Termux Comms

Termux Comms — SMS, Contacts, Camera, Audio & Media

Access Android communication and media features from the command line via Termux API.

Important: Permission Handling

When a Termux API command runs for the first time, Android may prompt the user to grant permission. The command will fail with a permission/access error, but the user sees an approval dialog on their device. Always retry the command once if you get a permission error — the user will have approved the permission by then, and the retry will succeed.

Do not assume you lack access after a single permission failure. One retry is all it takes.

Quick Reference

Detailed Usage

termux-sms-list

List SMS messages from the inbox.

termux-sms-list                         # recent messages
termux-sms-list -l 5                    # last 5 messages
termux-sms-list -t inbox               # inbox only (default)
termux-sms-list -t sent                 # sent messages
termux-sms-list -t draft               # drafts
termux-sms-list -t all                  # all messages
termux-sms-list -n                      # show phone numbers instead of names

Flags:

• -l <limit> — number of messages to return (default: 10)
• -t <type> — inbox, sent, draft, all (default: inbox)
• -n — show phone numbers instead of contact names
• -o <offset> — skip first N messages

[
  {
    "threadid": 1,
    "type": "inbox",
    "read": true,
    "sender": "Alice",
    "number": "+441234567890",
    "received": "2025-01-15 14:30:00",
    "body": "Hey, are you free later?"
  }
]

termux-sms-send

Send an SMS message.

termux-sms-send -n "+441234567890" "Hello from Pi!"
echo "Message body" | termux-sms-send -n "+441234567890"
termux-sms-send -n "+441234567890,+449876543210" "Group msg"

Flags:

• -n <number> — recipient phone number(s), comma-separated for multiple

termux-contact-list

List all device contacts.

termux-contact-list

[
  {
    "name": "Alice Smith",
    "number": "+441234567890"
  },
  {
    "name": "Bob Jones",
    "number": "+449876543210"
  }
]

termux-call-log

Show recent call history.

termux-call-log                         # recent calls
termux-call-log -l 20                   # last 20 calls
termux-call-log -o 10                   # skip first 10

Flags:

• -l <limit> — number of entries (default: 10)
• -o <offset> — skip first N entries

[
  {
    "name": "Alice",
    "phone_number": "+441234567890",
    "type": "INCOMING",
    "date": "2025-01-15 14:30:00",
    "duration": "120"
  }
]

termux-telephony-call

Initiate a phone call. Opens the dialer and starts the call.

termux-telephony-call "+441234567890"
termux-telephony-call "999"                    # emergency number

The positional argument is the phone number to call. The call is placed immediately — no confirmation dialog is shown.

termux-telephony-cellinfo

Current cell tower / mobile network information.

termux-telephony-cellinfo

Returns JSON array of visible cell towers with type (LTE, GSM, etc.), signal strength, and cell identifiers.

termux-telephony-deviceinfo

SIM card and telephony device information.

termux-telephony-deviceinfo

{
  "data_enabled": "true",
  "data_activity": "NONE",
  "data_state": "CONNECTED",
  "device_id": "",
  "device_software_version": "00",
  "phone_count": 1,
  "phone_type": "GSM",
  "network_operator": "23410",
  "network_operator_name": "O2 - UK",
  "network_country_iso": "gb",
  "network_type": "LTE",
  "network_roaming": false,
  "sim_country_iso": "gb",
  "sim_operator": "23410",
  "sim_operator_name": "O2 - UK",
  "sim_state": "READY"
}

termux-camera-info

List available cameras and their capabilities.

termux-camera-info

[
  {
    "id": "0",
    "facing": "back",
    "jpeg_output_sizes": [
      {"width": 4032, "height": 3024},
      {"width": 1920, "height": 1080}
    ],
    "focal_lengths": [4.25],
    "auto_exposure_modes": ["CONTROL_AE_MODE_ON"],
    "physical_size": {"width": 5.64, "height": 4.23}
  }
]

termux-camera-photo

Take a photo and save it to a file.

termux-camera-photo /sdcard/ruuh/photo.jpg          # back camera (default)
termux-camera-photo -c 1 /sdcard/ruuh/selfie.jpg    # front camera

Flags:

• -c <id> — camera ID (use termux-camera-info to find IDs; 0 = back, 1 = front usually)

termux-microphone-record

Record audio from the microphone.

termux-microphone-record -f /sdcard/ruuh/recording.m4a
termux-microphone-record -f /sdcard/ruuh/rec.m4a -l 30 -e aac -b 128000 -r 44100 -c 1
termux-microphone-record -q                        # stop recording

Flags:

• -f <file> — output file path
• -l <seconds> — max recording length in seconds (default: unlimited)
• -e <encoder> — aac, amr_wb, amr_nb (default: aac)
• -b <bitrate> — bitrate in bits/sec (default: 128000)
• -r <rate> — sample rate in Hz (default: 44100)
• -c <channels> — 1 (mono) or 2 (stereo) (default: 1)
• -q — stop current recording

termux-tts-speak

Speak text aloud using text-to-speech.

termux-tts-speak "Hello, I am Pi"
echo "Build complete" | termux-tts-speak
termux-tts-speak -l en -r 1.2 -p 1.0 "Faster speech"
termux-tts-speak -e com.google.android.tts "Using Google TTS"

