Android us cellular charges for sms send report

Last updated: 2026-05-04

On a standard US CELLULAR consumer plan, you are not separately billed when your Android phone requests an SMS "send report" (delivery report). Unlimited texting is bundled into all current plans, so toggling delivery reports on or off does not add per-message charges. Per-text charges on a US Cellular bill almost always come from a different source: premium short-code SMS (5- or 6-digit numbers for donations, contests, voting, subscription content), MMS over legacy plan limits, or international SMS.

Quick answer

• Standard SMS, including delivery-report request messages from Android, is bundled as unlimited on all current US Cellular postpaid and prepaid plans.
• If you see per-SMS charges on a recent bill, check the call/text detail for short codes (5-6 digits) — those are premium SMS subscriptions, not standard texts.
• Google Play and other in-app purchases stopped being billable to your US Cellular bill on January 31, 2026, so any "Google services" SMS billing entries dated after that should be reviewed.
• The Android delivery-report toggle lives at Settings → Chat features → Request delivery reports (Google Messages) or Settings → More settings → Text messages → Delivery reports (Samsung Messages).
• Unauthorized premium SMS charges fall under the FCC's "cramming" rules — your first dispute should be free and the carrier typically credits the first instance.

What "send report" actually means and whether US Cellular bills for it

"Send report" or "delivery report" is an SMS feature defined in the GSM standard (the SMS-STATUS-REPORT TPDU) where the receiving network sends a small acknowledgment back to the sender confirming the message reached the recipient's handset. It's a separate signaling message at the protocol level, but on every modern US wireless plan it counts the same way as any other SMS — and since current consumer plans include unlimited domestic SMS, there is no incremental billing event tied to receiving a delivery confirmation.

This wasn't always the case. On legacy US Cellular plans from before about 2014, where SMS was billed per message in 200- or 500-message buckets, a delivery report could consume one of your inbound message allotments. Those plans are essentially extinct on consumer accounts today, and there has never been a consumer-facing line item literally called "send report fee" on a US Cellular bill. Carrier-originated SMS (low-balance warnings, plan-change confirmations) is also not billed.

Where per-SMS charges on a US Cellular bill actually come from

If your bill shows individual SMS amounts other than $0.00, there are a small number of real causes worth checking in order. Start with the call/message detail in the My Account billing portal.

Category	Typical billed amount	What it is	How to disable or stop it
Standard SMS (includes delivery reports)	$0.00 (unlimited)	P2P texts to US numbers. Includes SMS-STATUS-REPORT messages triggered by Android's delivery-reports setting.	Nothing to disable for billing. To stop the notifications: Google Messages → Settings → Chat features → "Request delivery reports."
Premium short-code SMS	$0.99 to $9.99 per message, sometimes recurring weekly	Texts to/from 5- or 6-digit numbers. Common source: subscribed unintentionally to a "horoscope text," "trivia," donation, or voting service.	Text "STOP" to the short code. Then call US Cellular billing and request a refund and a Premium SMS block on the line.
MMS over plan limit	$0.25 to $0.30 per message (legacy plans only)	Picture/video messages on a grandfathered plan that capped MMS separately from SMS. Not applicable to current US Cellular plans, which bundle unlimited MMS.	Migrate to a current plan that includes unlimited MMS, or send media via iMessage / RCS / Google Photos link instead of MMS.
International SMS	$0.10 to $0.50 per message depending on destination	Outbound SMS to phone numbers outside the US, Puerto Rico, and US Virgin Islands.	Use an OTT app (WhatsApp, Signal, iMessage) over Wi-Fi or data instead of SMS for international contacts.

If the line item doesn't fit any row above, it's likely a third-party service appearing in the messaging section — most often Google Play in-app purchases (carrier billing for which ended January 31, 2026). See our guide on what the "Google Services" charge actually is.

How to verify whether a charge is actually for SMS

The US Cellular billing portal groups unrelated items under "Usage" or "Other charges," which makes things confusing. Three checks confirm whether you're looking at a legitimate SMS bill entry.

Pull the detailed usage report. In My Account → Billing → View Usage, request the per-line detail. Real SMS charges show a destination number column. Premium short codes appear as 5- or 6-digit destinations; standard P2P texts to 10-digit numbers should always show as $0.00 on current plans.

Check the date and time pattern. Cramming-style premium SMS subscriptions typically bill at the same time every week or month, often from the same short code. Five identical $9.99 charges on the same day of consecutive months is a recurring premium service. Scattered charges are more likely tied to specific outbound activity.

Compare against Android Messages history. Scroll to the dates of the disputed charges. If you have no record of sending or receiving a message at that timestamp, the charge wasn't generated by your device — that's grounds for a fraud-style billing dispute, not a usage dispute.

How to dispute unauthorized SMS charges with US Cellular

The FCC classifies unauthorized SMS billing as "cramming" — third-party charges added without clear, informed consent. The agency's cramming consumer guidance sets out the escalation path, and US Cellular (now under T-Mobile) follows the same framework.

Step 1: Call US Cellular billing. Ask for the premium SMS charges credited and a Premium SMS Block placed on the affected line. The block is a free service that prevents any 5- or 6-digit short-code transaction from billing to your account. First-instance refunds are routine and front-line agents typically have authority to apply them.

Step 2: Stop the source. If you can identify the short code, text "STOP" to it. CTIA short-code rules mandate immediate cancellation and one final confirmation message. Screenshot the confirmation in case the charge recurs.

