# Twilio SMS Pricing 2026: $0.0083 a Text Plus Carrier Fees

Twilio SMS pricing read on November 7, 2026: $0.0083 per segment in the US, carrier and 10DLC fees, phone numbers, rates by country and a worked example.

Source: https://getkanal.com/blog/twilio-sms-pricing  
Last updated: 2026-11-07

## Key takeaways

- Twilio charges $0.0083 per SMS segment sent or received in the US, on long codes, toll-free numbers and short codes, according to its pricing page read on November 7, 2026 ("Pricing current as of October 2026").
- US carriers add their own fee to each segment, passed through by Twilio: $0.0035 for AT&T, $0.0045 for T-Mobile and $0.005 for Verizon on an outbound long code text.
- A long code number costs $1.15 a month, and A2P 10DLC registration adds a one-time brand fee ($4.50 or $46), a $15 campaign vetting fee and a monthly campaign fee from $1.50 to $10.
- Twilio sells the API, not the flows. Kanal, a Shopify app used by 500+ brands, includes SMS from its Scale plan (€149 a month) with cart reminders, shipping updates and campaigns ready to switch on.

Twilio charges $0.0083 for every SMS segment sent or received in the United States, on a long code, a toll-free number or a short code, according to [Twilio's US SMS pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us) read on November 7, 2026. US carriers then add their own fee to each segment, from $0.0035 (AT&T) to $0.005 (Verizon) for an outbound text, and the number itself costs $1.15 a month for a local long code.

This guide puts every line of a Twilio SMS bill side by side: the per-segment rate, carrier fees, numbers, A2P 10DLC registration, international rates and the add-ons, with a worked monthly example for an online store. The last part covers the question a Shopify merchant should ask first: Twilio sells an API, so who builds the cart reminders and the campaigns? Kanal, our Shopify app for WhatsApp and SMS, answers it with flows that are ready from the install.

## How much does Twilio charge per SMS?

Twilio's US price is the same for the three types of sender, per message segment:

| Sender type | SMS sent | SMS received | MMS sent | MMS received |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Long code (10DLC) | $0.0083 | $0.0083 | $0.022 | $0.0165 |
| Toll-free number | $0.0083 | $0.0083 | $0.022 | $0.02 |
| Short code | $0.0083 | $0.0083 | $0.022 | $0.0165 |

_Source: [Twilio US SMS pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us), which states "Pricing current as of October 2026", read on November 7, 2026. Carrier fees come on top._

![Twilio's US SMS pricing table with $0.0083 per outbound SMS segment on long codes, and the note that text messages are charged per segment](https://getkanal.com/images/screenshots/twilio-sms-pricing-us-nov07.webp)
_Source: [Twilio US SMS pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us), read on November 7, 2026._

Three details from the same page matter for a budget:

- **Replies cost the same as sends.** A customer who answers your text costs you $0.0083 per segment, plus a carrier fee on some networks.
- **Failed messages are billed.** Twilio applies a processing fee of $0.001 to each message that ends in a "Failed" status.
- **Volume discounts are negotiated.** The page's FAQ says high-volume senders work with their Twilio account team on discounts, and committed-use pricing is sold by the sales team.

## What is an SMS segment, and why does it change the price?

Twilio bills per segment, not per message. Its [guide to character limits](https://www.twilio.com/docs/glossary/what-sms-character-limit) sets the rules:

- **Plain text (GSM-7):** up to 160 characters fit in one segment. A longer message is split into segments of 153 characters.
- **Special characters (UCS-2):** a single emoji or a character outside the GSM-7 set switches the whole message to UCS-2, and the limit drops to 70 characters, then 67 per segment.

In practice, a 200-character promotion costs two segments, and a 120-character text with one emoji costs two segments too. Cutting the emoji or a few words can halve the cost of a campaign.

