RCS Billing

RCS billing depends on four things: what the message contains, who sent it, when it was sent, and which country the traffic comes from. Globally, messages may be grouped into 24-hour conversations and billed as one interaction. In the United States, every message is billed separately.

Billing glossary

Billing Categories

Conversational vs Non-Conversational Agents

Every RCS agent is configured as either Non-Conversational or Conversational, and this choice determines how billing is applied.

If an agent is configured as Non-Conversational, it will never incur conversational billing charges. Even though two-way messaging with users is fully supported, every message is billed per message, not per session. All conversational scenarios described in this guide do not apply to Non-Conversational agents.

If an agent is configured as Conversational, messages may be grouped into a 24-hour conversation window and billed per conversation rather than per message.

Non‑Conversational Billing Types (Non‑US)

Non‑Conversational agents always generate individual billing events. Message timing and replies never create conversations.

• An a2p_basic_message is a business‑to‑user message that contains only text and does not exceed 160 UTF‑8 bytes. It is always billed as a single message.
• An a2p_single_message is a business‑to‑user message that contains media, exceeds 160 UTF‑8 bytes, or includes suggested replies or actions. It is always billed as a single message.
• A p2a_basic_message is a user‑to‑business text‑only message within 160 UTF‑8 bytes. It is always billed individually.
• A p2a_single_message is a user‑to‑business message that contains media, long text, or supported actions. It is always billed individually.

Conversational Billing Types (Non‑US)

Conversational agents can generate both message‑level billing events and conversation‑level billing events.

Conversational agents can generate the same message types as Non‑Conversational agents: a2p_basic_message, a2p_single_message, p2a_basic_message, and p2a_single_message.

In addition, conversational agents can generate conversation events when messages are exchanged within a 24‑hour window.

An a2p_conversation is created when an end user replies within 24 hours to the most recent A2P message. That A2P message, together with all messages exchanged during the following 24 hours, is billed as a single conversation.

A p2a_conversation is created when there is no active session, a user sends a message, and the business responds within 24 hours. That user message and all messages exchanged during the next 24 hours are billed as a single conversation.

A2P Scenarios (Business to User)

Below are examples that show how the timing and behavior of messages affect billing. Visual diagrams are included to illustrate the flow.

A2P Scenario 1 — The user responds within 24 hours

A business sends a message (MT1). The user replies within 24 hours (MO1). This reply opens a 24‑hour A2P conversation, and MT1 is included in the conversation. All messages exchanged during the next 24 hours count toward a single billable conversation.

• MT1 – The business sends the first message (A2P). No session is active yet.
• MO1 – User replies within 24 h → this starts the 24‑hour A2P conversation window.
• 24h conversation window – All messages exchanged within the next 24 hours (from MO1) are part of the same billable session.
• MT2 / MT3 / MO2 / MO3 – Any subsequent messages from business or user within that window are included in the same conversation.
• After 24 h, the session closes. Any new reply after this may start a new billable session.

A2P Scenario 2 — The user never responds

The business sends a message, but the user does not respond. Because no reply was received within 24 hours, the message is billed either as a basic or single message depending on its content.

• MT1 – The business sends a message (A2P). At this point, there is no active session because the user has not replied.
• 24h waiting window – The system waits 24 hours to see if the user replies.
• No user reply – Since the user never responds within 24 hours:
  • MT1 is billed as a single message or basic message, depending on its content.
  • No conversational session is opened.

A2P Scenario 3 — Multiple A2P messages before the user replies

The business sends MT1. Before the customer replies, the business sends MT2. When the user finally replies, only MT2 opens the A2P conversation because it is the most recent A2P message. MT1 is billed individually.

• MT1 is sent first but does not open a session, because the user doesn’t reply yet.
  • It is billed individually.
• MT2 is sent later — it becomes the most recent A2P message.
• MO1 (user reply) happens after MT2, so it opens the 24-hour A2P session.
• The 24-hour conversation window starts from MO1 and includes:
  • MT2
  • MO1
  • all messages exchanged within the next 24 hours

A2P Scenario 4 — The user responds after 24 hours

The business sends MT1. The customer replies, but more than 24 hours have passed, so MT1 is billed individually. When the business sends its next message (MT2), that message starts a new conversation if the user replies within 24 hours.

