How can I read SMS messages from the device programmatically in Android?

I want to retrieve the SMS messages from the device and display them?

Use Content Resolver ("content://sms/inbox") to read SMS which are in inbox.

// public static final String INBOX = "content://sms/inbox";
// public static final String SENT = "content://sms/sent";
// public static final String DRAFT = "content://sms/draft";
Cursor cursor = getContentResolver().query(Uri.parse("content://sms/inbox"), null, null, null, null);

if (cursor.moveToFirst()) { // must check the result to prevent exception
    do {
       String msgData = "";
       for(int idx=0;idx<cursor.getColumnCount();idx++)
       {
           msgData += " " + cursor.getColumnName(idx) + ":" + cursor.getString(idx);
       }
       // use msgData
    } while (cursor.moveToNext());
} else {
   // empty box, no SMS
}

Please add READ_SMS permission.

I Hope it helps :)

if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.KITKAT) {
        final String myPackageName = getPackageName();
        if (!Telephony.Sms.getDefaultSmsPackage(this).equals(myPackageName)) {

            Intent intent = new Intent(Telephony.Sms.Intents.ACTION_CHANGE_DEFAULT);
            intent.putExtra(Telephony.Sms.Intents.EXTRA_PACKAGE_NAME, myPackageName);
            startActivityForResult(intent, 1);
        }else {
            List<Sms> lst = getAllSms();
        }
    }else {
        List<Sms> lst = getAllSms();
    }

Set app as default SMS app

    @Override
protected void onActivityResult(int requestCode, int resultCode, Intent data) {
if (requestCode == 1) {
	if (resultCode == RESULT_OK) {

		if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.KITKAT) {
			final String myPackageName = getPackageName();
			if (Telephony.Sms.getDefaultSmsPackage(mActivity).equals(myPackageName)) {

				List<Sms> lst = getAllSms();
			}
		}
	}
}
}

Function to get SMS

public List<Sms> getAllSms() {
	List<Sms> lstSms = new ArrayList<Sms>();
	Sms objSms = new Sms();
	Uri message = Uri.parse("content://sms/");
	ContentResolver cr = mActivity.getContentResolver();

	Cursor c = cr.query(message, null, null, null, null);
	mActivity.startManagingCursor(c);
	int totalSMS = c.getCount();

	if (c.moveToFirst()) {
		for (int i = 0; i < totalSMS; i++) {

			objSms = new Sms();
			objSms.setId(c.getString(c.getColumnIndexOrThrow("_id")));
			objSms.setAddress(c.getString(c
					.getColumnIndexOrThrow("address")));
			objSms.setMsg(c.getString(c.getColumnIndexOrThrow("body")));
			objSms.setReadState(c.getString(c.getColumnIndex("read")));
			objSms.setTime(c.getString(c.getColumnIndexOrThrow("date")));
			if (c.getString(c.getColumnIndexOrThrow("type")).contains("1")) {
				objSms.setFolderName("inbox");
			} else {
				objSms.setFolderName("sent");
			}

			lstSms.add(objSms);
			c.moveToNext();
		}
	}
	// else {
	// throw new RuntimeException("You have no SMS");
	// }
	c.close();

	return lstSms;
}

Sms class is below:

public class Sms{
private String _id;
private String _address;
private String _msg;
private String _readState; //"0" for have not read sms and "1" for have read sms
private String _time;
private String _folderName;

public String getId(){
return _id;
}
public String getAddress(){
return _address;
}
public String getMsg(){
return _msg;
}
public String getReadState(){
return _readState;
}
public String getTime(){
return _time;
}
public String getFolderName(){
return _folderName;
}


public void setId(String id){
_id = id;
}
public void setAddress(String address){
_address = address;
}
public void setMsg(String msg){
_msg = msg;
}
public void setReadState(String readState){
_readState = readState;
}
public void setTime(String time){
_time = time;
}
public void setFolderName(String folderName){
_folderName = folderName;
}

}

Don't forget to define permission in your AndroidManifest.xml

<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_SMS" />

It is a trivial process. You can see a good example in the source code SMSPopup

Examine the following methods:

SmsMmsMessage getSmsDetails(Context context, long ignoreThreadId, boolean unreadOnly)
long findMessageId(Context context, long threadId, long _timestamp, int messageType
void setMessageRead(Context context, long messageId, int messageType)
void deleteMessage(Context context, long messageId, long threadId, int messageType)

this is the method for reading:

SmsMmsMessage getSmsDetails(Context context,
                            long ignoreThreadId, boolean unreadOnly)
{
   String SMS_READ_COLUMN = "read";
   String WHERE_CONDITION = unreadOnly ? SMS_READ_COLUMN + " = 0" : null;
   String SORT_ORDER = "date DESC";
   int count = 0;
   // Log.v(WHERE_CONDITION);
   if (ignoreThreadId > 0) {
      // Log.v("Ignoring sms threadId = " + ignoreThreadId);
      WHERE_CONDITION += " AND thread_id != " + ignoreThreadId;
   }
   Cursor cursor = context.getContentResolver().query(
                      SMS_INBOX_CONTENT_URI,
                      new String[] { "_id", "thread_id", "address", "person", "date", "body" },
                      WHERE_CONDITION,
                      null,
                      SORT_ORDER);
   if (cursor != null) {
      try {
         count = cursor.getCount();
         if (count > 0) {
            cursor.moveToFirst();
            // String[] columns = cursor.getColumnNames();
            // for (int i=0; i<columns.length; i++) {
            // Log.v("columns " + i + ": " + columns[i] + ": " + cursor.getString(i));
            // }                                         
            long messageId = cursor.getLong(0);
            long threadId = cursor.getLong(1);
            String address = cursor.getString(2);
            long contactId = cursor.getLong(3);
            String contactId_string = String.valueOf(contactId);
            long timestamp = cursor.getLong(4);
                                            
            String body = cursor.getString(5);                             
            if (!unreadOnly) {
                count = 0;
            }
                                            
            SmsMmsMessage smsMessage = new SmsMmsMessage(context, address,
                          contactId_string, body, timestamp,
                          threadId, count, messageId, SmsMmsMessage.MESSAGE_TYPE_SMS);
            return smsMessage;
         }
      } finally {
         cursor.close();
      }
   }               
   return null;
}

From API 19 onwards you can make use of the Telephony Class for that; Since hardcored values won't retrieve messages in every devices because the content provider Uri changes from devices and manufacturers.

public void getAllSms(Context context) {

    ContentResolver cr = context.getContentResolver();
    Cursor c = cr.query(Telephony.Sms.CONTENT_URI, null, null, null, null);
    int totalSMS = 0;
    if (c != null) {
        totalSMS = c.getCount();
        if (c.moveToFirst()) {
            for (int j = 0; j < totalSMS; j++) {
                String smsDate = c.getString(c.getColumnIndexOrThrow(Telephony.Sms.DATE));
                String number = c.getString(c.getColumnIndexOrThrow(Telephony.Sms.ADDRESS));
                String body = c.getString(c.getColumnIndexOrThrow(Telephony.Sms.BODY));
                Date dateFormat= new Date(Long.valueOf(smsDate));
                String type;
                switch (Integer.parseInt(c.getString(c.getColumnIndexOrThrow(Telephony.Sms.TYPE)))) {
                    case Telephony.Sms.MESSAGE_TYPE_INBOX:
                        type = "inbox";
                        break;
                    case Telephony.Sms.MESSAGE_TYPE_SENT:
                        type = "sent";
                        break;
                    case Telephony.Sms.MESSAGE_TYPE_OUTBOX:
                        type = "outbox";
                        break;
                    default:
                        break;
                }


                c.moveToNext();
            }
        }

        c.close();

    } else {
        Toast.makeText(this, "No message to show!", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
    }
}

This post is a little bit old, but here is another easy solution for getting data related to SMS content provider in Android:

Use this lib: https://github.com/EverythingMe/easy-content-providers

• Get all SMS:

    TelephonyProvider telephonyProvider = new TelephonyProvider(context);
    List<Sms> smses = telephonyProvider.getSms(Filter.ALL).getList();
  

Each Sms has all fields, so you can get any info you need:
address, body, receivedDate, type(INBOX, SENT, DRAFT, ..), threadId, ...

