Growing businesses require more sophisticated communication features, such as automation, solid customer support, and easy integration with existing systems. So businesses with more advanced messaging requirements may find value in exploring additional messaging API options that offer even more customization and scalability for their needs.
Fortunately, there are plenty of Bird alternatives that can provide tailored solutions for your unique needs.
In this blog, we’ll explore the seven best alternatives to Bird and compare their features, functionalities, and pricing to help you find the right communication platform for your business.
Bird alternatives at a glance
Let’s quickly review the seven most popular Bird competitors and their unique functionalities at a high level.
7 best Bird alternatives in 2024
Here is a more detailed analysis of our top seven picks for the best SMS service providers.
1. Plivo
Features
- SMS auto-responder: Plivo’s SMS auto-responder ensures that all queries are addressed promptly to keep customers satisfied and informed.
- Conference call: Connect multiple people with a pin to a single call, enabling collaboration and communication among teams, clients, or stakeholders.
- Voice-based notifications: Stay in touch with your customers by dispatching customized audio alerts through voice calls. This feature ensures that your important messages are heard loud and clear.
- Voice survey: Plivo uses voice surveys to collect information from customers with satisfaction scores of a service.
- Voicemail: Capture a caller's information even while you're away and use the obtained insights later.
- Scalable cloud IVR: Build multi-level interactive voice response (IVR) menus to route every call intelligently so that no query is left unanswered.
- Call forwarding: Forward calls to your office, mobile, or home number.
- Voicemail transcription: Access Plivo’s premium voicemail transcription service, which provides real-time, high-quality, and accurate transcripts.
- Reusable templates: Use a vast library of ready-to-use templates to add powerful functionality with minimal code with Verify API.
- Text-to-speech: Convert written text into natural-sounding speech in multiple languages and accents, removing communication barriers to analyze customer insights with ease.
- Fraud protection: With Plivo’s Fraud Shield, you can easily keep an eye on messaging activity without constant manual checks. Automatically detect unusual patterns and set thresholds specific to each country to respond swiftly to potential issues with no extra costs.
- Lowest costs per verification: You don't pay for verification, only for channel costs with no hidden charges.
- Reach customers across channels: Send OTPs to customers using SMS, Voice, and WhatsApp across multiple channels.
- Pay per conversation in WhatsApp messaging: Plivo's pricing structure allows you to send more messages without increasing costs.
Pros
- Affordable option
- User-friendly interface
- Responsive customer support
Cons
Ratings and reviews
G2: 4.5/5 (720+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.3/5 (85+ reviews)
Pricing
SMS API
Outbound: $0.0055/SMS
Voice API
Outbound: $0.0100/min
Inbound: $0.0055/min
Verify API
$0 verification fee; only pay SMS, Voice, or WhatsApp charge
Meta’s fee + platform fee (Rs. 0.067/conversation)
Suitable for
Plivo is one of the best messaging alternatives to Bird for businesses seeking a reliable, comprehensive, and cost-friendly communication platform.
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2. Twilio
Features
- Omnichannel communication: Twilio supports multiple messaging channels beyond SMS, including MMS, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger, allowing for richer customer interactions compared to Bird’s primarily SMS-focused services.
- Advanced authentication: Comprehensive security features like 2FA and programmable SMS for verification processes enhance user security compared to Bird’s standard offerings.
- Voice intelligence: Transform voice calls into actionable data insights with machine learning and AI.
Pros
- Extensive API documentation.
- An array of communication APIs available.
- Multi-channel communication support.
Cons
- Poorly documented integration requirements lead to implementation delays and higher error risk. (G2)
- Advanced features are difficult to implement. (G2)
- UI/UX can be improved. (G2)
Ratings and reviews
G2: 4.2/5 (475+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.4/5 (455+ reviews)
Pricing
SMS API
Outbound: $0.0079/SMS
Inbound: $0.0079/SMS
OUtbound: $0.002/MMS
Inbound: $0.01/MMS
Voice API
Outbound: $0.0140/min
Inbound: $0.0085/min
Verify API
$0.05 authentication fee/SMS + channel fee
$0.004/conversation
Suitable for
Twilio is ideal for large enterprises with generous budgets seeking a comprehensive communications provider with a global reach.
3. Telynyx
Features
- Noise suppression: Telnyx offers noise suppression and HD voice codecs to ensure the best possible audio inputs.
- Real-time transcription: It offers real-time transcription on a live call, activated via one API command. It speaks dynamic text in 29 languages and accents.
- Smart IVR: Build a multi-level IVR phone tree to intelligently route your call flows via dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) or voice commands.
Pros
- Easy-to-use interface.
- Affordable pricing.
- Good customer support.
Cons
- Lack of APIs and automation to submit port requests. (G2)
- Setting up features like SIP trunking and VOIP call routing is complicated. (G2)
Ratings and reviews
G2: 4.7/5 (415+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.7/5 (115+ reviews)
Suitable for
Telynyx is a great Bird alternative for businesses seeking an advanced way to optimize call handling and improve customer interactions through smart IVR or speech-to-text.
4.Vonage
Features
- Programmable video: Vonage offers robust video APIs that allow businesses to integrate high-quality video conferencing into their applications.
- Call control and analytics: Vonage enables businesses to monitor and optimize call performance beyond basic voice capabilities.
- IVR support: Vonage includes customizable IVR solutions that enhance customer service by automating call routing, which is unavailable in Bird’s offerings.
