The feature
Missed call text back
It automatically texts anyone whose call you miss, so the enquiry continues by message instead of going to your competitor. For a trade on a roof or under a sink it is the automation we would set up before any other, because it works at exactly the moment you cannot. Two things nobody selling it mentions: in GoHighLevel it fires on every missed call, including repeat attempts from the same person, and every message is billed as an ordinary SMS.
Research-led reviewThe author has not used this product. Built from public sources.What this means
The author has not used this product. Everything here comes from six public sources: the maker's own site, its pricing and refund terms, its changelog, its support forum, counted complaints across recent public reviews, and a like-for-like comparison against the nearest alternatives. We never claim experience we do not have.
Which badge a page carries is enforced in the site build, not just in editing. A page cannot use first-hand language unless it has declared itself a real-use review, so the badge and the writing cannot drift apart. The full method
We earn a commission if you buy through links on this page, at no extra cost to you.How this works
You pay exactly what you would pay going direct. The maker pays us a share of their margin, not a surcharge on you.
We are never paid for a positive verdict, no maker sees a review before it publishes, and we publish verdicts recommending against products we could earn from. Commission rates never influence which products we cover or how we rank them. Full disclosure
Independent comparison. We are an affiliate of some platforms named here. We do not speak for HighLevel, Weave, Allo, Enzak, EveryCatch, Jobber or Housecall Pro, and nothing on this page is an official statement by any of them. Figures come from each maker's own published pages on the date shown, and we correct them when they change.
The short version
- The feature is simple and the value is real. A missed call from a homeowner is an enquiry you may not get a second chance at.
- It fires on every missed call, so three attempts from one caller means three texts and three charges.
- Each message is billed at $0.00747 or $0.0079 depending which HighLevel rate card you read, plus carrier fees.
- Ring time is a slider. Their documentation recommends 10 to 20 seconds.
What it actually is
In HighLevel's own words the feature "Automatically sends a text message to a caller when their inbound call is missed". The stated purpose is "To acknowledge the missed call right away, set expectations, and encourage the caller to continue the conversation by text".
The reason it matters more for trades than for most businesses is the working conditions. A plumber under a sink, a roofer on a ladder and an electrician in a ceiling cavity all have the same problem: the phone rings at exactly the moment they cannot answer it, and a caller working down a search results page has other numbers left to try. Replying first is not a guarantee of the job, but not replying at all reliably loses it.
What each text costs
This is the part missing from every page selling the feature. The text is not free. In HighLevel's own documentation, these messages "count toward your phone messaging usage limits", which means each one is billed at the standard SMS rate from the account wallet.
| What | Rate | Note |
|---|---|---|
| SMS segment, in or out | $0.00747 | Carrier fees are charged on top |
| Local number | $1.15 / month | Per number held |
| Toll-free number | $2.15 / month | Per number held |
The limitations
Taken from HighLevel's own documentation rather than from anyone selling it:
- It fires for every missed call, even if the same caller tries several times in a short period
- Every message counts toward your phone messaging usage, so it is billed like any other SMS
- It sends from your default number, not from the number the caller dialled
- WhatsApp is not supported. That is a separate feature
- Merge fields only work if the system already recognises the contact from a prior interaction
The third limitation is a quieter problem. Messages send from your default number rather than from the number the caller dialled, so if you run tracking numbers for different campaigns or areas, the reply arrives from a number the customer does not recognise.
Setting it up
| Step | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Open Sub-account settings, then Phone System, Voice, Voicemail and Missed Call Text Back |
| 2 | Tick the box to enable it, then click Customize to write the message |
| 3 | Set the ring-time slider. Their documentation recommends 10 to 20 seconds |
| 4 | Send a test message to yourself, then save |
| 5 | Complete A2P registration first if you are sending to US numbers, or nothing will deliver |
On the message itself, the useful pattern is not an apology. It is a question, because a question gets a reply and a reply starts a conversation. "Sorry we missed you, this is Dave at Dave's Plumbing. What's the job and which suburb?" outperforms "We are sorry we missed your call, we will get back to you shortly", which invites nothing.