## What are Twilio's carrier fees?

On top of Twilio's rate, each US carrier charges a fee per segment, which Twilio passes through "without increasing the price charged by the carriers", in the words of its pricing FAQ. For a long code (10DLC):

| Carrier | SMS sent | SMS received | MMS sent | MMS received |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AT&T | $0.0035 | $0.0035 | $0.009 | $0.009 |
| T-Mobile | $0.0045 | $0.0025 | $0.01 | $0.01 |
| Verizon | $0.005 | None | $0.007 | None |
| US Cellular | $0.005 | $0.0025 | $0.01 | $0.01 |
| All other carriers | $0.0042 | None | $0.01 | None |

_Source: carrier fees section of the [Twilio US SMS pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us), long code table, read on November 7, 2026. Toll-free numbers have the same AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon fees, and $0.0045 for US Cellular._

![Twilio's carrier fee table for US long codes: AT&T $0.0035 and Verizon $0.005 per outbound SMS segment](https://getkanal.com/images/screenshots/twilio-sms-carrier-fees-us-nov07.webp)
_Source: [Twilio US SMS pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us), carrier fees, read on November 7, 2026._

So a one-segment text to a Verizon customer really costs $0.0083 + $0.005 = $0.0133, and to an AT&T customer $0.0118. Since you do not choose your customers' carriers, budget with a blended rate.

## How much do Twilio phone numbers cost?

Twilio adds the sender to the bill every month:

| Number | Twilio-leased, per month | Bring your own number, per month |
|---|---|---|
| Long code (local 10-digit number) | $1.15 | $0.50 |
| Toll-free number | $2.15 | $0.50 |
| Random short code | $1,000, billed quarterly, plus a setup fee | |
| Vanity short code | $1,500, billed quarterly, plus a setup fee | |

_Source: phone number pricing on the [Twilio US SMS pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us), read on November 7, 2026. MMS-enabled short codes have a $500 one-time fee._

## What does A2P 10DLC registration cost?

To text US customers from a 10-digit long code, a business registers a brand and a campaign with The Campaign Registry. Twilio's [A2P 10DLC fees article](https://help.twilio.com/articles/1260803965530-What-pricing-and-fees-are-associated-with-the-A2P-10DLC-service-), read on November 7, 2026, lists the fees it passes through:

| Fee | Amount | When |
|---|---|---|
| Brand registration, Sole Proprietor or Low Volume Standard | $4.50 | Once |
| Brand registration, Standard (secondary vetting included) | $46 | Once |
| Campaign vetting | $15 | Once per campaign |
| Standard campaign | $10 a month | Every month while active |
| Low-volume mixed campaign | $1.50 a month | Every month while active |
| Sole Proprietor campaign | $2 a month | Every month while active |

_Source: [Twilio help center](https://help.twilio.com/articles/1260803965530-What-pricing-and-fees-are-associated-with-the-A2P-10DLC-service-), read on November 7, 2026. The article notes that The Campaign Registry raised some of these fees on August 1, 2025._

![Twilio's A2P 10DLC fees article with the $15 campaign vetting fee and the $10 monthly fee for a standard campaign](https://getkanal.com/images/screenshots/twilio-a2p-10dlc-fees-nov07.webp)
_Source: [Twilio help center, A2P 10DLC pricing and fees](https://help.twilio.com/articles/1260803965530-What-pricing-and-fees-are-associated-with-the-A2P-10DLC-service-), read on November 7, 2026._

The same article says a Low Volume Standard brand fits fewer than 6,000 messages a day, and Twilio's [A2P 10DLC documentation](https://www.twilio.com/docs/messaging/compliance/a2p-10dlc) warns that unregistered 10DLC traffic pays additional carrier fees.

## What does Twilio charge outside the United States?

Rates change by destination. For the countries online stores sell to most, Twilio's country pages listed these prices per outbound segment:

| Destination | SMS sent | SMS received on a local number |
|---|---|---|
| United States | $0.0083 plus carrier fees | $0.0083 |
| Canada (long code or toll-free) | $0.0083 | $0.0083 |
| United Kingdom | $0.056 | $0.0075 |
| France | $0.0798 | $0.0075 |
| Spain | $0.0875 | $0.0075 |
| Italy | $0.0927 | $0.02 |
| Germany | $0.112 | $0.0075 |
| Netherlands | $0.1143 | $0.0075 |
| Australia | $0.0515 | $0.0075 |

_Source: Twilio's SMS pricing pages for [France](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/fr), the [United Kingdom](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/gb), [Canada](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/ca), [Germany](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/de), [Spain](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/es), [Italy](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/it), the [Netherlands](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/nl) and [Australia](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/au), each "current as of October 2026", read on November 7, 2026. Each page warns that carrier fees may apply._

In most of Europe a text costs close to ten times Twilio's US rate, which is why many European stores weigh SMS against WhatsApp. Our comparison of [WhatsApp and SMS prices by country](https://getkanal.com/blog/whatsapp-vs-sms-pricing-by-country) puts the two side by side.