• MT1 – Business sends the first message.
  • User does not reply within 24 hours – The 24h window for MT1 closes.
• MT1 is billed individually.
• MO1 – User replies after 24 hours.
  • Too late to include MT1 in a session.
• MT1 remains billed individually.
• MT2 – Business sends a new message.
• MO2 – If the user replies within 24 hours of MT2, this opens a new 24h conversation window.
• 24h Billing Window – All messages within 24h of MO2 are included in this new conversation session.

P2A Scenarios (User to Business)

P2A Scenario 1 — User starts the interaction

The customer sends a message to the business (MO1). Since there is no active session, this message becomes the start of a P2A conversation as long as the business responds within 24 hours.

• MO1 – The user initiates the conversation by sending a message.
  • No active session exists at this point.
• 24h Response Window – The system waits for the business to reply within 24 hours.
• MT1 – The business replies within 24 hours.
• 24h Billing Window – All messages exchanged within the next 24 hours from MO1 are included in the same billable conversation.

P2A Scenario 2 — Multiple P2A messages before the business responds

The customer sends several messages, each resetting the 24‑hour timer. When the business finally replies, the session is tied to the customer’s most recent message.

• MO1 - User sends a message.
  • This starts the first 24-hour countdown for the business to reply.
• MO2 – User sends a second message before the business responds.
  • This resets the 24-hour response window — the timer now counts from MO2.
• MO3 – User sends another message, again before any business reply.
  • This becomes the most recent P2A message, resetting the timer once more.
• 24h Response Window – Now the system waits 24 hours from MO3 for a business reply.
• MT1 – The business finally responds.
  • Because the reply is within 24 hours of MO3, MO3 becomes the message that opens the session.
  • All previous messages (MO1, MO2) do not open sessions; they were just resetting the timer.
• 24h Billing Window – MO3 starts the 24-hour conversation window for billing. All messages exchanged during these 24 hours are part of one billable conversation.

In case of multiple MO messages, only the last MO message prior to the business's first response (MT1) will start the 24-hour window session.

P2A Scenario 3 — Business does not respond in time

If the business doesn’t respond within 24 hours, the P2A session closes. When the customer later sends another message, a new P2A conversation may begin once the business replies.

• MO1 – The user sends a message to the business.
  • This starts a 24-hour countdown for the business to respond.
• 24h Response Window – The system waits for the business.
• Business does not reply in time – The 24-hour window ends without a response.
  • The P2A session closes automatically.
  • No billable conversation is created because no session opened.
• MO2 – Later, the user sends another message.
  • This starts a new potential P2A flow, but only if the business replies within 24 hours.
• MT1 – This time, the business replies within the allowed window.
• 24h Billing Window – All messages exchanged within the next 24 hours from MO2 are part of one billable conversation.

US Billing Types

Billing Model Support

Conversational billing is not supported in the United States.

Only Non‑Conversational billing is supported, which includes:

• Rich messages

• Rich media messages

Every message is billed individually. Message timing does not create sessions or conversations.

Rich Messages (text‑only and lightweight interactions)

Rich messages:

• Text‑only (< 160 characters).
• Text above that character count will result in multiple Rich messages.
• Suggested replies
• Suggested action: Open URL
• Suggested action: Dial a number

Rich Media Messages (media and expanded actions)

Rich media messages are content‑rich messages that include:

• Images, videos, and files
• All suggested actions, including Webview

Any message that contains media is automatically classified as a Rich Media message, regardless of text length.

Important US‑Specific behavior

• Rich messages in the US behave like SMS.
• If a message is classified as Rich and exceeds 160 characters, it will be billed as two or more messages.
• If a message is classified as Rich Media, the character limit does not apply.