Two SMS providers, compared on price, features and ratings, so you can pick fast.
Updated October 2026
THE VERDICT
Azure SMS wins on compliance and support. MessageMedia wins on price.
Azure SMS and MessageMedia take different pricing approaches. Pick based on volume and team, and the scorecard below breaks down where each one leads.
Winner cells are tinted, green where Azure SMS leads, violet where MessageMedia does.
FAQ
Yes. Many teams route different message types through different providers or fail over between them. Courier lets you send through both behind a single API and switch providers without changing your code.
US 10DLC and toll-free SMS both cost $0.0075 per message segment to send or receive, before extras. On top of that, a per-carrier surcharge applies (for example $0.0020/segment for AT&T outbound or $0.0030/segment for Verizon and T-Mobile), plus a $1/mo 10DLC number lease (or $2/mo for toll-free), and one-time and monthly 10DLC brand and campaign registration fees. There's no separate ACS platform fee: it's pure usage-based billing through your Azure subscription.
MessageMedia publishes official open-source SDKs on GitHub for C#/.NET, Java, Node.js/JavaScript, PHP, Python and Ruby. All wrap its REST Messages API, which uses HTTP Basic or HMAC authentication. Developers can also call the API directly and register callback URLs to receive inbound messages and delivery receipts.
Why not both?
Use both behind one API.
Route Azure SMS, MessageMedia, or both, and switch providers without changing your code. Courier sits in front of every channel.
Pricing, plans and feature availability as of October 2026 and may change. Ratings are aggregated from public review platforms. MessageMedia is a Sinch product.