# Send your first message

The best first message is a test to your own mobile. It shows you the whole round trip: writing a message, choosing a sender and checking the delivery status.

## Before you start

- You're [signed in](/docs/getting-started/sign-in/).
- Your account has credit. See [Credit and billing](/docs/account/credit-and-billing/).

## Send a test

1. In the portal, start a new message.
2. Enter your own mobile number. For an Irish mobile you can start with `08`. For other countries use the full international number, such as `447800000000` for a UK mobile.
3. Choose the sender. Pick a **reply number** if you want to try replying, or one of your approved **sender IDs**.
4. Type a short message. The portal shows how many [message parts](/docs/reference/sms-message-parts/) it will use.
5. Send it.

<!-- NEEDS CAPTURE: names of the portal menu item, the recipient field, the sender list and the send button. -->

## Check it arrived

The message appears in your sent messages with a status. **Sent** means it has been passed to the mobile network. **Delivered** means the network has confirmed it reached the phone. See [Delivery reports](/docs/replies-and-reports/delivery-reports/).

If you sent from a reply number, reply to it from your phone. The reply appears in your account. See [Replies](/docs/replies-and-reports/replies/).

## If it didn't arrive

Check the status on the message. A number in place of a status is an error code, such as **9106**, which means the account didn't have enough credit. Look the code up in [Status and error codes](/docs/reference/sms-status-codes/).

## Related

- [Sending from the web portal](/docs/sending/web-portal/)
- [Sender IDs](/docs/sender-ids/about-sender-ids/)
- [Status and error codes](/docs/reference/sms-status-codes/)

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Source: https://iflow.net/docs/getting-started/your-first-message/