• Gel all MMS:

    List<Mms> mmses = telephonyProvider.getMms(Filter.ALL).getList();
  

• Gel all Thread:

    List<Thread> threads = telephonyProvider.getThreads().getList();
  

• Gel all Conversation:

    List<Conversation> conversations = telephonyProvider.getConversations().getList();
  

It works with List or Cursor and there is a sample app to see how it looks and works.

In fact, there is a support for all Android content providers like: Contacts, Call logs, Calendar, ... Full doc with all options: https://github.com/EverythingMe/easy-content-providers/wiki/Android-providers

Hope it also helped :)

Multiple answers are already available but i think all of them are missing an important part of this question. Before reading data from an internal database or its table we have to understand how data is stored in it and only then we can find the solution to the above question that is :

How can I read SMS messages from the device programmatically in Android?

In android SMS table looks like this

Now you can select whatever you want from the database. In our case we only need

> id,address and body

In case of reading SMS:

1.Ask for permissions

int REQUEST_PHONE_CALL = 1;

   if (ContextCompat.checkSelfPermission(MainActivity.this, Manifest.permission.READ_SMS) != PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED) {
            ActivityCompat.requestPermissions(MainActivity.this, new String[]{Manifest.permission.READ_SMS}, REQUEST_PHONE_CALL);
        }

or

 <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_SMS" />

2.Now your code goes like this

// Create Inbox box URI
Uri inboxURI = Uri.parse("content://sms/inbox");

// List required columns
String[] reqCols = new String[]{"_id", "address", "body"};

// Get Content Resolver object, which will deal with Content Provider
ContentResolver cr = getContentResolver();

// Fetch Inbox SMS Message from Built-in Content Provider
Cursor c = cr.query(inboxURI, reqCols, null, null, null);

// Attached Cursor with adapter and display in listview
adapter = new SimpleCursorAdapter(this, R.layout.a1_row, c,
        new String[]{"body", "address"}, new int[]{
        R.id.A1_txt_Msg, R.id.A1_txt_Number});
lst.setAdapter(adapter);

I hope this will be helpful. Thanks.

Step 1: first we have to add permissions in manifest file like

<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.RECEIVE_SMS" android:protectionLevel="signature" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_SMS" />

Step 2: then add service sms receiver class for receiving sms

<receiver android:name="com.aquadeals.seller.services.SmsReceiver">
    <intent-filter>
        <action android:name="android.provider.Telephony.SMS_RECEIVED"/>
    </intent-filter>
</receiver>

Step 3: Add run time permission

private boolean checkAndRequestPermissions()
{
    int sms = ContextCompat.checkSelfPermission(this, Manifest.permission.READ_SMS);

    if (sms != PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED)
    {
        ActivityCompat.requestPermissions(this, new String[]{Manifest.permission.READ_SMS}, REQUEST_ID_MULTIPLE_PERMISSIONS);
        return false;
    }
    return true;
}

Step 4: Add this classes in your app and test Interface class

public interface SmsListener {
   public void messageReceived(String messageText);
}

SmsReceiver.java

public class SmsReceiver extends BroadcastReceiver {
    private static SmsListener mListener;
    public Pattern p = Pattern.compile("(|^)\\d{6}");
    @Override
    public void onReceive(Context context, Intent intent) {
        Bundle data  = intent.getExtras();
        Object[] pdus = (Object[]) data.get("pdus");
        for(int i=0;i<pdus.length;i++)
        {
            SmsMessage smsMessage = SmsMessage.createFromPdu((byte[]) pdus[i]);
            String sender = smsMessage.getDisplayOriginatingAddress();
            String phoneNumber = smsMessage.getDisplayOriginatingAddress();
            String senderNum = phoneNumber ;
            String messageBody = smsMessage.getMessageBody();
            try{
                if(messageBody!=null){
                    Matcher m = p.matcher(messageBody);
                    if(m.find()) {
                        mListener.messageReceived(m.group(0));
                    }
                }
            }
            catch(Exception e){}
        }
    }
    public static void bindListener(SmsListener listener) {
        mListener = listener; 
    }
}

Google Play services has two APIs you can use to streamline the SMS-based verification process

SMS Retriever API

Provides a fully automated user experience, without requiring the user to manually type verification codes and without requiring any extra app permissions and should be used when possible. It does, however, require you to place a custom hash code in the message body, so you must have control over server side as well.

