MessageBird vs Telnyx
Compare MessageBird and Telnyx based on observed SMS API performance, features, and pricing
Live performance comparison
Real-world performance data from messages sent through Knock
| Provider | Message volume | Growth | Status page updates (30d) | Status page updates (90d) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <1M | 7th of 7 → | 8 | 12 |
| <1M | 3rd of 7 ↑ | 70 | 180 |
From July 9th to October 7th, Knock routed <1M messages through MessageBird and <1M through Telnyx. MessageBird reported 12 status page updates over the last 90 days, while Telnyx reported 180.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 249ms | 324ms | 345ms | 374ms |
| 480ms | 795ms | 886ms | 1122ms |
The chart above shows each provider's daily median response time (p50) from July 9th to October 7th. The top-line number is an average of these daily values: MessageBird averaged 249ms compared to 480ms for Telnyx. MessageBird's highest daily p50 was 353ms; Telnyx's was 704ms This peak coincided with a major incident reported on Telnyx's status page (Edge Compute StatefulActor deploys and invocations degraded).. MessageBird is 231ms faster at the median, which can add up at high volumes.
The 90th percentile (p90) captures the slowest 10% of requests, revealing how each provider handles moderate stress. Averaged across all days, MessageBird has a p90 of 324ms compared to 795ms for Telnyx. The highest daily p90 was 376ms for MessageBird and 1038ms for Telnyx. MessageBird handles these slower requests 471ms faster, suggesting more consistent performance across the board.
The 99th percentile (p99) represents the long tail — the slowest 1% of requests. Averaged across all days, MessageBird reached 374ms at p99 while Telnyx reached 1122ms. The highest daily p99 was 502ms for MessageBird and 3509ms for Telnyx, indicating the worst-case response time during spikes or provider-side congestion. MessageBird shows a tighter tail, which may matter for time-sensitive SMS notifications like one-time passwords or real-time alerts where even rare delays can impact user experience.
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% | Jul 9 | 80 | 0 |
| 0.02% | 0.55% | Aug 10 | 78 | 13 |
Averaged across the date range, MessageBird shows a 0.00% daily error rate compared to 0.02% for Telnyx. The highest single-day error rate was 0.00% for MessageBird and 0.55% for Telnyx. Both providers show similar reliability levels, with error rates well within acceptable thresholds. Knock automatically retries failed requests to both providers, minimizing 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 Oct 5, 2026 — Resolved Oct 5, 2026
Oct 5, 21:12 CEST Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Oct 5, 21:11 CEST Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. Oct 5, 20:40 CEST Identified - The issue has been identified and a fix is being implemented. Oct 5, 20:18 CEST Investigating - We are currently investigating an increase in 5xx errors and delayed email deliveries. Please note: There is no impact to our Marketing Platform or SparkPost APIs.
Started Oct 4, 2026 — Resolved Oct 4, 2026
Oct 4, 18:13 CEST Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Oct 4, 17:41 CEST Monitoring - The situation has improved since 3:30 PM UTC. We are monitoring the services. Oct 4, 17:27 CEST Investigating - Since 2:55 PM UTC, we are experiencing increased latency with our SMS service (API, SMPP, Mail to SMS). We are investigating the issue and will provide an update as soon as we have more information.
Started Sep 26, 2026 — Resolved Sep 26, 2026
Sep 26, 18:17 CEST Resolved - Thank you for your patience. We are seeing a full recovery. No more errors are being returned, and all queues have caught up. Sep 26, 18:11 CEST Monitoring - We are monitoring the systems while they recover. All errors have stopped and all queues are recovering. Sep 26, 18:06 CEST Identified - We have found the cause of the issue cycling the bad instances. Recovery expected soon. Sep 26, 17:59 CEST Investigating - We are investigating an issue with the US
Started Sep 21, 2026 — Resolved Sep 21, 2026
Sep 21, 23:36 CEST Resolved - This incident has been resolved. Sep 21, 23:30 CEST Monitoring - A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. Sep 21, 21:09 CEST Identified - We have identified the issue and are testing a fix. We expect logs to be available again with in an hour. Sep 21, 20:13 CEST Update - The current failure is in log retrieval not flow runs. Flows are running with out impact. Logs are failing to load upon request. Sep 21, 20:12 CEST Update - We are
Started Sep 18, 2026 — Resolved Sep 18, 2026
Sep 19, 01:23 CEST Resolved - This incident is resolved. Processing has returned to normal latency across affected services in our US region, and operations that did not complete during the affected window have been replayed. Sep 19, 00:40 CEST Monitoring - The upstream fault has cleared and processing has returned to normal latency across affected services in our US region. A subset of operations did not complete during the affected window, and we are replaying those now. We are continuing
Recent Telnyx incidents
Recent status page incidents for Telnyx
Started Oct 7, 2026 — Resolved Oct 7, 2026
