How to Send a Text from Windows 11 Search Using Phone Link

What phone actions in Windows Search do

Windows Search normally finds apps, files and settings on your PC. Phone actions extend that, so search can also start a task on a phone connected through Phone Link. Microsoft’s example is sending a text.

The text itself does not leave your PC. Search passes the request to your phone, and the phone sends the message over its own mobile connection. That is why a working Phone Link connection matters more than any search setting.

In short, search is only the starting point. Phone Link and your phone do the actual work, so a problem with either one will stop the action.

What Microsoft has confirmed

Microsoft has confirmed three things in its announcement of the new Windows Search:

• Search will offer phone actions.
• These actions work with a Phone Link connected device.
• Sending a text is one of the quick tasks they cover.

Everything else in this post, apart from the Phone Link steps, is a guide to how the action is likely to behave. Treat the announcement as the only source for what is confirmed.

What isn’t confirmed yet

The announcement does not publish the exact label of the action, the phrase that triggers it, or the fields it shows. It also does not say which Windows 11 builds or editions get it first. The exact wording may differ from the steps below, so follow the labels your own search results show and use the steps as a guide.

Because of the gradual rollout, you can meet every requirement and still not see the action. That is a delay on Microsoft’s side, not a fault on your PC. Checking for Windows updates, covered in the troubleshooting section, is the most useful thing to do while you wait.

What you need before you start

Phone actions need a compatible Android phone or an iPhone that is linked in Phone Link. Features vary by platform, so an action that works with one phone type may be missing or limited on the other. Phone actions run on the phone, so the Phone Link connection has to work first.

Check these items before you try the steps:

• A linked phone. If you have not connected one, follow how to set up Phone Link and connect your phone. On an iPhone, use the iPhone linking guide instead. Phone Link offers fewer features on iPhone than on Android, so messaging options may differ.
• Phone Link turned on. If it is switched off, turn Phone Link on in Windows 11.
• A signed-in account. Phone Link needs to be signed in. The guide to signing in and out of Phone Link covers this.
• An up-to-date Windows 11. New search features arrive through Windows Update, so a PC without the latest updates is less likely to have the action.

Texts go out through your phone, so your mobile network’s normal messaging rules apply. Nothing is sent from the PC itself. If the phone has no signal or its plan blocks texting, the message will not go out.

How to send a text from 🪟 Windows 11 search with Phone Link

To send a text from Windows 11 search with Phone Link, press Win+S, type a request such as send a text, choose the phone action, enter the recipient and message, and send. This works only after the phone action has reached your PC. None of the steps needs administrator rights.

Start by confirming that Phone Link itself works. That saves time if something goes wrong later.

1. Open Phone Link. Select Start, type Phone Link and press Enter. The app opens. Check that it shows your phone as connected.
2. Select Messages. Your existing conversations should load. If the tab is empty or asks for permission, fix that first using the troubleshooting section below.

3. Open Windows Search. Press Win+S, or select the search box🔍 on the taskbar🖥️. A search panel opens with a text box at the top.
4. Type a request about sending a text. For example, type send a text. Microsoft has not published the exact trigger phrase, so try wording that names the task. Matching results appear under the box.
5. Select the phone action for sending a text. Look for a result that mentions your phone or Phone Link rather than a file or app. If no such result appears, go to the troubleshooting section.
6. Enter the recipient. Type a contact name or a phone number in the field the action shows.
7. Type your message. Write it in the message field. Check the recipient once more, because a sent text cannot be recalled.
8. Send the text. Select the send option the action provides. Your phone sends the message using its own mobile plan.
9. Check the result in Phone Link. Open Messages and look for the new message in that conversation.

That’s it. If the message appears in the thread, the search action and the phone worked together as intended. If it does not, the Phone Link connection is the first thing to check.

If the phone action doesn’t show in search

Work through these checks in order, starting with the most likely cause. Most missing-action problems come down to the rollout, so the first check is Windows Update. The later checks cover the Phone Link connection itself.

Each check is safe to run and can be undone. Stop as soon as the action appears in search.

Check that your PC has the update

Gradual rollouts reach PCs in waves, so the feature may not have arrived yet. Install any waiting updates, then search again.

1. Open Settings⚙️. Press Win+I. The Settings⚙️ window opens.
2. Go to Settings › Windows Update🔃. The page lists any pending updates.
3. Select Check for updates🔃. Windows searches for updates and downloads whatever it finds. Install them when prompted.
4. Select Restart now if Windows asks for a restart. Once the PC is back, open search and try the request again.

That’s it. Your PC now has every update Microsoft has released for it, which is the most likely fix for a missing phone action.

The Windows Update page also has a toggle named Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available. Turning it on lets your PC receive new features earlier. Once the device is eligible, it also makes Windows 11 version 26H2 available, and 26H2 is the version where new Search features may arrive.

The toggle cannot force a feature that Microsoft has not yet released to your device, so the action may still be missing afterward. To undo the change, return to Settings › Windows Update and switch the toggle off. The toggle itself needs no restart, although installing an update can.

Confirm Phone Link is on and signed in

Phone actions depend on a working Phone Link connection. Open Phone Link and check three things: it opens without an error, it is signed in, and your phone shows as connected. If it opens to a sign-in screen, use the guide to signing in to Phone Link.

Next, open the Messages tab. If your conversations do not load, search cannot work without a working Phone Link connection. Fix that in Phone Link first.

On the phone, also check that the Phone Link companion app has the permissions it asks for, such as access to messages and contacts. A missing permission is a common reason for an empty Messages tab. Keep the phone switched on and near the PC while you test.

Reconnect the phone

After relinking, test with a plain message from the Phone Link app (see the next section) before you retry search. That way you know the connection works before you look at the search action.

Send a text from the Phone Link app in the meantime

If the search action is not on your PC yet, the Phone Link app already sends texts. This method works today and does not depend on the search rollout. It still needs a compatible Android phone or iPhone linked in Phone Link.

1. Open Phone Link. Select Start, type Phone Link and press Enter. The Phone Link window opens.
2. Select Messages. Your conversation list appears.
3. Select New message. A blank conversation opens with a field for the recipient.

4. Enter the recipient. Type a contact name or phone number and pick the match.
5. Type your message in the box at the bottom of the window.
6. Select the send button. The message goes out through your phone and appears in the thread.

That’s it. You have sent a text from your PC through your phone, without waiting for the search action.

If you text often, learn the shortcuts in keyboard shortcuts for Phone Link on Windows 11. They cut the number of clicks to reach the Messages tab.

If this method fails too, the problem sits in Phone Link or on the phone, not in search. Check that Phone Link has permission to access messages on the phone, and that the phone is on and nearby.

What happens after you send, and how to stop using it

Replies arrive on the phone first and then show in the Phone Link Messages tab. If you want a pop-up on the PC for each reply, see how to control text message notifications in Phone Link.

On current Windows 11, you can also see phone notifications in Start and reply to messages there. That is another way to text without opening the Phone Link app. Quick Settings can also silence the phone or make it ring, which helps when you cannot find it. As with other phone features, what appears depends on your phone type and platform.

Microsoft’s announcement does not mention a setting that hides phone actions from search. You can stop the connection in two ways: turn Phone Link off, as described in the on and off guide linked above, or unlink the phone. Either one removes the connected device that the actions rely on.

What to do next

Once phone actions reach your PC, test one with a message to yourself, then check that it lands in the Phone Link Messages tab. Next, set up reply alerts with the text message notification controls. You can also move on to managing calls in Phone Link, which uses the same phone connection.