• Message requirements - 11-digit hash code that uniquely identifies your app
• Sender requirements - None
• User interaction - None

Request SMS Verification in an Android App

Perform SMS Verification on a Server

SMS User Consent API

Does not require the custom hash code, however require the user to approve your app's request to access the message containing the verification code. In order to minimize the chances of surfacing the wrong message to the user, SMS User Consent will filter out messages from senders in the user's Contacts list.

• Message requirements - 4-10 digit alphanumeric code containing at least one number
• Sender requirements - Sender cannot be in the user's Contacts list
• User interaction - One tap to approve

The SMS User Consent API is part of Google Play Services. To use it you’ll need at least version 17.0.0 of these libraries:

implementation "com.google.android.gms:play-services-auth:17.0.0"
implementation "com.google.android.gms:play-services-auth-api-phone:17.1.0"

Step 1: Start listening for SMS messages

SMS User Consent will listen for incoming SMS messages that contain a one-time-code for up to five minutes. It won’t look at any messages that are sent before it’s started. If you know the phone number that will send the one-time-code, you can specify the senderPhoneNumber, or if you don’t null will match any number.

 smsRetriever.startSmsUserConsent(senderPhoneNumber /* or null */)

Step 2: Request consent to read a message

Once your app receives a message containing a one-time-code, it’ll be notified by a broadcast. At this point, you don’t have consent to read the message — instead you’re given an Intent that you can start to prompt the user for consent. Inside your BroadcastReceiver, you show the prompt using the Intent in the extras. When you start that intent, it will prompt the user for permission to read a single message. They’ll be shown the entire text that they will share with your app.

val consentIntent = extras.getParcelable<Intent>(SmsRetriever.EXTRA_CONSENT_INTENT)
startActivityForResult(consentIntent, SMS_CONSENT_REQUEST)

Step 3: Parse the one-time-code and complete SMS Verification

When the user clicks “Allow” — it’s time to actually read the message! Inside of onActivityResult you can get the full text of the SMS Message from the data:

val message = data.getStringExtra(SmsRetriever.EXTRA_SMS_MESSAGE)

You then parse the SMS message and pass the one-time-code to your backend!

The easiest function

To read the sms I wrote a function that returns a Conversation object:

class Conversation(val number: String, val message: List<Message>)
class Message(val number: String, val body: String, val date: Date)
     
fun getSmsConversation(context: Context, number: String? = null, completion: (conversations: List<Conversation>?) -> Unit) {
        val cursor = context.contentResolver.query(Telephony.Sms.CONTENT_URI, null, null, null, null)
    
        val numbers = ArrayList<String>()
        val messages = ArrayList<Message>()
        var results = ArrayList<Conversation>()
    
        while (cursor != null && cursor.moveToNext()) {
            val smsDate = cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndexOrThrow(Telephony.Sms.DATE))
            val number = cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndexOrThrow(Telephony.Sms.ADDRESS))
            val body = cursor.getString(cursor.getColumnIndexOrThrow(Telephony.Sms.BODY))
    
            numbers.add(number)
            messages.add(Message(number, body, Date(smsDate.toLong())))
        }
    
        cursor?.close()
    
        numbers.forEach { number ->
            if (results.find { it.number == number } == null) {
                val msg = messages.filter { it.number == number }
                results.add(Conversation(number = number, message = msg))
            }
        }
    
        if (number != null) {
            results = results.filter { it.number == number } as ArrayList<Conversation>
        }
    
        completion(results)
    }

Using:

getSmsConversation(this){ conversations ->
    conversations.forEach { conversation ->
        println("Number: ${conversation.number}")
        println("Message One: ${conversation.message[0].body}")
        println("Message Two: ${conversation.message[1].body}")
    }
}

Or get only conversation of specific number:

getSmsConversation(this, "+33666494128"){ conversations ->
    conversations.forEach { conversation ->
        println("Number: ${conversation.number}")
        println("Message One: ${conversation.message[0].body}")
        println("Message Two: ${conversation.message[1].body}")
    }
}

Kotlin Code to read SMS :

1- Add this permission to AndroidManifest.xml :