Status: Resolved Message processing has returned to normal, and all queued messages have been delivered. SMS messages sent over 10DLC long code numbers to AT&T subscribers continue being delivered without delay after monitoring period. Affected components NORAM (Operational)
Started Oct 7, 2026 — Resolved Oct 7, 2026
Status: Complete Maintenance has completed Affected components Europe (Operational) Middle East (Operational)
Started Oct 7, 2026 — Resolved Oct 7, 2026
Status: Complete Maintenance has completed Affected components Sydney, Australia (Operational) Ashburn, VA (Operational) London, UK (Operational) Amsterdam, Netherlands (Operational) Chennai, India (Operational) Frankfurt, Germany (Operational) Melbourne, Australia (Operational) Montreal, Canada (Operational) Toronto, Canada (Operational) San Jose, CA (Operational) Chicago, IL (Operational) Dubai, UAE (Operational) Mumbai, India (Operational)
Started Oct 7, 2026 — Resolved Oct 7, 2026
Status: Complete Maintenance has completed Affected components Australia (Operational) Europe (Operational) US (Operational) Europe (Operational) US (Operational) Australia (Operational) Middle East (Operational) Middle East (Operational)
Ongoing since Oct 7, 2026
Status: In progress Maintenance has started Affected components Amsterdam, Netherlands (Under maintenance) Chennai, India (Under maintenance) Melbourne, Australia (Under maintenance) Mumbai, India (Under maintenance) San Jose, CA (Under maintenance) Chicago, IL (Under maintenance) London, UK (Under maintenance) Frankfurt, Germany (Under maintenance) Dubai, UAE (Under maintenance) Montreal, Canada (Under maintenance) Sydney, Australia (Under maintenance) Toronto, Canada (U
Pricing comparison
| Provider | Plan | Per message | Monthly cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| MessageBird | Local number | $0.0003 | $31 |
| Telnyx | Pay-as-you-go | $0.004 | $400 |
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.
Telnyx
No free tier. Outbound SMS to US numbers costs $0.004 per message. Inbound messages are $0.004 each. Phone numbers start at $1.00/month for local numbers. Carrier surcharges are passed through at cost with no markup.
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
Telnyx
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 for US domestic SMS
- Private IP network provides lower latency than providers using the public internet
- Transparent, pay-as-you-go pricing with no monthly minimums
- Strong developer experience with well-documented APIs and SDKs
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
- Smaller community and ecosystem compared to Twilio
- No free trial credits for new accounts
- Feature set is narrower than full-suite platforms like Twilio
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between MessageBird and Telnyx?
MessageBird (now Bird) is an omnichannel communications platform with global SMS coverage and a unified messaging API. Telnyx is a developer-first communications platform with competitive pricing and a private IP network for reliable SMS delivery. MessageBird is best suited for global omnichannel messaging, while Telnyx is geared toward cost-effective developer sms.
Which is cheaper, MessageBird or Telnyx?
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. No free tier. Outbound SMS to US numbers costs $0.004 per message. Inbound messages are $0.004 each. Phone numbers start at $1.00/month for local numbers. Carrier surcharges are passed through at cost with no markup. The best value depends on your sending volume and destination countries.
Which is faster, MessageBird or Telnyx?
Based on real-world data from Knock, MessageBird has a median SMS API response time (p50) of 249ms compared to 480ms for Telnyx.
Which is more reliable, MessageBird or Telnyx?
From July 9th to October 7th, MessageBird showed an error rate of 0.00% while Telnyx showed 0.02%. Both rates are within acceptable thresholds for production SMS delivery, and Knock automatically retries failed requests to minimize the impact of transient errors.
Which is more popular, MessageBird or Telnyx?
On the Knock platform, MessageBird handled <1M messages from July 9th to October 7th compared to <1M for Telnyx. MessageBird volume has remained stable, while Telnyx is trending upward.
Can I use both MessageBird and Telnyx together?
Yes. Knock enables you to integrate multiple SMS providers into a single notification workflow. You can use MessageBird and Telnyx 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 Telnyx?
MessageBird strengths include strong global coverage with direct carrier connections in 190+ countries and unified api across sms, whatsapp, telegram, and other channels. Telnyx strengths include among the lowest per-message rates for us domestic sms and private ip network provides lower latency than providers using the public internet. On the other hand, MessageBird drawbacks include pricing is published as per-country rate cards rather than simple headline rates, making comparison harder, while Telnyx drawbacks include smaller community and ecosystem compared to twilio.
Use either provider with Knock
Knock enables you to integrate MessageBird, Telnyx, or any combination of SMS providers into a single notification workflow. Manage templates, orchestrate cross-channel delivery, and switch providers without changing your code.