Twilio vs Plivo pricing
Both are in sms & messaging apis. Twilio is billed per sms segment; Plivo is billed per sms segment. Numbers below are copied from each vendor's pricing page.
TwilioFree tier or trial
- Free tier
- $15.50 trial credit, no card
- Billed
- Per SMS segment
- Best for
- Full-stack CPaaS for SMS, voice, WhatsApp, email
- Verified
- Jun 27, 2026
PlivoFree tier or trial
- Free tier
- $10 free credit, no card
- Billed
- Per SMS segment
- Best for
- Cost-effective SMS & voice CPaaS
- Verified
- Jun 27, 2026
Twilio plans
| Plan | Price | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| US SMS (long code, base) | $0.0083 / segment | Per outbound or inbound message segment; US carrier pass-through fees apply on top. |
| US Toll-Free SMS | $0.0083 / segment | Default 3 MPS throughput; toll-free number rental $2.15/mo. |
| Phone number rental | $1.15–$2.15 / month | Local long code $1.15/mo; toll-free $2.15/mo. |
| Engagement Suite (link shorten/click track) | $0.015 / outbound msg | First 1,000/month free, then per-message charge. |
| Compliance Toolkit | $0.015 / outbound msg | AI-based SMS compliance review add-on. |
| International SMS | Varies (e.g. UK $0.04, India $0.0029, Brazil $0.075) | Pay-as-you-go per destination; volume and committed-use discounts available. |
- Effective per-message cost runs 40–60% above the headline rate once US carrier pass-through fees are added
- Unpredictable monthly bills at scale from layered A2P 10DLC brand/campaign fees, failed-message charges, and add-ons
Plivo plans
| 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. |
- 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