Twilio lists US SMS at $0.0083 a segment and adds $0.0035 to $0.005 in carrier fees, so a short text costs $0.0118 to $0.0133. Here is what the alternatives charge for the same text.
Twilio alternatives, by price
| Provider | Price per segment | Carrier fees | Rate + fees | Number | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TextKit | $0.0032 | $0.0035–$0.005 | $0.0067–$0.0082 | $0.95/mo | Pricing |
| Plivo | $0.0077 | $0.0035–$0.005 | $0.0112–$0.0127 | $0.50/mo | Pricing |
| Sinch | $0.0078 | $0.0035–$0.005 | $0.0113–$0.0128 | $1.00/mo | Pricing, fees |
| Twilio | $0.0083 | $0.0035–$0.005 | $0.0118–$0.0133 | $1.15/mo | Pricing |
| Vonage | $0.0086 | $0.0035–$0.005 | $0.0121–$0.0136 | $1.05/mo | Pricing |
| ClickSend | $0.0285 | $0.0041 | $0.0326 | Not listed | Pricing |
| Textmagic | $0.049 | None listed | $0.049 | $10.00/mo | Pricing |
Rate + carrier fees: the published price of one outbound text (one segment, up to 160 plain characters) to a US mobile from a registered 10DLC number, plus the per-segment fees AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon charge, lowest to highest. TextKit passes the same carrier fees through at cost, as Twilio, Plivo, Vonage, and Sinch do. Pay-as-you-go list prices, checked October 24, 2026.
- TextKit's rate, $0.0032 a segment, is lower than the rates of Plivo, Sinch, Vonage, ClickSend, and Textmagic, and it costs less on every US carrier once carrier fees are added.
We make TextKit, one of the APIs on this page. Every competitor price was read from that provider's own pricing page on October 24, 2026 and links to its source. Prices change; if one has, tell us and we will fix the page.
Why teams look for a Twilio alternative
- The rate. Twilio's is $0.0083 a segment, before carrier fees (source).
- Failed messages cost money. Twilio charges $0.001 for each message that ends in a failed status. TextKit charges nothing for a failed send, not even the carrier fee.
- Verification adds up. Twilio Verify is $0.05 per successful verification plus the SMS it sends (source). TextKit charges $0.025 per successful verification and nothing for the text.
- It does far more than SMS. If you only send texts in the US and Canada, you are paying for a platform built for voice, WhatsApp, email and international messaging.
The alternatives
TextKit
Carrier fees at cost: $0.0035 to $0.005$0.0032per segmentA rate 61% below Twilio's, with the same carrier fees passed through at cost. The console imports your Twilio numbers, Messaging Services and webhooks (migration guide).
- Price. $0.0032 per outbound segment, plus carrier fees at cost ($0.0035 to $0.005 on AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon), shown on each message. Numbers $0.95 a month. Phone verification $0.025, charged only when a code is verified.
- Free to start. Sandbox keys with every endpoint and signed webhooks, and 100 live texts a month to numbers you verify. No card.
- Built for developers. One REST API, SDKs for Node.js, Python, Ruby and Go, a CLI, and an MCP server for AI agents.
- The carrier side, handled. We file your 10DLC registration, STOP, HELP and START are handled on every number, and delivery-drop alerts tell you when a carrier starts filtering.
- Limits. US and Canada only, SMS only (no voice, WhatsApp or outbound MMS), and no short codes. TextKit is a young product.
Plivo
TextKit's rate is 58% lower$0.0112–$0.0127with carrier feesPlivo sells SMS and voice APIs to developers, with a pricing page that lists every US carrier surcharge. Its local numbers are among the cheapest here.
- Price
- $0.0077 per segment + $0.0035 to $0.005 carrier fees
- Number
- $0.50 a month
- Watch for
- Carrier surcharges are added to every text, and volume discounts are not published.
Sinch
TextKit's rate is 58% lower$0.0113–$0.0128with carrier feesSinch sells SMS, voice, email and verification APIs, with carrier connections in many countries.
- Price
- $0.0078 per segment + $0.0035 to $0.005 carrier fees
- Number
- $1.00 a month
- Watch for
- Carrier fees are added on top, and each number has a one-time setup fee as well as its monthly price.
Vonage
TextKit's rate is 62% lower$0.0121–$0.0136with carrier feesVonage, formerly Nexmo and now part of Ericsson, offers SMS, voice, video and verification APIs with wide international coverage.
- Price
- $0.0086 per segment + $0.0035 to $0.005 carrier fees
- Number
- $1.05 a month
- Watch for
- Carrier fees are added on top, and toll-free numbers carry a setup fee.
ClickSend
TextKit's rate is 88% lower$0.0326with carrier feesClickSend is a business messaging service with a web app and an API, for SMS, MMS, email and letters. You prepay, and the rate depends on how much you top up.
- Price
- $0.0285 per segment + $0.0041 carrier fees
- Number
- Not listed
- Watch for
- The price shown is for the smallest top-up. It falls to $0.0093 for a $2,000 top-up, plus a flat $0.0041 carrier fee.
Textmagic
TextKit's rate is 93% lower$0.049with carrier feesTextmagic is a business texting app with an API, sold in prepaid credit bundles. Inbound texts are free, and the first 10DLC registration is free; each campaign is then $10 a month.
- Price
- $0.049 per segment, no carrier fee listed
- Number
- $10.00 a month
- Watch for
- Built for sending from a web app more than from code, and a local number is $10 a month. The pricing page lists no carrier fee.
Which Twilio alternative to pick
- Lowest rate hereTextKit, $0.0032 a segment.
- Voice, WhatsApp and worldwide coverage as wellVonage or Sinch.
- A web app for a team that texts customersClickSend or Textmagic.
How we counted
- Source
- Each provider's own public pricing page and its carrier-fee page or help article, read on October 24, 2026. No reseller sites, no old blog posts.
- The message
- One outbound SMS to a US mobile, from a registered 10DLC (local) number. That is the case almost every developer starts with.
- The price
- The lowest pay-as-you-go list price, before the volume discounts or contracts most providers here offer.
- Carrier fees
- The per-segment pass-through fees for registered 10DLC traffic on AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon, ours included. Smaller carriers are left out. Where a provider includes them, we say so.
- Left out
- Taxes, 10DLC brand and campaign registration (passed through at about the registry's cost by most providers here, TextKit included), MMS, and international traffic.
Related
- Twilio SMS pricing, with carrier feesTwilio's US SMS rate, the carrier fees on top, and what common messages really cost.
- Migrate from Twilio
- The best SMS APIs for developersSeven SMS APIs ranked by what a US text really costs, and what each is good for.
- The cheapest SMS API for US textsWhat a US text costs at each API once carrier fees are added.
$0.0032 a segment. Carrier fees at cost.
Free sandbox keys, every endpoint, no card. Your first text in minutes.