Twilio A2P 10DLC Carrier Fees Explained

A2P 10DLC (Application-to-Person 10-digit long code) is the US carrier industry's system for regulating business SMS. When you send SMS via Twilio using a 10DLC number, US mobile carriers (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon) charge a per-message surcharge on top of Twilio's base rate. As of 2024, this surcharge is approximately $0.003 per message. It's separate from Twilio's $0.0079/message base rate and is passed through by Twilio — you pay both.

Why is sending SMS to AT&T more expensive than T-Mobile?

Historically, AT&T and Verizon charged higher A2P 10DLC carrier fees than T-Mobile. In practice, the surcharges have converged closer to $0.003/message across all major US carriers as of 2024. However, rates can vary and Twilio updates these periodically. Check your Twilio console for the most current carrier surcharge table for each carrier.

Are there cheaper SMS alternatives to Twilio for bulk sending?

For high-volume bulk SMS, alternatives like Bandwidth, Telnyx, and Plivo often have lower base rates than Twilio. However, all US A2P 10DLC messages carry carrier surcharges regardless of provider — this is a carrier-level fee, not a Twilio-specific one. The A2P 10DLC registration process is also required regardless of provider, costing $4/brand + $10–$15/month per campaign.

How much does it cost to send 10,000 SMS messages via Twilio?

At Twilio's rates: base cost = 10,000 × $0.0079 = $79. Carrier surcharges = 10,000 × $0.003 = $30. Total ≈ $109 for 10,000 messages, or about $0.0109/message all-in. This assumes all messages go to US numbers. International SMS rates vary significantly by destination country.

Twilio SMS Cost Calculator

Calculate your real Twilio SMS costs. See Twilio's base rate plus A2P 10DLC carrier surcharges from AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon — the hidden fees that make bulk SMS more expensive than advertised.

Number of SMS Messages

Enter a bid/price to see the fee breakdown.

Frequently asked questions

Twilio SMS Cost Calculator — Base Rate + A2P 10DLC Carrier Surcharges

Twilio advertises $0.0079 per SMS, but the real cost is higher once carrier surcharges are added. Every business SMS sent via Twilio to a US number incurs an A2P 10DLC carrier surcharge (~$0.003/message) from AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon. That brings your true per-message cost to approximately $0.0109. At 50,000 messages/month, that $0.003 surcharge adds up to $150 in unexpected carrier fees. This calculator shows the real total.

Base + carrier fee breakdown

See Twilio's $0.0079/message base rate and the ~$0.003 A2P 10DLC carrier surcharge shown separately and as a total.

Scale your estimate

Enter any message volume from hundreds to millions to see your full monthly SMS cost for budget planning.

No surprises at invoice time

Understand your true cost before launching an SMS campaign — carrier surcharges have tripped up many marketing teams expecting Twilio's headline rate.

For large-scale SMS campaigns, factor the all-in per-message cost ($0.0109) into your CAC and ROI calculations — not Twilio's advertised $0.0079. For truly high volumes (1M+ messages/month), contact Twilio sales for volume pricing or evaluate alternatives like Bandwidth or Telnyx.

Fee rates verified and updated April 2026. Rates may change — verify directly with the platform before transacting.