- Unified communications: Vonage integrates multiple communication channels, including SMS, voice, and video, streamlining user experience and management compared to Bird.
Pros
- Low latency and high deliverability rates.
- Easy-to-use tools to investigate reports of message delivery.
- Easily integrates into your existing ATS and CRM tools.
Cons
- Some users have complained of call drops due to technical glitches. (G2)
- Customer service leaves much to be desired; reaching out is difficult. (G2)
- Poor call quality: users report static and inaudible voices (G2, G2)
Ratings and reviews
G2: 4.3/5 (465+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.1/5 (305+ reviews)
Pricing
SMS API
Outbound: $0.07849/SMS
Inbound:$0.00616/SMS
Verify API
€0.050 per successful verification
WhatsApp API
$0.0488/conversation + Vonage platform fee
Suitable for
Vonage API solutions are a strong alternative to Bird for businesses seeking comprehensive communication features, including voice, messaging, and video, all integrated into a single platform for improved customer engagement.
5. Podium
Features
- Sentiment analysis: Podium helps businesses understand customer emotions by analyzing reviews and feedback, enabling agents to respond effectively and improve overall customer satisfaction.
- Conversion rate optimization: Podium empowers businesses to refine their messaging strategies, turning more interactions into sales and enhancing the overall effectiveness of their marketing efforts.
- Text message marketing: Engage customers directly through SMS to promote timely offers and updates that drive sales growth and engagement rates.
- Automated appointment reminders: Reduce no-show rates by ensuring clients receive timely notifications, leading to better scheduling efficiency and higher satisfaction.
Pros
- Centralized platform for managing customer interactions.
- Seamless payment transactions via text messaging.
- Analytics features to enhance communication strategies.
Cons
- Steep learning curve is involved. (G2)
- Lack of adequate customer support. (G2, G2)
- Disorganized customer onboarding experience. (G2)
Ratings and reviews
G2: 4.6/5 (1686+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.3/5 (500+ reviews)
Suitable for
It’s a comprehensive messaging platform and one-stop solution for connecting with customers, managing reviews, collecting payments, and streamlining team communication.
6. Sinch
Features
- Two-way messaging: Use WhatsApp to interact with customers and respond to queries directly.
- Schedule messages: Queue messages and set message validity periods, like expiry dates, for time-sensitive messages.
- SMS fallback: If messages fail to deliver or other communication channels do not work, this feature ensures critical messages always get delivered.
Pros
- Reliable and easy-to-use platform.
- Offer audio calls, video calls, and chat functionality, without complex coding.
Cons
- Poor and inadequate customer support. (G2, G2)
- Some users have encountered problems with Sinch's payment system, stating that they were debited but did not receive the corresponding credits. (G2)
Ratings and reviews
G2: 3.9/5 (29+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.4/5 (40+ reviews)
Pricing
SMS API
Outbound: $0.0078/SMS
Inbound: $0.0078/SMS
Voice
Outbound: $0.01/min
Inbound: $0.004/min
Country: India
Starter: Rs. 2,999
Scale: Rs. 15,999
Large: Rs.29,999
Custom pricing: Ideal for large enterprises
Suitable for
Sinch is a strong Bird alternative for businesses seeking robust SMS and voice solutions that improve customer engagement.
7. Bandwidth
Features
- Direct-to-carrier network: Bandwidth offers a direct-to-carrier network for superior reliability in messaging and calling.
- Call recording: Record calls and voicemails in mono or dual-channel format to maintain accurate records of conversations for compliance.
- Cost-effective pricing: It's one of the best alternatives to Bird given its pay-as-you-go model, resulting in lower costs for high-volume users.
- Flexible integration: Bandwidth's APIs easily integrate with existing systems, helping businesses customize their communication solutions.
Pros
- Easy-to-use platform with a friendly interface.
- Strong customer service and support.
Cons
- The porting process is time-consuming and difficult. (G2, G2)
- The pricing could be more transparent. (G2)
- SMS experience leaves much to be desired. (G2)
Ratings and reviews
G2: 4.5/5 (405+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.6/5 (125+ reviews)
Pricing
SMS API
Outbound: $0.004/SMS
Outbound: $0.015/MMS
Voice API
Outbound: $0.0100/min
Inbound: $0.0055/min
Verify API
$0.0500/auth
$0.1500/call
Suitable for
Businesses seeking a basic, reliable communications solution provider that offers greater control over call routing and SMS features.
Why choose Plivo as a Bird alternative
What sets Plivo apart from Bird is its ability to offer robust compliance support, ensuring that businesses can easily adhere to critical regulations.
Our platform supports:
- 10-digit long code (10DLC) assisted onboarding to all customers irrespective of their size and scale
- Sender ID registration.
- Toll-free verification.
- Distributed ledger technology (DLT) verification in India.
Plivo is ideal for companies with high messaging volume requirements. Strong customer support available through premium plans ensures that businesses receive the assistance. Our 99.99% uptime guarantee ensures that messages get delivered reliably. Plus, Plivo’s extensive documentation and developer-friendly APIs offer self-service options for those who prefer to troubleshoot independently.
Moreover, Plivo prioritizes communication security by focusing on fraud prevention and SMS pumping detection. Avoid unexpected charges and ensure your messages remain secure. Our default message redaction feature automatically removes sensitive information from your communications to help you maintain compliance while keeping your data safe.
With Plivo, you can communicate knowing that your business is well-protected.
Seeking a reliable, compliant, and budget-friendly messaging solution? Contact us to find out.
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