# Twilio alternatives for SMS in 2026: prices compared

Source: https://jointextkit.com/compare/twilio-alternatives
Index: https://jointextkit.com/llms.txt

**TextKit: $0.0032 per segment, plus carrier fees at cost.** The same rate on every US and Canadian carrier. Carrier fees are passed through at cost, per segment: the same fees Twilio, Plivo, Vonage, and Sinch pass through. That rate is lower than the rates of Plivo, Sinch, Twilio, Vonage, ClickSend, and Textmagic.

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 on top | Rate + carrier fees | Number, monthly | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **TextKit** | $0.0032 | $0.0035 to $0.005 | **$0.0067 to $0.0082** | $0.95 | [pricing](/pricing) |
| Plivo | $0.0077 | $0.0035 to $0.005 | **$0.0112 to $0.0127** | $0.50 | [pricing](https://www.plivo.com/sms/pricing/us/), [fees](https://www.plivo.com/sms/pricing/us/) |
| Sinch | $0.0078 | $0.0035 to $0.005 | **$0.0113 to $0.0128** | $1.00 | [pricing](https://sinch.com/pricing/sms/), [fees](https://community.sinch.com/t5/Product-Pricing-FAQ/Carrier-Pass-Through-Fees-North-America-U-S-amp-Canada/ta-p/19773) |
| Twilio | $0.0083 | $0.0035 to $0.005 | **$0.0118 to $0.0133** | $1.15 | [pricing](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us), [fees](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us) |
| Vonage | $0.0086 | $0.0035 to $0.005 | **$0.0121 to $0.0136** | $1.05 | [pricing](https://www.vonage.com/communications-apis/sms/pricing/), [fees](https://www.vonage.com/communications-apis/sms/pricing/) |
| ClickSend | $0.0285 | $0.0041 | **$0.0326** | Not listed | [pricing](https://www.clicksend.com/us/pricing/us/), [fees](https://www.clicksend.com/us/pricing/us/) |
| Textmagic | $0.049 | None listed | **$0.049** | $10.00 | [pricing](https://www.textmagic.com/pricing/), [fees](https://www.textmagic.com/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](/contact) 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](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us)).
- **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](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/verify/pricing)). 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

**Rate + carrier fees:** $0.0067 to $0.0082 ($0.0032 plus $0.0035 to $0.005 in carrier fees, at cost). A 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](/migrate/twilio)).

- **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

**Rate + carrier fees:** $0.0112 to $0.0127 ($0.0077 plus $0.0035 to $0.005 in carrier fees). TextKit's rate is 58% lower, and TextKit costs less on every carrier once fees are added.

Plivo 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.

**Watch for:** carrier surcharges are added to every text, and volume discounts are not published.

[Plivo pricing](https://www.plivo.com/sms/pricing/us/)

### Sinch

**Rate + carrier fees:** $0.0113 to $0.0128 ($0.0078 plus $0.0035 to $0.005 in carrier fees). TextKit's rate is 58% lower, and TextKit costs less on every carrier once fees are added.

Sinch sells SMS, voice, email and verification APIs, with carrier connections in many countries.

**Watch for:** carrier fees are added on top, and each number has a one-time setup fee as well as its monthly price.

[Sinch pricing](https://sinch.com/pricing/sms/)

### Vonage

**Rate + carrier fees:** $0.0121 to $0.0136 ($0.0086 plus $0.0035 to $0.005 in carrier fees). TextKit's rate is 62% lower, and TextKit costs less on every carrier once fees are added.

Vonage, formerly Nexmo and now part of Ericsson, offers SMS, voice, video and verification APIs with wide international coverage.

**Watch for:** carrier fees are added on top, and toll-free numbers carry a setup fee.

[Vonage pricing](https://www.vonage.com/communications-apis/sms/pricing/)

### ClickSend

**Rate + carrier fees:** $0.0326 ($0.0285 plus $0.0041 in carrier fees). TextKit's rate is 88% lower, and TextKit costs less on every carrier once fees are added.

ClickSend 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.

**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.

[ClickSend pricing](https://www.clicksend.com/us/pricing/us/)

### Textmagic

**Rate + carrier fees:** $0.049 ($0.049, no carrier fee listed). TextKit's rate is 93% lower, and TextKit costs less on every carrier once fees are added.

Textmagic 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.

**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.

[Textmagic pricing](https://www.textmagic.com/pricing/)

## Which Twilio alternative to pick

- **Lowest rate here:** TextKit, $0.0032 a segment.
- **Voice, WhatsApp and worldwide coverage as well:** Vonage or Sinch.
- **A web app for a team that texts customers:** ClickSend 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 fees](/compare/twilio-sms-pricing)
- [Migrate from Twilio](/migrate/twilio)
- [The best SMS APIs for developers](/compare/best-sms-api)
- [The cheapest SMS API for US texts](/compare/cheapest-sms-api)