RCS messaging pricing you can actually read.
Free software. No monthly platform fee. Transparent, usage-based US rates. Carrier surcharges, TCR and Aegis vetting passed through at cost, never marked up.
No contract, cancel anytime. Keep your numbers: we port them for you. No overlap charge while you run your old provider in parallel.
Each table shows when it was last verified; see what changed.
New to RCS billing? Rich, Rich Media and conversation pricing, explained. How RCS billing works →
Carrier surcharges, registry fees, and taxes are passed through at cost on their own lines, every rate is published below.
SimplyRCS pricing works the way it should: the software is free, no per-seat license, no feature tiers, no monthly platform fee. You pay for the messages you send and the numbers you keep, and RCS Sender ID setup and review is a one-time $250 support service. The app, API, bots, inbox, analytics and email support come free with every account. Messages are $0.0039 for an SMS or an RCS text with reply buttons, and $0.0150 for an RCS card, carousel or media message, or an MMS, the same rate inbound and outbound. Senders that chat can pay per conversation instead: $0.05 covers every message in a 24-hour conversation, plus the carrier’s conversation fee. How RCS billing works › Our US messaging rates run well below the big CPaaS providers, and every price is published below, not hidden behind a sales call. You get the whole RCS business messaging platform, not a messaging tier. Agencies add one verified RCS Agent per client brand.
The unavoidable carrier and regulatory costs, carrier surcharges, TCR campaign registration, and Aegis sender vetting, are passed through at cost and shown as separate line items. We never mark them up. That means the price you model is the price you pay, and you can compare us line-for-line against Twilio RCS pricing, Sinch, or Infobip without decoding a quote. If the question is which providers charge no platform fee at all, the usage-based RCS providers compared answers it line by line, and who files Google verification and 10DLC for you covers the other fixed cost of a launch. The registry fees in the tables below are explained in what 10DLC is. Want to see how a real bill is built, line by line, including the taxes nobody else explains? Read how your bill works › AI Assistant credits are billed separately (near cost). Email support is free on every account; Premium Support adds a dedicated account manager for $250 a month.
Send & receive rates
Roughly half the published list rates of the big CPaaS platforms, and an RCS text with reply buttons costs the same as an SMS. RCS Rich (text, reply buttons, call and browser links) is billed per 160-byte segment; RCS Rich Media (any card or carousel, image, video or file) per message; conversation pricing covers every message in a 24-hour conversation for $0.05. Same rate inbound and outbound, with automatic SMS/MMS fallback at the same rates. How each RCS message type is decided is explained under How RCS billing works, below.
| Message type | Send | Receive |
|---|---|---|
| SMS | $0.0039 | $0.0039 |
| RCS Rich (per segment) | $0.0039 | $0.0039 |
| MMS | $0.0150 | $0.0150 |
| RCS Rich Media | $0.0150 | $0.0150 |
| RCS device check | $0.0004 | – |
| RCS conversation (24 hours) | $0.05 | Included |
Last verified 29 September 2026. What changed
Sending identities
Pick the sending identity that fits. RCS Sender IDs have no monthly fee; setup and review is a one-time $250 support service, waived with Premium Support (see Support below); carrier vetting and activation (Aegis $200/yr + T-Mobile $500) are listed under RCS sender fees below. Call forwarding is billed at $0.01/min.
| Number type | Monthly | One-time setup |
|---|---|---|
| Local number (10DLC) | $0.50/mo | $0.50 |
| Toll-free number | $0.50/mo | $0.50 |
| Short code | $500/mo | $500 |
| Vanity short code | $1,000/mo | $1,000 |
| RCS Sender ID | $0/mo | $250 (support) |
Last verified June 2026. What changed
10DLC, toll-free & short code carrier fees
Set by the carriers, not by us. Everyone sending business messaging pays them; we pass them through with no markup. These SMS and MMS rates are the same whether you send from a 10DLC local number, a toll-free number, or a short code. RCS is billed on its own schedule, in the next table. Current US 2026 rates. Verizon SMS is $0.0050 from 1 October 2026 (was $0.0045).