## Which add-ons can appear on a Twilio SMS bill?

From the [US pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us):

- **Engagement Suite:** link shortening, click tracking and scheduling at $0.015 per outbound SMS, with the first 1,000 free each month.
- **Compliance Toolkit:** AI checks for possibly non-compliant texts, at $0.015 per outbound SMS.
- **Traffic Optimization Engine:** throughput management, from $300 a month.
- **SMS pumping protection:** on the French page, $0.025 per message for fraud detection.

The Engagement Suite alone can cost more than the text itself: $0.015 against $0.0083.

## What does Twilio SMS cost for a real store?

A fictional US store sends one promotion a month to 10,000 opted-in customers, in one segment of plain text, from a 10DLC long code registered as a Standard brand. Its customers are split 40% Verizon, 35% T-Mobile and 25% AT&T.

| Line | Calculation | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Twilio rate | 10,000 × $0.0083 | $83.00 |
| Carrier fees, Verizon | 4,000 × $0.005 | $20.00 |
| Carrier fees, T-Mobile | 3,500 × $0.0045 | $15.75 |
| Carrier fees, AT&T | 2,500 × $0.0035 | $8.75 |
| Long code number | Monthly | $1.15 |
| Standard campaign | Monthly | $10.00 |
| **Every month** | | **$138.65** |
| Brand registration and campaign vetting | $46 + $15, first month only | $61.00 |

_Computed from the [Twilio US SMS pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us) and the [A2P 10DLC fees article](https://help.twilio.com/articles/1260803965530-What-pricing-and-fees-are-associated-with-the-A2P-10DLC-service-), read on November 7, 2026. Fictional store and carrier split._

Two things move this total. An emoji in a 120-character text turns it into two segments, so the messaging lines double to $255. And the bill leaves out the larger cost for most stores: Twilio sells messaging through its API, so the campaign editor, the cart reminder trigger, the opt-out handling and the Shopify data are what your developers build, or another tool provides.

## Twilio or a Shopify app: what should a store choose?

Twilio fits a team with developers that wants texts inside its own product, CRM or checkout, and is ready to build and maintain the flows. For a Shopify store that wants SMS to sell, Kanal is built for that job:

- **The flows are ready.** Abandoned cart reminders, order and delivery updates, back in stock alerts, post-purchase offers and review requests, triggered by your store events, as our [SMS marketing page](https://getkanal.com/sms) describes.
- **Your segments are your send lists.** Customers, orders and checkouts sync when the app is installed from the Shopify App Store, and each campaign shows the orders it brought in.
- **One app for every channel.** WhatsApp on every plan, and SMS, RCS and iMessage from the Scale plan, so you pick the channel campaign by campaign.

| Kanal plan | Price per month | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Pro | €89 | 1 user, chat widget and inbox, abandoned cart recovery, WhatsApp campaigns |
| Scale | €149 | 5 users, segments, unlimited and advanced automations, Klaviyo integration, SMS, RCS and iMessage |
| Business | €350 | Scale, plus flow setup and optimization by our experts |

_Source: [Kanal pricing](https://getkanal.com/pricing) and [Kanal SMS page](https://getkanal.com/sms), read on November 7, 2026. SMS messages are billed on top of the plan, by destination country and number of segments: we give you the rate for your volumes during a demo._

If you compare the two on your own volumes, count the same segments on each side, then add Twilio's carrier, number and registration fees, and the developer time to build what Kanal already includes. For WhatsApp on Twilio, our [Twilio WhatsApp pricing guide](https://getkanal.com/blog/twilio-whatsapp-pricing) covers the $0.005 per message fee, and our list of [Twilio alternatives](https://getkanal.com/blog/twilio-alternatives) compares the other APIs and apps.

