Twilio SMS pricing explained

Count billable segments, not text bubbles

Twilio currently lists $0.0083 per outbound US long-code SMS segment, and the same base rate for inbound SMS. A customer sees a message bubble; your invoice can contain multiple segments for that one message.

A standard GSM-7 SMS can contain up to 160 characters as a single segment. Longer concatenated messages generally use 153 characters per segment. Unicode changes the limits: typically 70 characters for one segment and 67 per segment in a multipart message. Certain characters also consume more encoding space. A 300-character message made of ordinary GSM-7 characters therefore costs two segments, not one.

Use your actual templates and encoding when forecasting. Include customer replies, not just outbound notifications, and separate MMS from SMS rather than assuming they share one unit price.

Separate the bill into cost categories

Twilio publishes its base rates and additional fees separately. Read both before deciding what your traffic will cost:

• Messaging usage: outbound and inbound billable segments, with rates depending on the product, destination and sender type.
• Carrier charges: additional fees based on destination network, direction and message type. On the current US page, outbound SMS examples include $0.0035 for AT&T and $0.0045 for T-Mobile; other networks can differ.
• Phone numbers: Twilio currently lists US local long-code numbers at $1.15 per month. Other number types have different rental or provisioning costs.
• A2P 10DLC registration: brand registration, campaign vetting and recurring campaign fees depend on your registration and use case. Do not assume one flat registration price applies to every business.
• Optional products: features such as engagement tools, Lookup and premium support can have their own pricing. Include only what your application actually uses.
• Failed-message processing: Twilio's US messaging page currently lists a $0.001 processing fee for messages that terminate in Failed status. This is separate from how successful deliveries or verification outcomes are billed.

Carrier charges are not automatically provider markup

A carrier surcharge is not evidence that a provider has hidden a margin in your bill. Twilio explicitly states that its carrier fees are passed through without increasing the price charged by the carriers. We should not tell you otherwise.

Blocx also passes carrier surcharges through at cost. For a fair comparison, keep the destination mix, sender type, message length, inbound traffic and carrier fees consistent. Then compare the provider-controlled base rates, commitments and optional services separately.

Work the numbers: two million outbound segments

Consider 2,000,000 US outbound 10DLC SMS segments in one month. At Twilio's published $0.0083 list rate, base usage is $16,600. Under Blocx's current qualifying Volume tier, the base rate is $0.0038 and usage is $7,600.

That is a $9,000 monthly difference—or $108,000 over twelve identical months—on this base-usage comparison alone. It is not an all-in quote or a promise of savings against every Twilio account.

The Blocx Volume commitment is $5,000 per month, credited toward usage—not added on top of the $7,600. This example excludes carrier charges, numbers, registration, replies, optional services and taxes on both sides. Twilio offers volume and negotiated pricing; compare your actual offer or invoice rather than assuming every account pays the list rate.

Match a Blocx rate to its actual plan

New accounts receive $25 in welcome credit. Paid Starter is $49 per month credited toward usage, with SMS at $0.0065 per segment. It is not a no-minimum plan. Scale has a $1,000 monthly commitment on an annual contract and a published 10DLC SMS rate of $0.0045. Its first 30 days have no minimum; the standard minimum starts on day 31.

Higher 10DLC commitment tiers have their own rates and qualifying usage levels. Do not take a top-tier rate and apply it to a low-volume account. Toll-free and short-code pricing also differs from 10DLC. The pricing calculator lets you select the sender type and see the plan that matches your volume.

The comparison above uses the qualifying Volume tier, not a manually selected discount or an expired launch promotion. Support also depends on the plan: Starter includes docs and tickets, while the higher-tier support arrangements are listed on the pricing page.

Treat verification as a separate calculation

Twilio Verify lists a $0.05 base fee per successful verification plus standard channel fees. Its US SMS example adds $0.0083 per SMS attempt. With one SMS and one successful verification, that is $0.0583 before any other applicable charges or negotiated discounts.

Twilio does not charge the $0.05 base verification fee for failed, expired, incorrect or unfinished verifications. However, SMS delivery attempts can still incur messaging charges. Do not confuse the success fee with the cost of attempting delivery.

Blocx's published SMS/email Verify price is $0.035 per successful verification, with delivery included and failed verifications free. Estimate verification costs from successful checks, attempts, resends and channel mix—not from an SMS-only rate comparison.

Audit your invoice before switching

Export a representative month and answer these questions before asking any provider for a quote:

• How many outbound and inbound segments were billed, and how do they relate to your customer-visible message count?
• Which destinations, carriers and sender types account for the spend?
• What were base usage, carrier charges, number rental and registration costs separately?
• Which optional services, processing fees or support plans were actually used?
• What discounts, commitments and contract terms apply to the account?

You can then compare the same workload under each provider's real terms. A useful quote explains what is included, what is passed through and what remains outside the estimate. The goal is a bill you can reconstruct—not a low headline that assumes away the rest.

Brand identity

Blocx is the programmable messaging product from OtterBlocx, LLC, headquartered in Cheyenne, Wyoming, United States.

Channels

• Live today: SMS, MMS, RCS, Email, Telegram.
• Blocx also offers separate Voice services: VoIP, voicemail, call routing, 2FA via AI caller, and a voice dialer. These are not channels on the messaging or Verify API.

Plans

• Starter — self-serve with $25 in welcome credit for new accounts. Credit covers your first brand, campaign, phone numbers and messages. Paid Starter is $49/month credited toward usage. SMS $0.0065/segment, email $0.001/email (1 sending domain), 1 API key. No MMS, RCS, Telegram, SHAFT or restricted verticals.
• Scale — $1,000/month minimum platform spend (starts on day 31; no minimum for the first 30 days), on an annual contract. Every channel and route type at the published rate card — all rates listed on this site are Scale rates. Signup starts with a call. Required tier for SHAFT and other restricted verticals.
• Volume — custom volume-based pricing negotiated on your traffic profile. Contact sales.

Published rate card (+ carrier passthrough on SMS/MMS)

• SMS: 10DLC $0.0045, toll-free $0.0055, short code $0.007.
• MMS: 10DLC $0.0135, toll-free $0.016, short code $0.018.
• RCS: $0.0135/msg + one-time $1,000 setup fee.
• Email: $0.0002 per email, flat.
• Verify: $0.035 per successful verify, flat.
• Telegram: $0.0045/msg, flat.