| Carrier | SMS · out | SMS · in | MMS · out | MMS · in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AT&T | $0.0035 | $0.0035 | $0.0090 | $0.0090 |
| T-Mobile | $0.0045 | $0.0025 | $0.0100 | $0.0100 |
| Verizon | $0.0050 | - | $0.0070 | - |
| US Cellular | $0.0050 | $0.0025 | $0.0100 | $0.0100 |
Last verified June 2026; Verizon updated for 1 October 2026. What changed
RCS carrier fees
RCS is billed on a separate carrier surcharge schedule from SMS and MMS. Rich (text, reply buttons, call and browser links) is charged per 160-byte segment; Rich Media (any card or carousel, image, video or file, and map, calendar or in-app browser buttons) per message; the conversation fee applies to senders on conversation pricing, once per 24-hour conversation. Passed through at cost, no markup. Current US 2026 rates. Verizon RCS text is $0.0050 from 1 October 2026 (was $0.0045).
| Carrier | RCS rich · out | RCS rich · in | RCS rich media · out | RCS rich media · in | RCS conversation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AT&T | $0.0045 | $0.0045 | $0.0100 | $0.0100 | $0.03 |
| T-Mobile | $0.0062 | $0.0025 | $0.0125 | $0.0125 | $0.06 |
| Verizon | $0.0050 | $0.0000 | $0.0070 | $0.0000 | $0.009 |
| US Cellular | $0.0062 | $0.0025 | $0.0135 | $0.0135 | – |
| All other carriers | $0.0045 | $0.0045 | $0.0100 | $0.0100 | – |
Last verified 29 September 2026. What changed
Pay per conversation
For senders that chat. Instead of paying per message, pay once per conversation: when 4 messages are exchanged within 24 hours, at least 2 from the customer, one charge covers every message in that 24-hour window, cards and media included. Cheaper for support chats and bots, dearer for short exchanges, and chosen per sender. Carrier conversation fees are passed through at cost.
| Carrier | SimplyRCS | Carrier fee | Per conversation |
|---|---|---|---|
| AT&T | $0.05 | $0.03 | $0.08 |
| T-Mobile | $0.05 | $0.06 | $0.11 |
| Verizon | $0.05 | $0.009 | $0.059 |
Last verified 29 September 2026. What changed
TCR fees
The Campaign Registry charges for brand registration and per-campaign use cases. We handle registration and pass these through at cost.
| Item | Frequency | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Brand registration | One-time | $4.50 |
| DCA campaign vetting (toll-free & local) | One-time | $15.00 |
| Campaign · standard use cases | Monthly | $10.00 |
| Campaign · low-volume mixed | Monthly | $1.50 |
| Campaign · sole proprietor | Monthly | $2.00 |
| Campaign · charity / non-profit | Monthly | $3.00 |
| Campaign · emergency | Monthly | $5.00 |
| Campaign · agents & franchises | Monthly | $30.00 |
| Campaign · political | Monthly | $10.00 |
| Standard vetting (Aegis / WMC) | One-time | $41.50 |
| Enhanced vetting (Aegis) | One-time | $101.50 |
| Political vetting (Aegis) | One-time | $66.00 |
Last verified June 2026. What changed
RCS sender fees
Getting an RCS Sender live requires carrier vetting and activation. We handle it and pass these through at cost.
| Item | Frequency | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Aegis Sender Review, required to send RCS | Annual · per sender | $200.00 |
| T-Mobile Sender Activation | One-time · per sender | $500.00 |
Last verified June 2026. What changed
Short code carrier fees
One-time carrier setup or migration fees for short codes, passed through at cost.
| Carrier | Type | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| T-Mobile | Setup / migration | $500 |
| Verizon | Migration | $250 |
| Claro | Setup / migration | $150 |
Last verified June 2026. What changed
How RCS billing works
Every US RCS message is Rich or Rich Media, decided by what it contains. Rich, $0.0039 per segment: text, reply buttons, a call button and links that open the browser. Rich Media, $0.0150 per message: any card or carousel, image, video or file, and map, calendar or in-app browser buttons. Customer replies are billed the same way, taps on call and link buttons are free, each device check is $0.0004, and chat-heavy senders can pay per conversation instead: $0.05 for every message in a 24-hour conversation. See every element and worked examples › Carrier fees by carrier, with their change history and a CSV, are on US RCS and SMS carrier fees.
