Free tool
GSM-7 vs Unicode
One character outside the GSM alphabet changes the whole message from 160 characters per segment to 70.
Rules
What actually changes the bill
GSM-7 is the cheap alphabet: letters, numbers, and basic punctuation. 160 characters is one segment. From the second segment onward, each piece holds 153 because a join header uses the rest.
These GSM-7 symbols cost two characters each: ^ { } [ ] ~ | € \
Emoji, curly quotes (’ “ ”), an em dash (—), and many accents are not in GSM-7. The handset then uses Unicode for every character, so the limit drops to 70, then 67 per extra segment.
Paste a message below. If the encoding says Unicode, the listed characters are the ones to remove or replace.
Try it
See the shift
- Encoding
- GSM-7
- Characters
- 47
- Segments
- 1
- Remaining in segment
- 113
- Per-segment limit
- 160
All characters fit GSM-7. No Unicode shift.
Segment count depends on encoding and length. A prepaid wallet is required before a live send.
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Related
Each page answers a different question. They are not copies of this one.
FAQ
Straight answers
If something here is product behaviour, it matches the dashboard and the API.
01What is GSM-7?+
The default SMS alphabet. One segment holds 160 characters. A few symbols, including € and brackets, take two of those characters.
02What forces Unicode?+
Any character outside GSM-7, such as emoji, smart quotes, an em dash, or many accented letters. The whole message then fits 70 characters per segment, or 67 once it spills into a second segment.
03Why does that change the price?+
Taysend bills each segment. A Unicode message can use two or three segments where the same words in GSM-7 would use one.