Overview

Teams can send and receive messages through two-way SMS, MMS, and inbound webhooks. Messaging options include 10DLC, short codes, toll-free numbers, alphanumeric IDs, and global mobile numbers; Bandwidth says these options reach more than 120 countries. This range lets a company choose routes for different campaigns and markets, but charges vary by route and message type, so there is no single outbound rate to use for every workflow.

Registration Center can autofill customer and campaign data for Short Code and 10DLC channels, while traffic monitoring surfaces unregistered traffic and messages blocked by carriers or Bandwidth. Email and webhook alerts make those issues visible to operations teams, though they still need to investigate and respond. RCS is described as coming soon rather than an available registration channel.

Key features

New accounts default to one outbound message per second for testing; A2P traffic can go up to the account limit. That default is a sensible testing constraint, not a production capacity promise. Teams validating high-volume use should establish their account limit before designing traffic plans.

When a webhook endpoint does not return an HTTP 2xx response, Bandwidth retries delivery multiple times over the next 24 hours, then stops. Integrations should handle retries and provide their own recovery path for events that remain undelivered after that window. Bandwidth says it does not store message text and retains only metadata for message queries after successful webhook delivery, a useful boundary for teams limiting retained message content.

Data is encrypted in transit and at rest using protocols including TLS, SIPS, and SRTP. Bandwidth lists SOC 2 Type II compliance and says it meets HIPAA security requirements for eligible services. Messaging customers receive Signature support, with optional Premium packages offering on-call, ongoing assistance. Developer guides cover ServiceNow, Zendesk, and Salesforce, and SDK languages include Node.js, Python, Java, C#, PHP, and Ruby.

Pricing

Bandwidth has no free plan, offers a free trial, and provides custom pricing on request. The listed per-message outbound charges give a starting point for comparing U.S. routes:

U.S. 10DLC SMS outbound: 0.00 USD per once, billed per message. It is the lowest listed SMS charge, but teams still need to confirm whether the route suits their traffic.
U.S. Short code SMS outbound and U.S. Toll-free SMS outbound: each 0.01 USD per once, billed per message.
U.S. 10DLC MMS outbound, U.S. Short code MMS outbound, and U.S. Toll-free MMS outbound: each 0.02 USD per once, billed per message.

The listed prices are route-specific, and custom pricing means buyers should confirm the account terms before estimating broader usage. The free trial is the only no-cost way to evaluate the service; there is no free plan for ongoing use. No seat, quota, or renewal terms are stated.

Platforms

The API is available on API and web platforms. SDKs for six languages give development teams several common options for integrating messaging, but this is an API product rather than a turnkey messaging workspace.

Who it's for

Bandwidth is aimed at companies that have outgrown a one-size-fits-all provider and need global scale and high throughput. It fits teams building SMS or MMS workflows into their applications and operations, especially when they need several sending routes, registration support, and delivery monitoring. It is a weaker fit for buyers seeking a free ongoing tier, a turnkey tool without engineering work, or a production throughput figure they can rely on before confirming account limits.

Pros and cons

Pros: Multiple U.S. and international messaging options support route choices across campaigns and markets.
Pros: Registration Center and traffic alerts help operations teams identify registration and delivery problems.
Pros: Webhook retries, metadata retention after successful delivery, and security and compliance commitments address operational and data-handling concerns.
Cons: There is no free plan, and pricing on request makes total cost harder to establish in advance.
Cons: The one-message-per-second default applies to new-account testing, so high-throughput plans depend on confirming the account limit.
Cons: Webhook retries stop after 24 hours, leaving integrations responsible for handling events that remain undelivered.

Alternatives

Gupshup is worth considering for buyers who want a free plan; its messaging fee is 0.001 USD per message, with WhatsApp fees billed at actuals.

Twilio Segment may suit teams looking for a freemium platform with a free tier that includes 1,000 visitors per month and 500,000 Reverse ETL records per month; it is a distinct alternative to a messaging API. EnableX Video API is for video use cases, with pay-as-you-go pricing per participant per minute and volume discounts at 100,000+ minutes/month. Exotel Contact Center is a contact-center option with a listed XPrime plan at 70.00 USD per month. Webex App is a freemium meetings and collaboration alternative whose free plan allows meetings up to 40 minutes and 100 attendees.

Browse Communications Platforms as a Service, Transactional SMS Software, RCS Messaging Platforms, RCS Business Messaging Software, and SIP Trunking Providers to compare adjacent categories.

Verdict

Choose Bandwidth Messaging API if your company is building SMS and MMS into its systems and needs route flexibility, global reach, and monitoring as traffic grows. Its main advantage is the combination of channel options and operational tooling; its main drawback is that custom pricing and account-specific throughput require confirmation before a serious volume commitment. Look elsewhere if you need a free ongoing plan or turnkey messaging without API integration.

	Bandwidth Messaging API	SMSLink
Free plan	No	No
Free trial	Yes	No
Paid from	—	€0.04/mo
Open source	No	No
Platforms	api, Web	Web
Free plan	No	No
Pay-as-you-go	Yes	—
SMS API	Yes	—
Delivery status	Yes	—
Webhooks	Yes	—
Two-way messaging	Yes	Yes

Bandwidth Messaging API vs SMSLink

Bandwidth Messaging API

SMSLink