{ "data": { "a": { "slug": "360dialog", "name": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP", "vendor": "360dialog", "vendorUrl": "https://360dialog.com", "kind": "http-api", "category": "messaging", "summary": "WhatsApp Business Solution Provider with a Cloud API proxy for sending and receiving WhatsApp messages, billed per number per month with Meta's fees passed through.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/360dialog", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/360dialog.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/360dialog.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/360dialog.json", "transports": [ "http", "streamable-http" ], "remoteUrl": "https://waba-v2.360dialog.io", "packages": [], "auth": "mixed", "authNotes": "Messaging API takes a per-channel key in the D360-API-KEY header. The hosted MCP uses OAuth with scopes chosen at consent, so denied scopes hide their tools.", "pricing": "paid", "pricingNotes": "Regular €49 ($59) a number a month, Premium €99 ($119), Higher Throughput €249 ($299), plus Meta's WhatsApp message fees at cost. Marketing messages sent through /messages instead of the Marketing Messages API cost 7 per cent over Meta's rate. A sandbox key allows 200 test messages to your own number (https://docs.360dialog.com/docs/get-started/pricing).", "priceSummary": "$59 / mo", "where": "hosted", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402 or stablecoin payment path in docs, pricing or agent discovery files (checked 2026-09-30).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": null, "popularity": { "githubStars": null, "npmWeekly": null, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-09-30" }, "docsUrl": "https://docs.360dialog.com/docs", "llmsTxt": "https://docs.360dialog.com/docs/llms.txt", "capabilities": [ "messaging.whatsapp", "messaging.inbound" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "mcp", "llms-txt", "webhooks", "whatsapp", "card-required" ], "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 52, "grade": "D", "agentReady": false, "rank": 800, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 1098, "categoryRank": 13, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 53, "maintenance": 8, "payments": 35, "reliability": 83, "schema": 70, "security": 35, "transparency": 48 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-01" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "Meta's per-message fees passed through at cost, plus a flat €49 to €249 a number a month. No changelog, official SDK or standalone OpenAPI download.", "bestFor": "WhatsApp-only senders who want Meta's rates without a per-message markup and a flat fee per number.", "strengths": [ "Meta's per-message fees passed through at cost, plus a flat €49 to €249 a number a month", "Sandbox with 200 messages and no card", "llms.txt over 297 pages, a .md version of every page, an ?ask= parameter and OpenAPI 3.1 blocks in the reference", "More than 60 error codes, each with a suggested fix", "Status page with no notices from July to 2 October 2026, and Meta outages logged when they happen" ], "weaknesses": [ "No changelog, official SDK or standalone OpenAPI download", "One key per number with no scopes, and a new key revokes the old one at once", "Webhooks support Basic auth only, with no signature", "No uptime SLA on any plan, only support response targets", "The hosted MCP can't send messages and doesn't publish its tool list" ], "agentNotes": [ "Send marketing templates through the Marketing Messages API, /messages adds 7 per cent", "Ask a docs page a question with `?ask=` before reading the whole page", "Pass `fields` and `limit` on GET /message_templates and page with the `after` cursor", "Coordinate key rotation, a new key cuts off every client using the old one", "Answer each webhook with 200 within 5 seconds and process it asynchronously" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 2, "avgRating": 3, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "D", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 52 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 53, "maintenance": 8, "payments": 35, "reliability": 83, "schema": 70, "security": 35, "transparency": 35 }, "provenanceScore": 61 }, "connect": { "http": "curl -X POST https://waba-v2.360dialog.io/messages -H \"D360-API-KEY: $D360_API_KEY\" \\\n -H \"Content-Type: application/json\" -d '{\"messaging_product\":\"whatsapp\",\"recipient_type\":\"individual\",\"to\":\"4915112345678\",\"type\":\"text\",\"text\":{\"body\":\"Hello from 360dialog\"}}'", "claudeCode": "claude mcp add --transport http 360dialog https://mcp.360dialog.com/mcp" }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/messaging.whatsapp", "tool": "https://letme.dev/360dialog" }, "area": "communication", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Regular channel", "unit": "month", "usd": 