KDE Connect needs permission on your phone to send text messages. Android asks for this once, and it is easy to miss. This is also the one step your PC cannot check for you.
If QuickText shows Transmitted but no text ever arrives, a missing SMS permission is almost always the reason. The steps below fix it.
Watch the walkthrough #
The exact menu names look a little different depending on your phone brand and Android version, but the steps are the same everywhere.
Or follow the steps by hand #
-
Allow Send SMS in KDE Connect. Open the KDE Connect app on your phone. If you see “Send SMS” listed under plugins that need permission, tap it and allow every request that follows (phone calls and SMS).
-
Check the app permissions. Close KDE Connect, then long press its app icon and tap App info (or the “i” icon). Open Permissions and make sure SMS is set to Allow.
-
Stop Android from pausing the app. Still in App info, look for a toggle like “Pause app activity if unused” or “Manage app if unused” and turn it off. Otherwise Android can quietly remove the SMS permission after a while.
-
Samsung and Xiaomi phones: check “Other permissions”. Back in App info, open Other permissions and make sure Send SMS (sometimes called “Service SMS”) is allowed.
-
Remove battery restrictions. Back in App info, open Battery and set it to Unrestricted (or “No restrictions”). This keeps KDE Connect running in the background while it sends.
One check on your PC #
On your PC, open the KDE Connect desktop app and go to Plugin settings for your phone. Make sure these two are ticked:
- Send and receive SMS
- Ping
Now open the Your phone page in QuickText and send yourself a test message. When it lands on your phone as a normal text, the SMS permission is set correctly.
