Softwr

Telecommunications · head to head

Dialpad vs Plivo

Dialpad logo

Dialpad

Telecommunications

Cloud phone and voice communications

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Plivo logo

Plivo

Telecommunications

SMS and voice APIs priced to undercut the larger aggregators

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Dialpad pricing details not publicly disclosed; requires contacting sales; Plivo the headline per-message saving does not apply to US 10DLC registration fees or carrier surcharges, which are pass-through costs and identical across vendors.
  • They diverge on capability: Dialpad covers Voice calls, Plivo covers Published country rate card.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Dialpad and Plivo actually diverge.

Attributes where Dialpad and Plivo differ
AttributeDialpadPlivo
Pricing modelUnknownPer message and per minute, priced by destination country
PlatformsWeb, MobileWeb, APIs, Python, JavaScript, Java, PHP, Ruby, Go
Founded2013Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Telecommunications).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Dialpad

  • Voice calls
  • Video meeting
  • Chat
  • Analytics
  • Call recording
  • Slack
  • Salesforce
  • HubSpot

Only in Plivo

  • Published country rate card
  • Programmable SMS and MMS
  • Programmable voice
  • Contact centre product
  • 10DLC registration

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Dialpad

  • Customer service with AI voice and chat agentsnot Plivo
  • Autonomous contact centre operations with handoff to humansnot Plivo
  • Multi-channel communication (voice, chat, SMS, email)not Plivo
  • HIPAA-compliant healthcare communicationnot Plivo

Plivo

  • Products sending high volumes of transactional SMS where unit price determines channel viabilitynot Dialpad
  • Teams migrating from a more expensive aggregator without changing their architecturenot Dialpad
  • Notification and alerting systems with predictable, steady message volumenot Dialpad
  • Businesses wanting voice and messaging from one supplier with published ratesnot Dialpad

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Dialpad

  • Pricing details not publicly disclosed; requires contacting sales
  • AI Agent pricing uses credit-based model with pay-per-value structure
  • Specific pricing tiers and feature comparisons not available on public website

Plivo

  • The headline per-message saving does not apply to US 10DLC registration fees or carrier surcharges, which are pass-through costs and identical across vendors.
  • The feature surface is narrower than the market leader, so products needing video, email or richer verification will need a second supplier.
  • Support is tiered and the entry tier is not appropriate for traffic that a business depends on commercially.
  • Deliverability on some international routes depends on an underlying carrier mix that can change without the customer being informed.
  • Its price advantage is smaller on US A2P traffic than on international routes, so a US-only sender may save considerably less than a headline comparison suggested.

Pricing, plan by plan

Dialpad

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Dialpad review.

Plivo

On request
  • Pay as you go$undefined/month
    • Published per-country rate card for SMS and voice
    • Volume discounts negotiated above published tiers
    • US 10DLC registration fees and carrier surcharges billed separately

Which should you pick?

Choose Dialpad if

  • You need voice calls.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want video meeting.
Dialpad review

Choose Plivo if

  • You need published country rate card.
  • You work on Web, APIs, Python, JavaScript, Java, PHP, Ruby, Go.
  • You also want programmable sms and mms.
Plivo review

Questions people ask

Is Dialpad or Plivo better?
Neither clearly leads. Dialpad starts at On request and Plivo at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Dialpad or Plivo?
Dialpad starts at On request and Plivo at On request.
Does Dialpad or Plivo run on more platforms?
Dialpad runs on Web, Mobile. Plivo runs on Web, APIs, Python, JavaScript, Java, PHP, Ruby, Go.
What is Dialpad best used for?
Dialpad is most often used for customer service with ai voice and chat agents, autonomous contact centre operations with handoff to humans, multi-channel communication (voice, chat, sms, email), hipaa-compliant healthcare communication. Of those, customer service with ai voice and chat agents and autonomous contact centre operations with handoff to humans are not what Plivo is typically brought in for.
What can Dialpad do that Plivo cannot?
Dialpad covers Voice calls, Video meeting, Chat, Analytics. Plivo covers Published country rate card, Programmable SMS and MMS, Programmable voice, Contact centre product.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Dialpad: How much does Dialpad cost?

Dialpad uses conversation-based pricing where customers purchase a pool of AI Agent Credits. Billing occurs only when AI delivers value by retrieving information or executing actions. Exact pricing is not published online and requires contacting sales.

Source
Plivo: Will switching to Plivo cut our US messaging bill?

Partly. The per-message rate may fall, but 10DLC brand and campaign fees and the per-segment carrier surcharges are pass-through costs that are the same whichever provider you use.

Dialpad: What is Dialpad's AI Agent pricing model?

Dialpad AI Agents are priced per conversation using a credit system. Credits are used only when the AI retrieves information or executes actions like scheduling, routing, or order lookup.

Source
Plivo: Does Plivo publish pricing?

Yes, as a per-destination rate card covering SMS and voice by country, so you can model your own destination mix before contacting sales.

Plivo: How does it compare with Twilio?

Generally cheaper per unit on the same routes and narrower in scope. Twilio wins on ecosystem, channel breadth and documentation.

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