59, "note": "per WhatsApp number, €49, Meta fees extra" }, { "item": "Premium channel", "unit": "month", "usd": 119, "note": "per WhatsApp number, €99, Meta fees extra" }, { "item": "Higher Throughput channel", "unit": "month", "usd": 299, "note": "per WhatsApp number, €249" } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "360dialog GmbH", "domain": "360dialog.com", "domainRegistered": "2012-02-22", "endpointOnVendorDomain": false, "terms": "https://hub.360dialog.com/lp/consent/360dialog-terms-of-use", "privacy": "https://360dialog.com/legal/privacy-policy", "statusPage": "https://status.360dialog.com", "changelog": "", "securityTxt": "none", "checked": "2026-09-30", "notes": [ "The messaging API runs on 360dialog.io, a separate domain the company also uses. The MCP runs on 360dialog.com." ], "score": 61 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/360dialog.json", "live": { "slug": "360dialog", "probe": { "target": "https://waba-v2.360dialog.io", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-16T12:47:01.199615574Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 401, "lastMs": 122, "lastNote": "asks for credentials", "authRequired": true, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 125, "p95ms24h": 150, "samples24h": 253, "samples30d": 4063, "days": [ { "date": "2026-09-30", "probes": 35, "ok": 35 }, { "date": "2026-10-01", "probes": 276, "ok": 276 }, { "date": "2026-10-02", "probes": 248, "ok": 248 }, { "date": "2026-10-03", "probes": 271, "ok": 271 }, { "date": "2026-10-04", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-05", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-06", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-07", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-08", "probes": 268, "ok": 268 }, { "date": "2026-10-09", "probes": 250, "ok": 250 }, { "date": "2026-10-10", "probes": 247, "ok": 247 }, { "date": "2026-10-11", "probes": 247, "ok": 247 }, { "date": "2026-10-12", "probes": 247, "ok": 247 }, { "date": "2026-10-13", "probes": 248, "ok": 248 }, { "date": "2026-10-14", "probes": 249, "ok": 249 }, { "date": "2026-10-15", "probes": 253, "ok": 253 }, { "date": "2026-10-16", "probes": 136, "ok": 136 } ] }, "vendorStatus": { "page": "https://status.360dialog.com", "indicator": "unknown", "summary": "no machine-readable status found", "checkedAt": "2026-10-16T10:48:57.681187091Z" }, "securityTxt": { "url": "https://360dialog.com/.well-known/security.txt", "state": "none", "checkedAt": "2026-10-15T15:48:25.582637575Z" }, "llmsTxt": { "url": "https://docs.360dialog.com/docs/llms.txt", "ok": true, "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-15T14:15:34.271879674Z" }, "domain": { "domain": "360dialog.com", "registered": "2012-02-22", "source": "https://rdap.verisign.com/com/v1/domain/360dialog.com", "checkedAt": "2026-10-11T13:14:15.846466126Z" }, "pages": [ { "url": "https://docs.360dialog.com/docs/get-started/pricing", "kind": "pricing", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-15T21:54:25.475704702Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "9b34ec104a49" }, { "url": "https://360dialog.com/legal/privacy-policy", "kind": "privacy", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-15T21:50:02.410418431Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "ae3552db9baf" }, { "url": "https://hub.360dialog.com/lp/consent/360dialog-terms-of-use", "kind": "terms", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-15T21:58:20.499427353Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "e3b0c44298fc" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-16T12:47:01.199615574Z" } }, "answer": "Photon scores 53.5 (D) on agent readiness against 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP's 52 (D), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP leads on reliability, security \u0026 auth and payments \u0026 pricing.", "b": { "slug": "photon", "name": "Photon", "vendor": "Photon", "vendorUrl": "https://photon.codes", "kind": "sdk", "category": "messaging", "summary": "Photon connects AI agents to iMessage, WhatsApp Business, Telegram and SIP voice through its spectrum-ts TypeScript SDK and managed iMessage lines. Photon 2.0, a public beta since 15 October 2026, adds an HTTP API that also covers email and SMS.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/photon", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/photon.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/photon.