Send SMS Notifications from Google Sheets Using Twilio and Apps Script

Sometimes an email isn't enough — you need to send an SMS. Twilio's API makes this easy, and Apps Script's UrlFetchApp can call it directly from your spreadsheet.

Prerequisites

Sign up at twilio.com and get a trial account.
From the Twilio Console, note your Account SID, Auth Token, and Twilio phone number.
Store these in Apps Script's PropertiesService (never hardcode credentials).

function storeTwilioCredentials() {
  const props = PropertiesService.getScriptProperties();
  props.setProperties({
    'TWILIO_ACCOUNT_SID': 'ACxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx',
    'TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN':  'your_auth_token',
    'TWILIO_FROM_NUMBER': '+15551234567',
  });
}

Send a single SMS

function sendSms(toNumber, message) {
  const props = PropertiesService.getScriptProperties();
  const accountSid = props.getProperty('TWILIO_ACCOUNT_SID');
  const authToken  = props.getProperty('TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN');
  const fromNumber = props.getProperty('TWILIO_FROM_NUMBER');

  const url = `https://api.twilio.com/2010-04-01/Accounts/${accountSid}/Messages.json`;

  const options = {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      Authorization: 'Basic ' + Utilities.base64Encode(`${accountSid}:${authToken}`),
    },
    payload: {
      To:   toNumber,
      From: fromNumber,
      Body: message,
    },
    muteHttpExceptions: true,
  };

  const response = UrlFetchApp.fetch(url, options);
  const result = JSON.parse(response.getContentText());

  if (result.sid) {
    Logger.log(`SMS sent. SID: ${result.sid}`);
  } else {
    Logger.log(`Error: ${result.message}`);
  }
}

Send SMS to all numbers in a Sheet

Set up a sheet with columns: Name (A), Phone (B), Message (C), Sent? (D).

function sendBulkSms() {
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getActiveSheet();
  const data = sheet.getDataRange().getValues().slice(1); // Skip header

  data.forEach((row, i) => {
    const [name, phone, message, sent] = row;
    if (sent === 'Yes' || !phone || !message) return;

    sendSms(phone, message.replace('{{name}}', name));

    // Mark as sent
    sheet.getRange(i + 2, 4).setValue('Yes');
    Utilities.sleep(500); // Respect Twilio rate limits
  });

  Logger.log('Bulk SMS complete.');
}

Send an alert when a value crosses a threshold

function checkAndSmsAlert() {
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getActiveSheet();
  const stockLevel = sheet.getRange('B2').getValue();
  const threshold = 50;

  if (stockLevel < threshold) {
    sendSms(
      '+15559876543',
      `⚠️ Low stock alert! Current level: ${stockLevel} units (threshold: ${threshold}).`
    );
  }
}

Schedule a daily SMS reminder

function scheduleDailySms() {
  ScriptApp.newTrigger('sendDailyReminder')
    .timeBased()
    .everyDays(1)
    .atHour(9)
    .create();
}

function sendDailyReminder() {
  sendSms('+15551234567', 'Good morning! Don\'t forget to review your daily report in Google Sheets.');
}

Tips

Twilio trial accounts can only send SMS to verified numbers. Upgrade to a paid account for unrestricted sending.
Phone numbers must be in E.164 format: +15551234567 (country code + number, no spaces or dashes).
Twilio charges per SMS — keep an eye on your usage in the Twilio Console.
For two-way SMS (receiving replies), look into Twilio's webhook configuration and Apps Script Web Apps.
The Twilio free tier gives you a small credit to test with — plenty to build and verify your integration.