Vonage vs Plivo pricing
Both are in sms & messaging apis. Vonage is billed per sms message; Plivo is billed per sms segment. Numbers below are copied from each vendor's pricing page.
VonageFree tier or trial
- Free tier
- Free developer credit, no card
- Billed
- Per SMS message
- Best for
- Omnichannel Messages API, enterprise-backed
- 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
Vonage plans
| Plan | Price | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| US Outbound SMS | ~$0.00809 / message | Per outbound message segment from a US local virtual (long-code) number; pay-as-you-go, no platform fee. |
| US Inbound SMS | ~$0.00649 / message | Per inbound message to a US long code; some toll-free numbers receive inbound free (verify on account). |
| Number rental | From a few $ / month | US local numbers start at a few dollars monthly; toll-free numbers and short codes cost more. |
| Premium Support add-on | ~$3,300 / month | 24/7 support with SLA; optional add-ons include Audit API (~$550/mo) and Auto-redact (~$1,100/mo). |
| Volume / committed pricing | Custom (contact sales) | Discounted per-message rates for high volume are discretionary and not publicly listed. |
- 24/7 premium support is a paid add-on (~$3,300/mo); lower tiers report slow, chat-routed support
- US A2P carrier surcharges and registration delays add cost and friction beyond list price
- Confusing split between legacy SMS API and Messages API, including price-display discrepancies between their logs
Source: https://www.vonage.com/communications-apis/sms/pricing/
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