## How do you estimate your own Twilio SMS bill?

1. **Count your segments, not your messages:** 160 plain characters per segment, 70 with an emoji, then 153 or 67 for long texts.
2. **Split them by destination country**, with your Shopify orders report, since a text to France costs almost ten times Twilio's US rate.
3. **Apply Twilio's rate** for each country, and count replies: inbound texts are billed too.
4. **Add US carrier fees** with a blended rate between $0.0035 and $0.005 per outbound segment.
5. **Add the sender:** $1.15 a month per long code, and 10DLC fees ($4.50 or $46 once, $15 per campaign, then $1.50 to $10 a month).
6. **Add the build:** developer time for campaigns, triggers, opt-outs and reporting, or the plan of the tool that provides them.
7. **Compare with a Shopify app** such as [Kanal](https://getkanal.com/pricing), and check the consent rules in our guide to [SMS marketing opt-in](https://getkanal.com/blog/sms-marketing-consent-opt-in).

## Twilio SMS pricing at a glance

| Item | Price on November 7, 2026 | Source |
|---|---|---|
| US SMS, sent or received | $0.0083 per segment | [Twilio pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us) |
| US MMS sent | $0.022 per message | [Twilio pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us) |
| US carrier fees, outbound SMS | $0.0035 (AT&T) to $0.005 (Verizon) per segment | [Twilio pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us) |
| Failed message | $0.001 | [Twilio pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us) |
| Long code number | $1.15 a month | [Twilio pricing page](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/us) |
| A2P 10DLC | $4.50 or $46 once, $15 per campaign, $1.50 to $10 a month | [Twilio help center](https://help.twilio.com/articles/1260803965530-What-pricing-and-fees-are-associated-with-the-A2P-10DLC-service-) |
| SMS to France / UK | $0.0798 / $0.056 per segment | [France](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/fr), [UK](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/gb) |

Twilio's SMS price looks like one number, $0.0083, and works out as five: the segment rate, the carrier fee, the number, the registration and the build. If you run a Shopify store and want SMS and WhatsApp flows without that build, [book a Kanal demo](https://getkanal.com/demo) and we will show them on your store, with the SMS rate for your volumes.

## Frequently asked questions

### How much does Twilio charge per SMS?

In the United States, Twilio charges $0.0083 per SMS segment, sent or received, on long codes, toll-free numbers and short codes, according to its pricing page read on November 7, 2026. US carriers add a fee per segment on top, from $0.0035 (AT&T) to $0.005 (Verizon) for an outbound long code text, and Twilio adds $0.001 for each message that fails.

### What are Twilio's carrier fees?

Carrier fees are charged by US mobile networks for each segment and passed through by Twilio without markup. On a 10DLC long code, an outbound SMS costs $0.0035 more to AT&T, $0.0045 to T-Mobile, $0.005 to Verizon and US Cellular and $0.0042 to other carriers. T-Mobile, AT&T and US Cellular also charge on inbound texts.

### How much does a Twilio phone number cost?

A US long code number costs $1.15 a month and a toll-free number $2.15 a month, or $0.50 a month if you bring your own number. A short code costs $1,000 a month for a random one and $1,500 for a vanity one, billed quarterly, plus a one-time setup fee.

### What does A2P 10DLC registration cost on Twilio?

Twilio's help center lists a one-time brand registration fee of $4.50 for Sole Proprietor and Low Volume Standard brands and $46 for Standard brands, a $15 vetting fee per campaign, then a monthly campaign fee: $10 for a standard campaign, $2 for Sole Proprietor and $1.50 for low-volume mixed use. Twilio passes these carrier fees through at cost.

### How much does Twilio charge for an SMS to France or the UK?

On November 7, 2026, Twilio listed $0.0798 per outbound SMS segment to France and $0.056 to the United Kingdom, with $0.0075 for an inbound text on a local number in either country. Germany was $0.112, Spain $0.0875 and Italy $0.0927.

### Is there an alternative to Twilio for SMS on Shopify?

Yes. Kanal is a Shopify app that sends SMS campaigns and automated texts (abandoned cart, shipping updates, back in stock) from your store data, with WhatsApp on every plan and SMS, RCS and iMessage from the Scale plan at €149 a month. Messages are billed on top by country and segment, and nothing needs to be built on an API.