Add agentic AI
AI builds your bots, generates RCS card art, and runs conversations, metered as credits. Credits flex across models, so simple bots cost less and complex reasoning more. The platform itself is free on every plan.
- Messaging at the rates above
- Buy AI credits anytime
- Full builder + API
- ~1,500 AI conversations / mo
- ~400 AI-generated images / mo
- Advanced agentic workflows
Support plans
Every account gets free email support, and we file your brand, 10DLC and toll-free registrations whichever plan you choose. RCS Sender ID setup and review is a one-time $250 per sender, waived with Premium Support. Premium Support is optional and adds a dedicated expert who works on your program with you. Compare support plans ›
- Email support, answered within 1 business day
- Registrations filed for you: brand, 10DLC and toll-free
- RCS Sender ID setup and review: $250 one-time per sender (waived with Premium)
- Answer library, billing guide and API docs
- Dedicated account manager, expert in RCS, short code, toll-free and 10DLC
- RCS sender ID and design help: profile, rich cards and carousels
- Campaign QA on real phones before launch
- Strategy sessions and compliance consultation
- Shared Slack channel with our team and developers
- Installation on your own network
- Customization and integration work
- Scoped and priced per project
What this costs in practice
Three illustrative scenarios, we estimate your exact lines before you commit. For the market-wide picture rather than ours, see how much RCS costs and RCS pricing by provider, or model your own volume with the free RCS tools.
Pass-through lines are itemized on your invoice, never marked up.
Quoted before you commit, never buried in your bill.
What changed in our pricing
- 1 October 2026. Verizon’s SMS and RCS text surcharge rose from $0.0045 to $0.0050, passed through at cost.
- 30 September 2026. RCS Sender ID setup and review ($250 one-time) became a support service, waived with Premium Support; Premium Support has no setup fee.
- 29 September 2026. RCS moved to the US Rich and Rich Media model: Rich billed per 160-byte segment, any card or carousel billed as Rich Media, $0.0004 device checks, and optional conversation pricing at $0.05 per 24-hour conversation. See how RCS billing works.
- 27 September 2026. The $250 monthly RCS agent fee was removed. There is no monthly platform or agent fee.
Pricing questions, answered.
How much does RCS business messaging cost per message?
SimplyRCS charges $0.0039 per RCS Rich message segment (text, reply buttons, call and browser links) and $0.0150 per RCS Rich Media message (any card or carousel, image, video or file), the same rate inbound and outbound. Carrier surcharges are passed through at cost on their own line: SMS and MMS surcharges run roughly $0.0035 to $0.0050 per message, and RCS is billed on its own carrier schedule at roughly $0.0045 to $0.0062 per Rich segment and $0.0070 to $0.0135 per Rich Media message, depending on the carrier. The platform itself is free and there is no monthly platform fee: RCS Sender ID setup and review is a one-time $250 support service, waived with Premium Support, with carrier vetting and activation passed through at cost.
Is there a contract or monthly minimum?
No, no contracts, no monthly minimums. Pay for what you use, cancel anytime.
Can I keep my numbers if I switch to SimplyRCS?
Yes. We port your long codes, toll-free numbers and short codes, re-file your 10DLC brand and campaigns and submit your RCS sender for you. Long codes and toll-free numbers carry no carrier migration fee; short-code migrations carry carrier-set fees, passed through at cost. Both providers can run in parallel during the cutover, and we charge nothing for the overlap.
Is there a monthly fee for an RCS sender?
No. There is no monthly agent fee. RCS Sender ID setup and review, where we build your sender, review your brand and use case and take it through carrier approval, is a one-time $250 support service, and carrier vetting and activation are passed through at cost. The app, API, bots, inbox, analytics and email support are free on every account.
What does Premium Support include?
