Pricing — Sends at Cost
Most SMS platforms mark every message up several times over. Linxi does not: messages are billed at the carrier's own rate, and the subscription covers the platform. No plan includes messages; your plan sets how many you can send each month.
What you actually pay
| Item | Telnyx | Twilio | Marked up? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outbound SMS | $0.0040 / msg | $0.0079 / msg | No — carrier cost |
| Outbound MMS | $0.0100 / msg | $0.0200 / msg | No — carrier cost |
| Phone number (managed by Linxi) | $1.50 / month local $2.50 / month toll-free | $2.00 / month local | Yes — a markup over the carrier's $1.15. The first number is included on paid plans. |
| 10DLC registration (US) | Brand: about $4–$4.50 once. Campaign review: $15 per submission. Campaign: $1.50–$10 / month by use case (Telnyx bills the first three months up front). Details | No — carrier pass-through | |
| Number lookup | $0.01 per lookup | Yes — over a $0.008 cost | |
| Adding funds | 2.9% recharge fee, plus card processing | Yes — this is a Linxi fee | |
| Subscription | Free, or $5–$299 / month by plan. Each plan sets a monthly sending limit; none includes messages. | This is the platform fee | |
Why this is different
Per-message markup is where most SMS platforms make their money, which is why the price per message rarely appears next to the plan price. Published rates for comparison:
| Platform | Per SMS | Versus carrier cost |
|---|---|---|
| Linxi (Telnyx) | $0.004 | At cost — no markup |
| SimpleTexting | $0.02 – $0.05 | roughly 5–12× |
| Podium | $0.05+ | roughly 12×+ |
| HubSpot | $0.01 – $0.05 | roughly 2–12× |
| Salesforce (Digital Engagement) | $0.05 – $0.15 | roughly 10–37× |
What it works out to
| Messages / month | Linxi at cost | At $0.02 / msg | You keep |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $4.00 | $20.00 | $16.00 |
| 10,000 | $40.00 | $200.00 | $160.00 |
| 50,000 | $200.00 | $1,000.00 | $800.00 |
No plan includes messages: every message is paid at carrier cost. What your plan sets is a monthly sending limit — 500 on Free, 2,000 on Linxi Number, 5,000 on Linxi Plus, 10,000 on Starter, 50,000 on Pro and 100,000 on Enterprise. When you reach it, sending stops until the next month or until you upgrade; there is no penalty price.
Paid plans also hand part of the subscription back as balance each month: $0.50 on Linxi Number, $2 on Plus, $4 on Starter, $10 on Pro, $20 on Enterprise and $30 on Dedicated.
The middle column is the credit consumed, not the card charge. Adding that credit costs 2.9% more plus card processing: the $40.00 of balance that sends 10,000 messages is $42.39 on your card. The right-hand column is still the right order of magnitude — it is comparing $42.39 against $200.
🔐 Secure Channels
End-to-end encrypted messaging between Linxi accounts, included from Linxi Plus upward at no extra per-message cost. Messages are encrypted in your browser before they are sent and decrypted in the recipient’s. Linxi stores the ciphertext and holds no key that can open it — not for support, not for a subpoena, not by mistake.
| Plan | Secure Channels | Group channels |
|---|---|---|
| Free · Linxi Number | — | — |
| Linxi Plus — $15/mo | ✓ Direct channels | — |
| Starter — $29/mo | ✓ Direct channels | — |
| Pro — $79/mo | ✓ | ✓ |
| Enterprise — $199/mo | ✓ | ✓ |
Encrypted file sharing up to 50MB is included wherever Secure Channels are. Nothing here touches a carrier, so nothing here draws down your balance — a secure message costs the same as not sending one.
How you get billed
Subscription — monthly, in advance
Charged to your card on file through Square. This is the platform fee and the only place Linxi makes a margin on software.
Linxi balance — prepaid, whenever you top up
Every text sent through Linxi’s carrier — campaigns, replies, automations and form messages alike — is charged once from a prepaid balance, at carrier cost, rather than running up a bill. If the balance cannot cover a text, it is not sent. You add funds when you choose to, and the total is shown in full before you pay: the credit you are buying, a 2.9% Linxi recharge fee, and card processing. Under $20 the card processor's 30¢ fixed fee is passed through as well; from $20, it is absorbed.
Nothing renews, no card is kept on file for it, and the credit does not expire.
Numbers — monthly, from your balance
Each number managed by Linxi is charged its monthly price from your balance on the 1st of the month. Your first managed number is included on paid plans; each additional one is charged once a month. Cloud storage and downloads beyond what your plan includes, if any, are charged monthly from your balance.
Watch it as it accrues
Every charge is listed in your balance history as it happens — each text, each number fee and each top-up — so nothing arrives as a surprise at month end.