Step 3: File an FCC informal complaint if the carrier won't credit. The form at consumercomplaints.fcc.gov is free and takes about 15 minutes. It routes to US Cellular's regulatory affairs group, which must respond within 30 days. That office has write-off authority that retail call centers don't. Premium-SMS cramming complaints historically resolve at high rates — the FCC and state AGs collected $353 million in penalties from the four major US carriers in 2014-2015 cramming enforcement actions, and the framework that emerged is still operative.

Step 4: Card chargeback as last resort. If the amount is on autopay and US Cellular won't credit, dispute through your card issuer under the Fair Credit Billing Act (15 U.S.C. §1666 for credit cards) or Regulation E (12 CFR §1005 for debit cards). A chargeback against US Cellular can trigger service suspension if it reverses the full month's payment — use this only for accounts you're closing or for line-item-limited disputes. See our walkthrough on filing a CFPB complaint that gets results.

Turning off the Android delivery-report request itself

If your goal is to stop the "Delivered" notifications cluttering threads (separate from billing), the toggle is in different places depending on your app. Google Messages: Messages → profile picture → Messages settings → Advanced → toggle off "Get SMS delivery reports." Samsung Messages: Messages → three-dot menu → Settings → More settings → Text messages → toggle off "Delivery reports."

Even with the toggle off, the carrier's network-side configuration controls whether SMS-STATUS-REPORT messages are delivered at all. Most modern US Cellular handsets honor the device setting. If you still receive delivery notifications after toggling off, that's a network configuration issue — not a billing issue — and US Cellular tech support can adjust it.

What changes during the T-Mobile migration

The T-Mobile acquisition of UScellular closed on August 1, 2025, and accounts are migrating in waves through the second half of 2026. Two changes already in effect affect how you see SMS-related charges.

As of May 1, 2026, several self-serve functions were removed from the UScellular My Account portal (line suspensions, plan changes, adding lines). Bill view, payment management, and usage detail — where SMS charges appear — remain functional until your account migrates. Bill-cycle re-alignment is happening between May and July 2026, so your bill date may shift by up to 30 days during the transition.

Carrier-billing for Google Play purchases ended on January 31, 2026. Before that date, in-app purchases could be billed to your US Cellular wireless bill. After, Google Play purchases must be paid by card or PayPal directly. A "Google Services" line item on a bill dated after February 1, 2026 is worth disputing as a billing-system error.

Anti-misconception: what people get wrong

• "Android sends a separate SMS for the delivery report, so I'm billed for two messages instead of one." The SMS-STATUS-REPORT is a separate protocol message but doesn't count toward billing on current unlimited plans. Even on legacy per-message plans, US Cellular billed only outbound user-originated SMS, not status acknowledgments.
• "Turning off delivery reports will lower my bill." No. The setting controls whether your phone receives the delivered/not-delivered confirmation; it has no effect on what the carrier bills. High SMS-related charges come from premium short codes or international SMS — not delivery reports.
• "All 5- and 6-digit numbers texting me are scams or premium charges." Not all. Banks, 2FA services (Google, Microsoft, Apple), and most major apps use short codes for one-time-password delivery, billed at $0.00. Premium ones are recurring subscription content — horoscopes, trivia, "celebrity gossip." The tell: transactional (single OTP) vs promotional/subscription-style.
• "I have to pay the premium SMS charge before disputing it." No. The FCC's cramming framework allows disputing before payment, and US Cellular cannot suspend service for non-payment of a disputed third-party charge while the dispute is open.

FAQ

Does US Cellular charge per text message in 2026?

No, not on any current consumer plan. All current US Cellular postpaid and prepaid plans include unlimited domestic SMS and MMS. Per-message charges appear only on legacy grandfathered plans, for international SMS, or for premium short-code SMS subscriptions. Android's "send report" or delivery confirmation feature does not generate any separate billing event on standard plans.

I see a "$9.99 SMS subscription" on my bill — what is it?

Almost certainly a premium short-code SMS subscription, often signed up for through a deceptive web ad or "free quiz" landing page. Text "STOP" to the originating short code to cancel, then call US Cellular billing for a refund and a Premium SMS Block. First-instance refunds are routine under the FCC's cramming framework. If the carrier refuses, file an informal FCC complaint.

Why did "Google services" charges appear on my US Cellular bill before disappearing in February 2026?

US Cellular and Google ended carrier billing for Google Play purchases on January 31, 2026. Before that cutoff, Play Store and in-app purchases could be paid via your wireless bill. "Google Services" charges on a bill dated after February 1, 2026 are likely billing-system errors from the T-Mobile migration and worth disputing directly.

Will turning off delivery reports save me money on my US Cellular bill?

No. The delivery-report toggle controls whether you see "Delivered" notifications; it does not change what the carrier bills. Standard SMS, including underlying status-report messages, is bundled as unlimited on every current US Cellular plan. If your bill is high in the messaging section, look for premium short-code subscriptions in the detailed usage report.

More on US Cellular billing line items and disputes: what shows up on a US CELLULAR statement · all the hidden fees on a US Cellular bill · how the US Cellular billing complaint process actually works · what the "Google Services" charge actually is · why "Regulatory Cost Recovery Fee" isn't a tax · unexpected US Cellular auto-debits · T-MOBILE BILL PAY breakdown · AT&T WIRELESS charges explained · filing a CFPB complaint that works