A2P registration is the step people skip. US carriers reject unregistered application-to-person messages, so the feature will appear to work and quietly deliver nothing. The fees and the process are on the A2P registration page.
Which tool
| Tool | What it is | Price |
|---|---|---|
| GoHighLevel | A full CRM with the feature included, metered per message | From $97 a month plus usage |
| Weave | Built for dental and medical practices | Not published |
| Allo, Enzak, EveryCatch | Single-purpose tools that do this and little else | Varies, generally cheaper |
| Jobber and Housecall Pro | Field service platforms with their own messaging | From $29 and $59 a month annually |
Being straight about this: if missed calls are your only problem, a single-purpose tool is cheaper than a full CRM and does the job. The argument for the platform is everything attached to the text, the quote follow-up, the review request, the pipeline showing which enquiries went cold. If you will not use those, you are paying for them anyway.
And if your real problem is scheduling and invoicing rather than lost enquiries, this whole page is the wrong solution. That is Jobber or Housecall Pro territory, compared on Jobber vs Housecall Pro, and neither pays us anything.
Two trades where this feature earns its keep hardest, for different reasons: plumbing, where an urgent caller can try the next number straight away, and roofing, where storm season spikes call volume exactly when every crew is on a roof.
If you already run Jobber, its paid AI Receptionist add-on can text back callers who hang up. How that fits with the rest of Jobber is on is Jobber a CRM.
The verdict
For a one-van trade this is, in our reading, close to the highest-return thing on the whole platform, and it is genuinely simple to set up. The honest caveat is that it is one feature, and buying a $97 a month platform for one feature only makes sense if you use the rest.
- Worth it if
- You miss calls while working and cannot answer, which is most trades most days
- Not worth it if
- Someone answers the phone reliably. Then this solves a problem you do not have
- The trap
- Switching it on without A2P registration, so it appears to work and delivers nothing
- The other trap
- A message so bland that receiving it three times reads as automated indifference
It is part of the phone system, not a paid add-on
Thirty days on the Bootcamp offer is enough to set this up, ring your own number, and see whether the replies you get back are worth the subscription. Do the A2P registration first if you are in the US, since it takes days rather than minutes.
Start the GoHighLevel trialAffiliate link. We earn a commission if you subscribe, at no extra cost to you. 30 day free trial through HighLevel's Bootcamp offer, card required. Messages are billed separately from the plan. We have no affiliate relationship with Weave, Allo, Enzak, EveryCatch, Jobber or Housecall Pro and earn nothing if you choose any of them.
Common questions
What is missed call text back?
A feature that automatically sends a text message to a caller when their inbound call is missed, so the enquiry continues by message rather than being lost. HighLevel describes the purpose as acknowledging the missed call right away and encouraging the caller to continue by text.
Does missed call text back cost money per message?
Yes. HighLevel’s documentation states these messages count toward your phone messaging usage, so each one is billed at the normal SMS rate, which HighLevel publishes as both $0.00747 and $0.0079 without marking either superseded, plus carrier fees. Budget on the higher one. At low volume it is negligible, but the cost scales with the call volume you are trying to grow.
Will it text the same person more than once?
Yes. HighLevel documents that it triggers for every missed call, even if the same caller tries several times in a short period. Someone with an emergency who rings three times gets three texts, so write the message so that reading it repeatedly is not irritating.
How long should the phone ring before it triggers?
HighLevel’s documentation recommends 10 to 20 seconds. That is long enough that you can still pick up if you are free, and short enough that the caller has probably not yet dialled the next company on the search results page.
Do I need A2P registration for missed call text back?
For US numbers, yes. Carriers reject unregistered application-to-person traffic, so the feature will appear to be enabled and quietly deliver nothing. Registration costs about $24.50 one-off plus a monthly campaign fee and takes days rather than minutes.
Is there a cheaper way to get missed call text back?
Yes. Single-purpose tools do this and little else for less than a full CRM costs. The platform is worth it only if you also use the quote follow-up, review requests and pipeline attached to it. If missed calls are your only problem, buy the cheaper thing.
Last reviewed September 6, 2026