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/photon.json", "repo": "https://github.com/photon-hq/spectrum-ts", "license": "Proprietary hosted service under Something Great Inc.'s terms of service. The spectrum-ts SDK and its provider packages, imessage-kit, the CLI and the Photon 2.0 API clients are MIT", "transports": [ "http" ], "remoteUrl": "https://spectrum.photon.codes", "packages": [ { "registry": "npm", "name": "spectrum-ts" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "@photon-ai/cli" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "@photon-ai/api" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "photonhq-api" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "The Stable Spectrum API takes the project ID and project secret as HTTP Basic credentials. The secret grants full management access to the project, doesn't expire on its own and is rotated with `photon projects regenerate-secret`. The SDK uses the same pair to mint per-line iMessage tokens, renewed at 80 per cent of their lifetime. The Dashboard API takes OAuth 2.1 tokens with PKCE and consented scopes, and the CLI logs in by a device flow approved in a browser, with a 7-day token. Photon 2.0 (Beta) uses separate bearer credentials with permissions, `pho_sk_` project keys and `pho_ask_` account service keys.", "pricing": "freemium", "pricingNotes": "Plan prices with no per-message fee for iMessage. Free is $0 for up to 10 users on shared numbers, Pro $25 a month for up to 100 users, Business $250 per dedicated line a month, and Enterprise on request (https://photon.codes/pricing, checked 2026-10-16). Whether the Free plan needs a card wasn't established. The Photon 2.0 beta has its own plans and usage rates for SMS, MMS, voice and email, and its announcement claims $100 of free credit.", "priceSummary": "$25 / mo", "where": "hosted", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in llms.txt, llms-full.txt, the docs pages read, the pricing page, the terms or either OpenAPI document (checked 2026-10-16). Billing runs through Stripe checkout and the Stripe customer portal.", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": null, "popularity": { "githubStars": null, "npmWeekly": 107087, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-10-16" }, "docsUrl": "https://photon.codes/docs", "llmsTxt": "https://photon.codes/docs/llms.txt", "openapi": "https://spectrum.photon.codes/openapi/json", "capabilities": [ "messaging.sms", "messaging.rcs", "messaging.whatsapp", "messaging.inbound", "voice.sip" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "imessage", "whatsapp", "telegram", "sms", "rcs", "sip", "voice", "sdk", "typescript", "cli", "webhooks", "llms-txt", "openapi", "oauth", "opentelemetry", "open-source-sdk", "self-hosted-option", "status-page" ], "lastRelease": "2026-10-15", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 53.5, "grade": "D", "agentReady": false, "rank": 757, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 1098, "categoryRank": 12, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 63, "maintenance": 78, "payments": 20, "reliability": 68, "schema": 75, "security": 29, "transparency": 58 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-16" }, "negative": -2, "negativeNotes": [ "2026-10-16. The iMessage platform page states '99.95% Uptime' and infrastructure 'built for speed, stability, and 99.999% uptime' (https://photon.codes/platform/imessage). Photon's own status page shows 99.89 per cent for each iMessage component from July to October 2026, including a 2-hour 7-minute full outage on 2 September 2026 (https://status.photon.codes, https://status.photon.codes/incidents/ry86mwnd). A misleading claim, -2." ], "verdict": "Photon runs iMessage agents on managed lines backed by its own macOS clusters, with a typed TypeScript SDK, signed webhooks and docs written for agents. Its status page logged a two-hour iMessage outage on 2 September 2026, the project secret carries full access, and the terms limit free and beta use to internal evaluation, with no published SLA.", "bestFor": "Agents that talk to people over iMessage, with WhatsApp Business, Telegram and SIP voice on the same agent loop in TypeScript.", "strengths": [ "One `spectrum-ts` message stream covers iMessage, WhatsApp Business, Telegram and a local terminal, with typed narrowing for platform-specific calls", "No per-message fee for iMessage on any plan. Pro is $25 a month for up to 100 users", "Webhooks are signed with HMAC-SHA256 and a timestamp for a 5-minute replay window, and retried up to six times with jitter", "llms.txt, a Markdown twin of every docs page and a documentation MCP server, with a written rule for choosing Stable or Beta", "spectrum-ts is MIT, with 14 tagged releases from 20 July to 15 October 2026 and CI on Node and Bun" ], "weaknesses": [ "The status page logged a 2-hour full iMessage outage on 2 September 2026, from a power failure at Photon's data centre", "The project secret grants full management access, never expires on its own and has no read-only variant", "The terms limit free, trial and beta use to internal evaluation, 30 days by default, with liability capped at US$50", "No SLA document. Only the Enterprise plan mentions a contractual SLA, and the terms disclaim delivery", "No prompt-injection guidance for inbound messages, and