    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.RECEIVE_SMS"/>

2-Create a BroadCastreceiver Class :

package utils.broadcastreceivers

import android.content.BroadcastReceiver
import android.content.Context
import android.content.Intent
import android.telephony.SmsMessage
import android.util.Log

class MySMSBroadCastReceiver : BroadcastReceiver() {
override fun onReceive(context: Context?, intent: Intent?) {
    var body = ""
    val bundle = intent?.extras
    val pdusArr = bundle!!.get("pdus") as Array<Any>
    var messages: Array<SmsMessage?>  = arrayOfNulls(pdusArr.size)

 // if SMSis Long and contain more than 1 Message we'll read all of them
    for (i in pdusArr.indices) {
        messages[i] = SmsMessage.createFromPdu(pdusArr[i] as ByteArray)
    }
      var MobileNumber: String? = messages[0]?.originatingAddress
       Log.i(TAG, "MobileNumber =$MobileNumber")         
       val bodyText = StringBuilder()
        for (i in messages.indices) {
            bodyText.append(messages[i]?.messageBody)
        }
        body = bodyText.toString()
        if (body.isNotEmpty()){
       // Do something, save SMS in DB or variable , static object or .... 
                       Log.i("Inside Receiver :" , "body =$body")
        }
    }
 }

3-Get SMS Permission if Android 6 and above:

   if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.M && 
    ActivityCompat.checkSelfPermission(context!!,
            Manifest.permission.RECEIVE_SMS
        ) != PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED
    ) { // Needs permission
       
            requestPermissions(arrayOf(Manifest.permission.RECEIVE_SMS),
            PERMISSIONS_REQUEST_READ_SMS
        )

    } else { // Permission has already been granted

    }

4- Add this request code to Activity or fragment :

 companion object {
    const val PERMISSIONS_REQUEST_READ_SMS = 100
   }

5- Override Check permisstion Request result fun :

 override fun onRequestPermissionsResult(
    requestCode: Int, permissions: Array<out String>,
    grantResults: IntArray
) {
    when (requestCode) {

        PERMISSIONS_REQUEST_READ_SMS -> {
            if (grantResults[0] == PackageManager.PERMISSION_GRANTED) {
                Log.i("BroadCastReceiver", "PERMISSIONS_REQUEST_READ_SMS Granted")
            } else {
                //  toast("Permission must be granted  ")
            }
        }
    }
}

String WHERE_CONDITION = unreadOnly ? SMS_READ_COLUMN + " = 0" : null;

changed by:

String WHERE_CONDITION = unreadOnly ? SMS_READ_COLUMN + " = 0 " : SMS_READ_COLUMN + " = 1 ";

Hier is an great Video Tutorial!!!! It works awsome!!!

It is a combination from a Google Sheet List with numbers and an Android App. (Very easy to follow Tutorial also for no coders!!!

Follow the Link for the Tutorial:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PReU4ITp37I&list=PLuB9drjjGa0QvFzWq_bwO8bOTRaWpdP_d&index=2

Here is the Code for the Google App Script:

const SHEET_URL = "https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16_fp7lQsnaMLaDYMVsE5YxsohQBANllEVcZeMP5ZpiU/edit#gid=0";
const SHEET_NAME = "SMS";

const doGet = () => {
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.openByUrl(SHEET_URL).getSheetByName(SHEET_NAME);
  const [header, ...data] = sheet.getDataRange().getDisplayValues();
  

  const PHONE = header.indexOf("Phone");
  const TEXT = header.indexOf("Text");
  const STATUS = header.indexOf("Status");

  const output = [];

 data.forEach((row, index) => {
  if (row[STATUS] === "") {
    output.push([index+1, row[PHONE], row[TEXT]]);
  }
});

const json = JSON.stringify(output);

return ContentService.createTextOutput(json).setMimeType(ContentService.MimeType.TEXT);
}

const doPost = (e) => {
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.openByUrl(SHEET_URL).getSheetByName(SHEET_NAME);
  const [header] = sheet.getRange("A1:1").getValues();
  const STATUS = header.indexOf("Status");
  var rowId = Number(e.parameter.row);
  sheet.getRange(rowId + 1, STATUS +1).setValue("SMS Sent");
  return ContentService.createTextOutput("").setMimeType(ContentService.MimeType.TEXT);
}

And then you only have to follow the second part of the video where he building the Android APP in MIT App Inventer. I made a Screenshoot to see the project