The short answer
Plivo is billed per sms segment. It has a free tier: $10 free credit, no card. The paid plans we list start at From ~$750/month commit (Volume / committed-spend).
Plans and prices
| Plan | Price | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Pay-as-you-go (Long code SMS, US) | $0.0077 / SMS | Outbound and inbound on US long codes and short codes; toll-free is $0.0079/SMS. No monthly platform fee. |
| Phone numbers | $0.50 / month (long code) | Toll-free numbers $1.00/month; short codes from $500/month (billed quarterly) plus a $1,500 one-time setup fee, vanity short codes $1,000/month. |
| Volume / committed-spend | From ~$750/month commit | Committed-spend agreements unlock discounted per-message rates, guided onboarding, and dedicated support; volume discounts reported to kick in around 200K messages/month. |
How Plivo bills you
The pricing model is per sms segment. Developer-friendly pay-as-you-go SMS/voice with a 99.95% SLA, clean docs and the PHLO visual workflow builder. Best suited to: cost-effective sms & voice cpaas.
What to watch for on the bill
- Effective US A2P cost often 40-60% above sticker once 10DLC fees, carrier surcharges, and number rental are added
- Trustpilot reviews skew very negative (~1/5) citing billing surprises and account suspensions
- Multiple users report being charged for messages returning unknown/undelivered status
The pricing page we read
Source: https://www.plivo.com/sms/pricing/. Prices change, so confirm there before you commit.
Compare Plivo with alternatives
Other sms & messaging apis: Twilio, Vonage, Telnyx, Sinch, AWS End User Messaging (SNS).
Looking at quality rather than price? See the Plivo score on APIbenchmarks. Full entry: Plivo pricing.