How TextScaleHQ compares
Most SMS platforms buy texts from a carrier and sell them to you at a markup. TextScaleHQ charges for the software and you pay your carrier directly. Pick a platform to see what that difference comes to.
Pick one to compare
Prices are the platforms’ own list prices for US texts, checked October 2026.
- How they charge for texts
- Monthly credit plans
- Price
- From $29/mo for 500 texts, plus carrier fees
- A good fit for
- Small teams who want two-way texting and an app
- How they charge for texts
- Plans by list size, each with 500 texts, then per text
- Price
- From $25/mo plus a $5 telecom fee, then 4¢ a text
- A good fit for
- Teams that want a shared inbox, workflows and RCS
- How they charge for texts
- Monthly credit plans
- Price
- From $29/mo for 500 texts, plus carrier fees
- A good fit for
- Shops that want workflows like abandoned-cart texts
- How they charge for texts
- Pay as you go, or bring your own Twilio
- Price
- 4.9¢ a text pay-as-you-go; 1¢ a text on your own Twilio
- A good fit for
- Teams that also want email, chat and voice
- How they charge for texts
- Monthly credit plans; replies use credits too
- Price
- From $25/mo for 500 credits, plus carrier fees
- A good fit for
- Sales teams texting and calling one to one
- How they charge for texts
- Per text, at cost
- Price
- 0.83¢ a text plus carrier fees, no app
- A good fit for
- Developers who will build their own sending tool
Month one looks similar. Month twelve doesn't.
The real cost of an SMS platform isn't the sticker price. It's what expires, what gets metered, and what costs extra once your business is already running on it.
| What matters | Bundled SMS platforms | TextScaleHQ |
|---|---|---|
| Messages you didn't send | On monthly plans, roll over a month at most, then expire. Salesmsg’s don’t roll over at all. | Nothing to expire. You never buy messages from us. |
| A busier month than usual | Extra texts at their rate: 5.5¢ each on SimpleTexting’s $29 plan | Same flat fee. Twilio bills you at cost. |
| Opening a second location | Extra numbers at $10/mo on SimpleTexting; EZ Texting sub-accounts start on its $125 plan | Two on Starter. Five on Growth. Unlimited on Pro. Paused ones don't count. |
| Deciding to leave | No refunds on fees already paid, under EZ Texting’s and SlickText’s terms | Cancel anytime. 30-day trial before you pay at all. |
| Who owns the phone number | Often they do. EZ Texting’s terms let it refuse to port your number out. | You do, from day one — your Twilio, your numbers, your registration, your history. |
| Planning next month's texts | Their AI drafts text ideas from a prompt you type | AI Promo plans weeks of texts from your offers, up to a year on Pro. You approve every text. |
Sources, checked October 2026: SimpleTexting rollover, SimpleTexting pricing, Salesmsg pricing, EZ Texting managed accounts, EZ Texting terms, SlickText terms, SimpleTexting AI Assist.
How we compare
We use each platform’s public prices for US texts on monthly billing. No discounts or quotes.
Software, texts, carrier fees and the phone number, on both sides.
Every page says where each number came from and when we last checked it.
Each page has a section on when the other platform is the better pick.
Questions
Which SMS marketing platform is cheapest?
It depends on how many texts you send. Under a few hundred texts a month, a small credit plan is usually cheapest. Above that, paying your carrier directly (Twilio or Vonage) plus a flat software fee usually costs less than credit plans like SimpleTexting’s, because nobody marks up each text. Using Twilio with no app at all is cheaper still, if you can build your own sending tool.
What does BYOC mean?
Bring your own carrier. You open your own Twilio or Vonage account, and the SMS software connects to it. The carrier bills you for texts at its own price, and the number stays in your account.
Do your comparisons include carrier fees?
Yes, on both sides. Every total includes the per-text carrier fees that US carriers charge, the cost of the phone number and the software fee.
Why should I trust a comparison you wrote?
You shouldn’t take it on trust. Every page lists where each price came from and the date we checked it, and says where the other platform is the better choice.
SimpleTexting, EZ Texting, SlickText, Textmagic, Salesmsg, Twilio and Vonage are trademarks of their owners. TextScaleHQ isn’t affiliated with or endorsed by any of them. Prices come from each company’s public website and may have changed since we checked.