Plivo vs Telnyx (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Plivo grades higher than Telnyx: 1.8 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Plivo grades higher on the free plan. Telnyx grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Plivo
Voice, SMS and AI voice agent platform billed by usage
Which one is for you
Pick Plivo if
- Fits if you build voice or AI-agent calling into your own product
- Works for developers who want pay-per-use pricing
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want an office phone with extensions and an app
- Tight if you want SMS or WhatsApp, which start at $1,000 a month on Enterprise
- Watch out: pay as you go covers the US and India; 190+ countries need Enterprise
- Watch out: rates are starting prices, so a given country can cost more
Pick Telnyx if
- Fits if you are a developer who wants to put calling and texting into your own product
- Works for teams that want to pay per minute and per message instead of per seat
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want a phone system with desk phones or a per-user plan, as there is none
- Skip it if you have no developer, because setup needs code
- Watch out: monthly cost depends on volume and destination, with carrier fees and taxes on top
- Watch out: short codes cost $1,000 a month, and 800 numbers need a 12-month term at $40 a month after a $500 fee
- Watch out: Growth and Enterprise are minimum spends of $2,000 and $5,000 a month
How we grade them
| 1.8GPAPlivoWeak | 1.6GPATelnyxWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPay as you go has no monthly fee, with per-minute and per-message rates. Enterprise starts at $1,000 a month. | CNumbers start at $1 a month and the rest is per minute or per message, so cost follows volume and has no per-user comparison. Growth needs $2,000 a month of spend and Enterprise $5,000. |
| Free plan and trial | C$10 in free credits with no credit card. It's a credit, not a free plan. | FNo free plan and no trial on record; pay as you go starts at a $0 monthly minimum. |
| Features | DSIP trunking, audio streaming, voice AI agents, SMS and WhatsApp APIs. It's pieces for building on, not an office phone, and SMS and WhatsApp sit on Enterprise. | CNumbers, voice API, SIP trunking, SMS, MMS, WhatsApp and voice AI agents. It is a platform, and there is no ready-made phone system on top. |
| Ease of use | DNo store rating on record. You work with it through APIs and code. | DNo store rating on record. Setup needs development work against its API. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with LiveKit and Pipecat connections. | BWeb console and an API, with 2 integrations on record. No phone or desktop app. |
| Best for | voice and text for developers, billed by use | a developer building voice and messaging into an app |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Plivo and Telnyx. How we grade
Price against what you get
Plivo starts at $1,000 a month and scores 1.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Telnyx starts at $1 a month and scores 2.0.
Telnyx scores higher and starts $999 a month lower. Of the other business phone systems on the chart, 47 score higher than Plivo for less, and none scores higher than Telnyx for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Plivo also covers AI agents.
- Telnyx also covers AI support agent, business phone line and online fax.
At a glance
| Plivo | Telnyx | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Paid |
| Starts at | $1,000 per month for the Enterprise plan; pay as you go has no monthly fee | $1 per phone number / month, plus per-minute and per-message usage |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | $10 in free credits, no credit card required | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Plivo Inc. | Telnyx LLC |
| Price read from | plivo.com | telnyx.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Plivo
- This is a usage-billed API platform, not an office phone system with desks, extensions and a softphone app.
- SMS, WhatsApp and the Verify API are Enterprise-only, which starts at $1,000 per month.
- Pay as you go lists coverage in the United States and India only; 190+ countries need Enterprise.
- Per-minute and per-message rates are listed as starting prices, so the rate for a given country can be higher.
Telnyx
- It is an API platform: there is no ready-made desk phone system or per-user plan, so setup needs development work.
- Voice, SMS and number charges are per use, so monthly cost depends on volume and destination, with carrier fees and taxes on top.
- The Growth plan needs $2,000 a month of spend and Enterprise $5,000; both are minimums rather than flat fees.
- Short codes cost $1,000 a month and 800 numbers need a 12-month term at $40 a month after a $500 one-time fee.
Key features
Plivo
- SIP trunking
- Carrier trunks for inbound and outbound calls, listed from $0.0010 a minute outbound and $0.0028 a minute inbound, with secure trunking and call recording as add-ons.
- Audio streaming
- Streams live call audio to your own software, with noise cancellation as an add-on; the pricing page names LiveKit and Pipecat as supported frameworks.
- Voice AI agents
- Hosted voice agents at $0.03 a minute before telephony, with a builder, simulation testing, transfer to a human and a knowledge base included.
- SMS and Verify API
- Business texting and one-time-passcode verification, available on the Enterprise plan, with messages listed from $0.0077 each.
- WhatsApp API
- Messages and calls through the WhatsApp Business API, listed from $0.0034 a message and $0.0040 a minute, on the Enterprise plan only.
Telnyx
- Phone numbers
- Local, toll-free and international numbers from one inventory, with voice and SMS on the same line. Adding SMS and MMS to a number costs $0.10 a month.
- Voice API and SIP trunking
- Programmable calling billed per minute, with SIP trunking rates from $0.0032 a minute, plus recording, conferencing and call transfer as options.
- SMS, MMS and WhatsApp
- Messaging is priced per message part, from $0.004 for SMS, plus carrier fees. WhatsApp calling on a Telnyx number is listed from $0.0025 a minute.
- Voice AI agents
- AI voice agents combine orchestration, speech to text and text to speech in one per-minute rate, listed from $0.05 a minute.
- Carrier network
- Telnyx describes itself as a licensed carrier on its own backbone, with voice and number coverage in 130+ countries.
Plans
Plivo
Pay as you go$0
Billed by use: coverage in the US and India, SIP trunking, audio streaming, AI agents and numbers, up to $2,500 of monthly usage.
Enterprise$1,000
per month and up
190+ countries, SMS, WhatsApp and Verify API, shortcodes, custom sender IDs, BAA, HIPAA and SSO, with custom pricing and volume discounts.
Telnyx
Pay as you go$0
per month minimum, with usage billed per use
Every product at its published rate with no minimum spend and no platform fee. Local and toll-free numbers start at $1 a month.
Growth$2,000
per month minimum spend
15% off voice, messaging and numbers, plus automatic volume discounts as usage grows. Other products stay at published rates.
Enterprise$5,000
per month minimum spend
Custom contracts, custom rates and dedicated support at volume. Sold through sales.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Plivo or Telnyx?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Telnyx is cheaper to start with: $1 a month, against $1,000 a month for Plivo. Plivo starts at $1,000 per month for the Enterprise plan; pay as you go has no monthly fee, and Telnyx starts at $1 per phone number / month, plus per-minute and per-message usage.
Which has a free plan, Plivo or Telnyx?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Plivo nor Telnyx has a free plan. Plivo has a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.