MessageBird vs Plivo
Compare MessageBird and Plivo based on observed SMS API performance, features, and pricing
Live performance comparison
Real-world performance data from messages sent through Knock
We don't have enough message volume through Knock for Plivo to publish statistically meaningful benchmarks yet. The data below reflects MessageBird only. Comparison charts will appear once both providers have sufficient data.
| Provider | Message volume | Growth | Status page updates (30d) | Status page updates (90d) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <1M | 7th of 7 ↓ | 2 | 11 |
| — | — | 6 | 15 |
From April 19th to July 16th, Knock routed <1M messages through MessageBird. MessageBird reported 11 status page updates over the last 90 days, while Plivo reported 15.
Response time
Response time measures how long each provider takes to accept an SMS API request from Knock, including connection overhead and any automatic retries. Lower values mean faster message hand-off.
| Provider | Median (p50) | p90 | p95 | p99 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 333ms | 438ms | 464ms | 554ms |
| — | — | — | — |
MessageBird has a median response time (p50) of 333ms, a p90 of 438ms, and a p99 of 554ms from April 19th to July 16th. Comparison charts for Plivo will appear once enough data is available.
Error rate
Error rate tracks the ratio of 5xx responses and timeouts to total SMS API requests. Knock automatically retries failed requests, so transient provider errors rarely affect end-user delivery.
| Provider | Avg. daily error rate | Highest daily rate | Peak error date | Zero-error days | Days above 0.01% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00% | 0.00% | Apr 19 | 80 | 0 |
| — | — | — | — | — |
Averaged across April 19th to July 16th, MessageBird shows a 0.00% daily error rate. Comparison data for Plivo will appear once enough message volume is available. Knock automatically retries failed requests to minimize the impact of transient errors on end-user delivery.
About these metrics: Data represents messages sent through Knock during the specified period. Response time measures time from Knock to provider acceptance. Error rate includes only provider 5xx responses and timeouts.
Recent MessageBird incidents
Recent status page incidents for MessageBird
Started Jul 8, 2026 — Resolved Jul 8, 2026
Jul 9, 00:28 CEST Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Jul 9, 00:10 CEST Identified - The issue has been identified and a fix is being implemented. Jul 8, 22:12 CEST Investigating - We are observing delays in processing of Message & Contact Objects. We are actively investigating the issue The impact is limited to Customers in Bird Box platform, hosted in the us-west-1 region.
Started Jul 5, 2026 — Resolved Jul 5, 2026
Jul 5, 18:12 CEST Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Jul 5, 18:07 CEST Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. Jul 5, 17:50 CEST Investigating - We are seeing a spike in errors in the Journeys logs right now. We are investigating the issue.
Started Jun 12, 2026 — Resolved Jun 12, 2026
Jun 12, 20:22 CEST Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Jun 12, 17:05 CEST Identified - We are continuing to monitor increased WhatsApp message delivery failures caused by ongoing disruptions in Meta’s services, as confirmed by Meta. Jun 12, 16:10 CEST Investigating - We are investigating increased WhatsApp message delivery failures caused by connectivity issues with Meta services. Customers may experience delays or failures when sending WhatsApp messages. Our team is actively mon
Started Jun 4, 2026 — Resolved Jun 4, 2026
Jun 4, 14:02 CEST Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Jun 4, 13:13 CEST Investigating - Flows and Journeys are unable to retrieve the Message Body property for Conversation Messages. We are investigating the issue.
Started Jun 4, 2026 — Resolved Jun 4, 2026
Jun 4, 13:42 CEST Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Jun 4, 11:57 CEST Monitoring - Between 9:30 AM and 9:34 AM UTC, there has been an intermittent increase in delivery latency for messages sent. The issue has been resolved. We are monitoring the situation.
Recent Plivo incidents
Recent status page incidents for Plivo
Ongoing since Jul 17, 2026
THIS IS A SCHEDULED EVENT Jul 17, 18:30 - 20:30 UTC Jul 16, 11:41 UTC Scheduled - Dear Valued Customer, One of our carrier partners will be performing planned maintenance on their network infrastructure. During the maintenance window, customers may experience intermittent call failures for voice calls terminating to India. When is the maintenance? 17th July 2026 18:30 - 17th July 2026 20:30 UTC 17th July 2026 11:30 - 17th July 2026 13:30 PDT What services will be affected? Voice calls te
Started Jul 16, 2026 — Resolved Jul 16, 2026
Jul 16, 20:30 UTC Completed - The scheduled maintenance has been completed. Jul 16, 18:30 UTC In progress - Scheduled maintenance is currently in progress. We will provide updates as necessary. Jul 16, 03:15 UTC Scheduled - Dear Valued Customer, One of our carrier partners will be performing planned maintenance on their network infrastructure. During the maintenance window, customers may experience intermittent call failures for voice calls terminating to India. When is the maintenance?