Flags:

• -e <engine> — TTS engine (use termux-tts-engines to list)
• -l <language> — language code (e.g. en, es, fr)
• -n <region> — region/country code (e.g. US, GB)
• -p <pitch> — pitch multiplier (default: 1.0)
• -r <rate> — speech rate multiplier (default: 1.0)
• -s <stream> — audio stream: ALARM, MUSIC, NOTIFICATION, RING, SYSTEM

termux-tts-engines

List available text-to-speech engines.

termux-tts-engines

[
  {
    "name": "com.google.android.tts",
    "label": "Google Text-to-speech Engine",
    "default": true
  }
]

termux-speech-to-text

Recognize speech from the microphone and return it as text. Blocks until the user stops speaking.

termux-speech-to-text                          # listen and return final text
termux-speech-to-text -p                       # stream partial results

Flags:

• -p — output partial (interim) results as they are recognized, one per line

Returns the recognized text as a plain string. With -p, partial results stream line by line, with the final result on the last line.

termux-media-player

Control audio playback.

termux-media-player play /sdcard/ruuh/song.mp3    # play a file
termux-media-player play "https://example.com/stream.mp3"  # play URL
termux-media-player pause                         # pause playback
termux-media-player stop                          # stop playback
termux-media-player info                          # current playback info

Actions: play <file|url>, pause, stop, info

termux-media-scan

Scan files so they appear in Android's media library (Gallery, Music, etc.).

termux-media-scan /sdcard/ruuh/photo.jpg
termux-media-scan -r /sdcard/ruuh/photos/           # recursive scan
termux-media-scan -v /sdcard/ruuh/video.mp4          # verbose output

Flags:

• -r — scan recursively
• -v — verbose output

termux-share

Share content via Android's share sheet (sends to other apps).

termux-share /sdcard/ruuh/photo.jpg                     # share a file
echo "Check this out" | termux-share                   # share text
termux-share -a send /sdcard/ruuh/document.pdf           # send action
termux-share -a view "https://example.com"             # open URL
termux-share -c "image/jpeg" /sdcard/ruuh/photo.jpg      # explicit MIME type

Flags:

• -a <action> — send (default) or view
• -c <type> — MIME content type (auto-detected from file if omitted)
• -d — share default (skip chooser dialog)
• -t <title> — share dialog title

termux-storage-get

Open Android's file picker and copy the chosen file to a destination.

termux-storage-get /sdcard/ruuh/picked-file.pdf

This opens Android's file picker UI. The selected file is copied to the given path.

termux-calendar-list

List calendar events.

termux-calendar-list

Returns a JSON array of calendar events with title, description, start/end times, location, and calendar account info.

Common Patterns

Read and reply to latest SMS

MSG=$(termux-sms-list -l 1 | jq -r '.[0]')
SENDER=$(echo "$MSG" | jq -r '.number')
BODY=$(echo "$MSG" | jq -r '.body')
echo "From: $SENDER"
echo "Message: $BODY"

# Reply
termux-sms-send -n "$SENDER" "Got it, thanks!"

Take a photo and share it

termux-camera-photo /sdcard/ruuh/snap.jpg
termux-media-scan /sdcard/ruuh/snap.jpg
termux-share /sdcard/ruuh/snap.jpg

Voice notification for task completion

# Run at the end of a long process
termux-tts-speak "Your build has finished successfully"
termux-vibrate -d 300

Record a voice memo

termux-toast "Recording... speak now"
termux-microphone-record -f /sdcard/ruuh/memo.m4a -l 60
# Recording runs in background for up to 60 seconds
# Stop early with:
termux-microphone-record -q
termux-toast "Recording saved"

Find a contact and send SMS

# Search contacts for "Alice"
CONTACT=$(termux-contact-list | jq -r '.[] | select(.name | test("Alice"; "i"))')
NUMBER=$(echo "$CONTACT" | jq -r '.number')

if [ -n "$NUMBER" ]; then
  termux-sms-send -n "$NUMBER" "Hey Alice!"
  termux-toast "SMS sent to $NUMBER"
else
  termux-toast "Contact not found"
fi

Voice-commanded SMS

# Speak to send a text message
termux-tts-speak "Who should I text?"
NAME=$(termux-speech-to-text)
CONTACT=$(termux-contact-list | jq -r --arg n "$NAME" '.[] | select(.name | test($n; "i"))')
NUMBER=$(echo "$CONTACT" | jq -r '.number')

if [ -z "$NUMBER" ]; then
  termux-tts-speak "Contact not found"
  exit 1
fi

termux-tts-speak "What should I say?"
MESSAGE=$(termux-speech-to-text)
termux-sms-send -n "$NUMBER" "$MESSAGE"
termux-tts-speak "Message sent"

Audio alert with fallback

# Try to play a sound file, fall back to TTS
if [ -f /sdcard/ruuh/alert.mp3 ]; then
  termux-media-player play /sdcard/ruuh/alert.mp3
else
  termux-tts-speak "Alert: task requires your attention"
fi
termux-vibrate -d 500