Premium Support is optional: $250 a month, with no setup fee and RCS Sender ID setup and review waived. You get a dedicated account manager, hands-on help building your RCS sender ID, design help for your sender profile, rich cards and carousels, campaign QA on real phones, strategy sessions, compliance consultation across RCS, short code, toll-free and 10DLC, and a Slack channel with our developers. Every account gets free email support, answered within one business day.
Does SimplyRCS charge a platform fee, or only usage-based rates?
There is no platform, software, seat, API or monthly agent fee. SimplyRCS bills usage-based messaging at $0.0039 per SMS or RCS Rich segment and $0.0150 per MMS or RCS Rich Media message, with carrier and registry fees passed through at cost, plus one-time setup for the numbers you add and a one-time $250 RCS Sender ID setup and review, a support service. Premium Support, a dedicated account manager, is optional at $250 a month. There are no contracts, monthly minimums or feature tiers, so a brand with one verified sender pays for what it sends.
What am I charged when an RCS message falls back to SMS?
Fallback is automatic and billed at the same published SMS/MMS rates, no penalty, no separate fallback fee.
What are carrier surcharges and registry fees?
Per-message fees the carriers charge for business traffic, and registration fees set by The Campaign Registry. Every provider pays them; we pass them through at cost on their own lines. RCS has its own carrier fee schedule, separate from SMS and MMS, including a conversation fee for senders on conversation pricing, so both are published as their own tables. The 10DLC, toll-free and short code surcharges are the same as each other.
What is RCS business messaging pricing on SimplyRCS?
RCS business messaging pricing on SimplyRCS is usage-based: $0.0039 per RCS Rich segment (text with reply buttons, call and browser links), $0.0150 per RCS Rich Media message (any card, carousel or media), $0.0004 per device check, and $0.05 per 24-hour conversation for senders on conversation pricing, the same rates inbound and outbound, with no monthly agent fee: RCS Sender ID setup and review is a one-time $250 support service, waived with Premium Support, and the app, API, bots, inbox, analytics and email support are free. Carrier surcharges, TCR registration and Aegis vetting are passed through at cost on their own lines. There is no platform fee, no per-seat licence and no feature tier.
What does the API cost, and is there separate SMS API pricing?
The API is included. The same published rates apply whether a message is sent from the app or the API: $0.0039 per SMS or RCS Rich segment, $0.0150 per MMS or RCS Rich Media message, $0.0004 per device check, plus carrier fees at cost. There is no API access fee, no per-request charge, no developer tier and no monthly agent fee.
What does 10DLC cost?
The registry fees, passed through at cost: $4.50 one-time for brand registration, $15 one-time for campaign vetting, then a monthly campaign fee by type from $1.50 (low-volume mixed) to $10 (standard use cases) and $30 (agents and franchises), with optional Aegis vetting at $41.50 or $101.50. The full schedule is in the TCR table above, and the 10DLC local number itself is $0.50 a month.
What makes an RCS message Rich or Rich Media?
In the US every RCS message is billed as one of two types, decided by what it contains. Text with reply buttons, a call button and links that open the phone’s browser is Rich, billed per 160-byte segment. Any rich card or carousel, even one without a picture, any image, video, audio or file, and any map, calendar or in-app browser button make it Rich Media, billed per message.
Can I pay per conversation instead of per message?
Yes, with conversation pricing. Once 4 messages are exchanged within 24 hours, at least 2 from the customer, one $0.05 charge plus the carrier’s conversation fee covers every message in that 24-hour window, cards and media included. It suits chat and support; alerts and campaigns are cheaper per message. Each sender is set up one way or the other.
What is the RCS device check charge?
Before sending RCS, SimplyRCS checks that the phone can receive it and falls back to SMS or MMS if not. Each check is $0.0004, charged when a check runs.
Will taxes apply?
Messaging is a telecom service, so federal USF, state and local communications taxes, and E911 can apply. We estimate them up front and reconcile exact amounts on your invoice.
What you’d pay vs Twilio
Enter your current Twilio usage, SMS, RCS, MMS, voice, and numbers, and see your SimplyRCS savings. Get a proposal PDF emailed with your contact info. For the feature-by-feature version, read SimplyRCS vs Twilio.
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