Phone Call & SMS Notifications

Get notified by phone call or SMS for critical alerts. This feature is available on paid tiers.

Overview

In addition to push notifications, NotifyHero can:

  • Call your phone and read your notification aloud
  • Send an SMS with your notification message

Perfect for critical alerts that need immediate attention, even when you're away from your devices.

Setting Up

Adding a Phone Number

  1. Go to app.notifyhero.com
  2. Navigate to Account > Phone Numbers
  3. Click Add Phone Number
  4. Enter your phone number with country code
  5. Verify via the code sent to your phone

Verifying Your Number

A verification code will be sent to your phone. Enter it in the app to confirm ownership.

Sending Phone Notifications

Phone Call

Use the Call header to trigger a phone call:

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer tk_xxx" \
  -H "Call: +15551234567" \
  -d "Server is down!" https://app.notifyhero.com/alerts

The message will be read aloud when you answer.

SMS

Use the X-SMS header to send an SMS:

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer tk_xxx" \
  -H "X-SMS: +15551234567" \
  -d "Backup completed successfully" https://app.notifyhero.com/backups

Rate Limits

Phone calls and SMS are subject to daily limits based on your tier:

| Feature | Limit | |---------|-------| | Phone calls | Varies by tier | | SMS messages | Varies by tier |

Check your account settings for your specific limits.

Best Practices

  • Use for critical alerts only - Phone notifications are disruptive by design
  • Set up fallback - Combine with push notifications for redundancy
  • Keep messages concise - Especially for phone calls
  • Test your setup - Verify your number works before relying on it

Troubleshooting

Call not received

  1. Check your phone number is verified
  2. Verify your tier includes phone calls
  3. Check you haven't exceeded daily limits
  4. Ensure your phone can receive calls from unknown numbers

SMS not received

  1. Check your phone number is verified
  2. Verify your tier includes SMS
  3. Check you haven't exceeded daily limits
  4. Some carriers may block automated SMS

International Numbers

Phone calls and SMS work with international numbers. Enter your full number with country code (e.g., +44 for UK, +49 for Germany).

Delivery may vary by country and carrier.