What to do if Galaxy S8 can’t send MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service)

Many #GalaxyS8 has contacted us regarding their issue of being unable to send Multimedia Messaging Service or MMS on their device. While this issue is obviously not unique to the S8, we also want to make it clear to our S8 users that we are supporting them. If you are one of these users who’s S8 is having difficulties sending MMS, this post should be for you.

Ten solutions you can do if your Galaxy S8 can’t send MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service)

MMS issues can be caused by a number of factors. To know which one is preventing your S8 from sending MMS, follow our suggestions below.

Solution #1: Restart your S8

A lot of minor bugs are sometimes fixed by restarting your system. In these cases, a temporary halt in Android operation is enough to address bugs responsible for the problems. Be sure that you restart your S8 before doing the rest of the issues below. Just press and hold the Power button until options show. Then, tap on Restart to restart your S8.

Alternatively, you can also perform a soft reset, which is the virtual equivalent of pulling out the battery from the system. Here’s how to do it:

Press and hold the Power + Volume Down buttons for approximately 10 seconds or until the device power cycles. Note: Allow several seconds for the Maintenance Boot Mode screen to appear.
From the Maintenance Boot Mode screen, select Normal Boot. Note: Utilize the volume buttons to cycle through the available options and the lower left button (below the volume buttons) to select. Also, allow up to 90 seconds for the reset to complete.

Solution #2: Know the background story

MMS problems vary so you should ask key questions about the specific issue you’re having to understand it. Some of these questions should help you follow the right direction in troubleshooting:

Were you able to send MMS before using the current setup? This is an important question to ask yourself. MMS settings remain the same unless a user or an automated mechanism changes them. If MMS did work before on this phone, then either you changed something on the device, or there’s a network issue that caused MMS to stop working.

What did you change on your S8 before the issue started? Some users want to play around with their phone settings. Sometimes, these changes won’t do any significant trouble while others may result to problems. If you are the type who wants to tinker on a system, try to undo what you did and see if that will fix the problem. For example, if you recently changed the APN settings or some network configurations, make sure that you restore the previous settings. This is common sense troubleshooting but some may forget to do it when faced with issues.

Are SMS and voice calling working? Another good point to consider in this case is to know if other related network functions like voice calling and SMS are working. If your S8’s MMS was working before but then, all of a sudden, it stopped working, other functions like voice calling and text messaging may also be affected. If that’s what’s happening on your S8, forget about doing the rest of the troubleshooting below. Just contact your carrier right away so they can help you directly.

Solution #2: Verify mobile data is enabled

Multimedia Messaging Service or MMS needs cellular data connection to work. MMS are routed to a carrier’s system first before they’re forwarded to a recipient’s carrier. Due to its design, MMS only works if you have internet connection from your enabled. A lot of Android users forget this so be sure that you don’t. Make sure that mobile data is working by browsing the web on your web browser while on mobile data connection, not on wifi.

Some carriers may support MMS even when you’re on wifi though. If that’s how your MMS was set up, make sure that your wifi connection is working.

Solution #3: How’s the signal?

As mentioned, MMS requires cellular data connection to work so its performance may also depend on how good your phone’s signal reception is. If you are in a poorly covered location, your phone’s network functions like SMS, MMS, and voice calling may become intermittent or non-existent at all. Make sure to check your phone’s signal indicator in the status bar. If your phone is only getting 1 or 2 signal bars, data connection may be problematic. Keep in mind that mobile data connection is more demanding when it comes to signal and bandwidth. It’s also more sensitive to weak signal reception compared to SMS and voice calling so you’ll most likely end up with unsatisfactory experience using MMS and internet if you’re in a place with poor data coverage.

Solution #4: Are you roaming (out of your network)?

Most carriers require that a subscriber set up their phone’s roaming settings first before they can use it. If you’re currently not using your carrier’s services, like when you’re abroad, and you haven’t set your S8 to roam, MMS will obviously not work. In this situation, make sure that talk to your carrier so they can help you.

Solution #5: Delete old conversations

SMS and MMS may not receive or send messages if the messaging app’s inbox or outbox is full. Make sure that this is not the case by deleting old conversations. Try to clear out those conversation threads that contain images as they are ones who usually take up a lot storage space.

Solution #6: Check APN and other MMS settings

MMS won’t work if a device’s Access Point Name or APN settings are incorrect. APN settings are usually entered automatically once a SIM card is inserted (on GSM phones) so try to remove and re-insert the SIM card to see if that will help. APN settings are usually public knowledge and you can hunt for them in the internet. For accuracy though, we highly recommend that you consult your carrier so you can have the correct information.

If you are in CDMA network, we suggest that you talk to your carrier on how to check your MMS settings.

Solution #7: Verify if it’s a messaging app issue by using another app

Some users have reported that MMS works on some messaging apps but not on others. While we think this probably due to some messaging app configuration and not a device issue, we still recommend that you try to use another messaging app just in case. There are many free messaging app that you can try in the Play Store.

Solution #8: Clear messaging app data

Because there’s a possibility that the issue may be actually be specific to the messaging app you’re using, you can also try to clear its data. Remember, deleting a messaging app’s data will also delete your texts so be sure to back them up first.

To wipe an app’s data, follow these steps:

Open Settings app.
Tap Apps.
Find and tap Instagram.
Tap Storage.
Tap Clear Data button.

Solution #9: Reset network settings

Resetting your S8’s network settings may also help in this case so be sure not to skip it. This procedure will reset wifi, mobile data, and bluetooth settings. This means that you’ll have to enter wifi passwords, re-pair Bluetooth devices, or re-enter VPN credentials again. Here’s how to do it:

Open Settings app.
Tap General management.
Tap Reset.
Tap Reset Network Settings.
Tap RESET SETTINGS button.

Solution #10: Contact your carrier

Finally, if all the steps above won’t resolve the issue at all, be sure to let your carrier know about it. They may have to do an MMS configuration reset. Some carriers can do this procedure by giving you a code. Every carrier has its own unique way of checking for MMS configuration though so yours may be different.