Softwr

Communication · head to head

Gupshup vs Telegram

Gupshup logo

Gupshup

Communication

Conversational messaging and CPaaS with a flat platform fee stacked on top of Meta per-message rates

From
$0.001/message
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Telegram logo

Telegram

Communication

Pure instant messaging — simple, fast, secure, and synced across all your devices

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Telegram has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Gupshup the Gupshup platform fee of about 0.001 dollars per message is negligible next to Meta pass-through rates, so comparing providers on their own fee is misleading, and the country and category mix of your traffic determines almost the entire bill.; Telegram end-to-end encryption applies only to Secret Chats; private and group Cloud Chats use server-client encryption, so Telegram holds the data
  • They diverge on capability: Gupshup covers WhatsApp Business API, Telegram covers Cloud-based messaging.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Gupshup and Telegram actually diverge.

Attributes where Gupshup and Telegram differ
AttributeGupshupTelegram
Starting price$0.001/messageFree
Pricing modelPer message sentfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, APIWeb, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android
FoundedUnknown2013

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Communication).

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 Gupshup

  • WhatsApp Business API
  • Flat platform fee
  • RCS messaging
  • SMS and voice
  • Bot Studio
  • Agent inbox
  • Campaign manager
  • Emerging market reach

Only in Telegram

  • Cloud-based messaging
  • End-to-end encryption
  • Self-destructing messages
  • Large group chats
  • Voice and video calls
  • Bot platform
  • Channels and broadcasts
  • Cross-platform sync

What people use each for

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

Gupshup

  • An e-commerce brand sending order and delivery notifications over WhatsApp to customers across India and Southeast Asianot Telegram
  • A bank or fintech running one-time passcodes and transactional alerts with fallback from WhatsApp to SMSnot Telegram
  • A company deploying a WhatsApp chatbot for tier one support with handover to human agents for anything it cannot resolvenot Telegram
  • A marketing team running WhatsApp template campaigns to opted-in lists in markets where email engagement is lownot Telegram

Telegram

  • Group messaging and large channels with files of any type and sizenot Gupshup
  • Private device-bound conversations with self-destructing messagesnot Gupshup
  • Running bots and broadcast channels for an audiencenot Gupshup

Where each one falls short

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

Gupshup

  • The Gupshup platform fee of about 0.001 dollars per message is negligible next to Meta pass-through rates, so comparing providers on their own fee is misleading, and the country and category mix of your traffic determines almost the entire bill.
  • Gupshup publishes no single flat rate for a full send, so accurate cost modelling requires you to build a country by country and category by category forecast before any provider comparison is meaningful.
  • Meta moved from conversation-based to per message billing in July 2025, which materially changed the economics of high-frequency messaging, and any budget or ROI model built on the old conversation pricing is now wrong.
  • Template approval sits with Meta rather than Gupshup, so rejections and category reclassifications can stall a campaign regardless of provider, and support quality on chasing them is a common complaint.
  • The product surface is broad, spanning CPaaS APIs, bot building and campaign tooling, and the non-API tools are less refined than dedicated conversational marketing platforms, so many buyers use Gupshup purely as a pipe.

Telegram

  • End-to-end encryption applies only to Secret Chats; private and group Cloud Chats use server-client encryption, so Telegram holds the data
  • Secret Chats are device-specific and are not part of the Telegram cloud, so they can only be read on the device they started on
  • Logging out destroys all of your Secret Chats
  • The Secret Chat self-destruct timer applies only to messages sent after the timer is set and has no effect on earlier messages
  • Telegram states screenshot detection cannot be guaranteed on some Android and Windows Phone devices, so screenshots of Secret Chats can be taken silently
  • Messages cannot be forwarded out of Secret Chats
  • The self-destruct timer in cloud chats covers media only, not text

Pricing, plan by plan

Gupshup

$0.001/message
  • Messaging$0.001/message
    • About 0.001 USD Gupshup platform fee per outgoing template message
    • Same fee on outgoing and incoming session messages
    • Meta per-message charges passed through on top, varying by country and category

Telegram

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited messages
    • 2GB file sharing
    • Group chats up to 200K members
  • Telegram Premium$4.99/month
    • Everything in Free
    • 4GB file uploads
    • Faster downloads

Which should you pick?

Choose Gupshup if

  • You need whatsapp business api.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want flat platform fee.
Gupshup review

Choose Telegram if

  • You need cloud-based messaging.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android.
  • You also want end-to-end encryption.
Telegram review

Questions people ask

Is Gupshup or Telegram better?
Neither clearly leads. Gupshup starts at $0.001/message and Telegram at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Gupshup or Telegram?
Telegram has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $0.001/message for Gupshup and Free for Telegram.
Does Gupshup or Telegram run on more platforms?
Gupshup runs on Web, API. Telegram runs on Web, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android.
Can I use Telegram for free?
Yes. Telegram has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Gupshup starts at $0.001/message.
What is Gupshup best used for?
Gupshup is most often used for an e-commerce brand sending order and delivery notifications over whatsapp to customers across india and southeast asia, a bank or fintech running one-time passcodes and transactional alerts with fallback from whatsapp to sms, a company deploying a whatsapp chatbot for tier one support with handover to human agents for anything it cannot resolve, a marketing team running whatsapp template campaigns to opted-in lists in markets where email engagement is low. Of those, an e-commerce brand sending order and delivery notifications over whatsapp to customers across india and southeast asia and a bank or fintech running one-time passcodes and transactional alerts with fallback from whatsapp to sms are not what Telegram is typically brought in for.
What can Gupshup do that Telegram cannot?
Gupshup covers WhatsApp Business API, Flat platform fee, RCS messaging, SMS and voice. Telegram covers Cloud-based messaging, End-to-end encryption, Self-destructing messages, Large group chats.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Gupshup: What does Gupshup charge?

About 0.001 USD per outgoing template message and per session message in each direction, plus roughly 0.0001 USD per second on voice. Meta per-message charges are passed through on top.

Telegram: Does Telegram cost money?

Telegram is a completely free messaging application. There are no subscription plans, in-app purchases, or ads. The service is funded through cryptocurrency investments.

Source
Gupshup: Is Gupshup cheaper than other WhatsApp providers?

On its own platform fee it is competitive, but that fee is a small fraction of the total. Meta pass-through rates dominate, so provider choice rarely changes your bill much.

Gupshup: Did WhatsApp pricing change?

Yes. Meta retired per 24-hour conversation pricing on 1 July 2025 and moved to per message billing, and Gupshup followed.

Gupshup: Is it only for India?

No, but its strongest carrier and operator reach is in India, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America.

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