extended encoding.
3
Prune superfluous phrasing
The SMS is a short format by nature. A greeting and a signature suffice; stock turns of phrase can disappear without making the message abrupt.
4
Check it over before the countdown runs out
The 60 seconds of waiting offer the ideal moment for one last reread, with a cool head, just before the message flies off.

Good to know

•A single emoji brings the limit from 160 down to 70 characters for the whole message, not just for itself.
•Beyond the limit, the text is split into 153-character segments, the reassembly header eating into the rest.
•Note times in figures: “14h30” weighs five characters, “quatorze heures trente” takes twenty-two.