Started Jul 11, 2026 — Resolved Jul 11, 2026
Jul 11, 09:57 UTC Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Jul 11, 09:32 UTC Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. Jul 11, 07:47 UTC Investigating - Dear Valued Customer, We have identified an issue causing failures for outbound MMS messages sent from Toll-Free numbers (US & Canada). The failures are due to a connectivity issue with an upstream carrier partner, and affected messages are failing to be delivered. SMS traffic and MMS sent over other r
Started Jul 2, 2026 — Resolved Jul 2, 2026
Jul 2, 16:29 UTC Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Jul 2, 13:45 UTC Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. Jul 2, 13:40 UTC Investigating - Dear Valued Customer, We are currently experiencing a full outbound call outage. Our team is actively engaged and working to identify the root cause and restore service as quickly as possible. We will share our next update within 30 minutes, or sooner if there is a material change. For urgent concern
Started Jun 30, 2026 — Resolved Jun 30, 2026
Jun 30, 09:45 UTC Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Jun 30, 09:38 UTC Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. Jun 30, 08:00 UTC Investigating - Dear Valued Customer, We are observing outbound call failures in the India region. Calls from 9180 caller IDs are impacted. All other services are operating normally. We are working with out carrier partners to restore the service.
Pricing comparison
| Provider | Plan | Per message | Monthly cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| MessageBird | Local number | $0.0003 | $31 |
| Plivo | Pay-as-you-go | $0.0077 | $770 |
MessageBird
Bird (formerly MessageBird) publishes per-country rate cards rather than a single headline price. US outbound SMS via local numbers costs $0.00031 per message, with short codes at $0.0009 and toll-free at $0.00147. Carrier surcharges apply on top. International rates vary widely by destination.
Plivo
Pay-as-you-go with no minimums or monthly fees. US outbound SMS costs $0.0077 per message. Inbound messages are $0.0055 each. Volume discounts available for high monthly usage. Carrier surcharges apply on top of the base rate.
US carrier surcharges
All US A2P SMS sent via 10DLC incurs mandatory carrier fees on top of the provider base rate. Most providers pass these through at cost.
| Carrier | Outbound SMS | Inbound SMS |
|---|---|---|
| T-Mobile | $0.0045 | $0.0025 |
| AT&T | $0.003 | $0.003 |
| Verizon | $0.004 | $0.00 |
| US Cellular | $0.005 | $0.00 |
Pros and cons
MessageBird
Plivo
Pros
- Strong global coverage with direct carrier connections in 190+ countries
- Unified API across SMS, WhatsApp, Telegram, and other channels
- Visual flow builder enables non-technical users to create messaging workflows
- Now part of Bird, offering an expanded platform for customer engagement
Pros
- Among the lowest per-message rates with automatic volume discounts
- Familiar API design modeled after Twilio, making migration straightforward
- 99.99% uptime SLA with direct carrier connections to 190+ countries
- Free inbound messages and no monthly minimums or base fees
Cons
- Pricing is published as per-country rate cards rather than simple headline rates, making comparison harder
- Rebranding to Bird has caused some confusion in documentation and branding
- Smaller developer community compared to Twilio
Cons
- Narrower feature set with no native support for WhatsApp or other messaging channels
- Smaller community and fewer third-party tutorials compared to Twilio
- Web dashboard is functional but not polished for managing large number inventories
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between MessageBird and Plivo?
MessageBird (now Bird) is an omnichannel communications platform with global SMS coverage and a unified messaging API. Plivo is a cost-effective communications platform with direct carrier connections, a Twilio-compatible API design, and a 99.99% uptime SLA. MessageBird is best suited for global omnichannel messaging, while Plivo is geared toward cost-effective high-volume sms.
Which is cheaper, MessageBird or Plivo?
Bird (formerly MessageBird) publishes per-country rate cards rather than a single headline price. US outbound SMS via local numbers costs $0.00031 per message, with short codes at $0.0009 and toll-free at $0.00147. Carrier surcharges apply on top. International rates vary widely by destination. Pay-as-you-go with no minimums or monthly fees. US outbound SMS costs $0.0077 per message. Inbound messages are $0.0055 each. Volume discounts available for high monthly usage. Carrier surcharges apply on top of the base rate. The best value depends on your sending volume and destination countries.
Which is faster, MessageBird or Plivo?
Based on real-world data from Knock, MessageBird has a median SMS API response time (p50) of 333ms. We don't yet have enough data for Plivo to make a direct comparison.
Which is more reliable, MessageBird or Plivo?
From April 19th to July 16th, MessageBird showed an error rate of 0.00%. We don't yet have enough data for Plivo to compare reliability directly. Knock automatically retries failed requests to minimize the impact of transient errors.
Which is more popular, MessageBird or Plivo?
On the Knock platform, MessageBird handled <1M messages from April 19th to July 16th. MessageBird is currently seeing declining volume. We don't yet have enough data for Plivo to compare popularity.
Can I use both MessageBird and Plivo together?
Yes. Knock enables you to integrate multiple SMS providers into a single notification workflow. You can use MessageBird and Plivo side by side, route traffic between them, or migrate from one to the other without changing your application code.
What are the main pros and cons of MessageBird vs Plivo?
MessageBird strengths include strong global coverage with direct carrier connections in 190+ countries and unified api across sms, whatsapp, telegram, and other channels. Plivo strengths include among the lowest per-message rates with automatic volume discounts and familiar api design modeled after twilio, making migration straightforward. On the other hand, MessageBird drawbacks include pricing is published as per-country rate cards rather than simple headline rates, making comparison harder, while Plivo drawbacks include narrower feature set with no native support for whatsapp or other messaging channels.
Use either provider with Knock
Knock enables you to integrate MessageBird, Plivo, or any combination of SMS providers into a single notification workflow. Manage templates, orchestrate cross-channel delivery, and switch providers without changing your code.