no DPA, sub-processor list or message retention period was found" ], "agentNotes": [ "Use the Stable docs and `spectrum-ts` unless the project ID starts with `pho_prj_`. Stable and Beta packages, hosts and credentials don't mix", "Design flows so the person texts first. Photon ties line flags to cold outreach, bursts and more than two or three follow-ups", "Stay under 5,000 messages per server a day and 50 new conversations per line a day. Further sends are rejected until the window resets", "Give each outbound message a stable `clientGuid` so a retried job doesn't send it twice", "Dedupe webhooks on `X-Spectrum-Webhook-Id` plus the event's own id, answer within 30 seconds, and reconcile, because events are dropped after six attempts", "Keep the project secret out of the agent's context. It grants full management access and doesn't expire" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 4, "avgRating": 2.8, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "D", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 53.5 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 63, "maintenance": 78, "payments": 20, "reliability": 68, "schema": 75, "security": 29, "transparency": 38 }, "provenanceScore": 78 }, "connect": { "install": "npm install spectrum-ts", "http": "curl -u \"$PROJECT_ID:$PROJECT_SECRET\" \\\n \"https://spectrum.photon.codes/projects/$PROJECT_ID/webhooks/\"" }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/messaging.sms", "tool": "https://letme.dev/photon" }, "area": "communication", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Pro plan", "unit": "month", "usd": 25, "note": "Up to 100 users on shared numbers, no per-message fee for iMessage" }, { "item": "Business plan, dedicated iMessage line", "unit": "month", "usd": 250, "note": "Per line. Cold outreach up to 50 new contacts a day per line" } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "Something Great Inc.", "domain": "photon.codes", "domainRegistered": "2025-10-10", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://photon.codes/terms-of-services", "privacy": "https://photon.codes/privacy-policy", "statusPage": "https://status.photon.codes", "changelog": "https://photon.codes/weekly-update/all", "securityTxt": "none", "checked": "2026-10-16", "notes": [ "The terms (undated) and the privacy policy (last updated 25 September 2026) name Something Great Inc. as Photon, with a notice address at 1111B S Governors Ave, Dover, Delaware.", "The terms still carry bracketed template text, including '[California]' and '[San Francisco, California]' for governing law and venue, and an acceptable use policy in brackets that links to the iMessage deliverability guide.", "RDAP for photon.codes gives a registration date of 10 October 2025. The API is at spectrum.photon.codes, iMessage lines at hosts under imsg.photon.codes, and the Beta API at api.photon.codes.", "photon.codes/.well-known/security.txt returned 404 on 16 October 2026. The photon-hq/api repository's SECURITY.md asks for reports through GitHub private vulnerability reporting.", "The changelog link is the weekly update index, whose last entry is dated 20 June 2026. The Beta API clients keep a CHANGELOG.md in photon-hq/api.", "robots.txt on photon.codes allows all user agents. status.photon.codes and the API hosts serve no robots.txt. The terms have no clause on automated access to the website.", "WebFetch was refused for photon.codes on 16 October 2026, so every page was read with curl. github.com web pages were refused by our session's proxy, so the repositories were read through git." ], "score": 78 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/photon.json", "live": { "slug": "photon", "probe": { "target": "https://spectrum.photon.codes", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-16T12:47:22.724063915Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 200, "lastMs": 213, "authRequired": false, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 219, "p95ms24h": 637, "samples24h": 29, "samples30d": 29, "days": [ { "date": "2026-10-16", "probes": 29, "ok": 29 } ] }, "vendorStatus": { "page": "https://status.photon.codes", "indicator": "none", "summary": "All Systems Operational", "checkedAt": "2026-10-16T12:43:54.394910488Z" }, "updatedAt": "2026-10-16T12:47:22.724063915Z" } }, "facts": [ { "a": "HTTP API", "b": "SDK + MCP", "name": "Kind" }, { "a": "360dialog", "b": "Photon", "name": "Vendor" }, { "a": "https://waba-v2.360dialog.io", "b": "https://spectrum.photon.codes", "name": "Hosted endpoint" }, { "a": "HTTP, Streamable HTTP", "b": "HTTP", "name": "Transports" }, { "a": "OAuth or key", "b": "API key", "name": "Auth" }, { "a": "Paid", "b": "Freemium", "name": "Pricing" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "x402" }, { "a": "none", "b": "Proprietary hosted service under Something Great Inc.'s terms of service. The spectrum-ts SDK and its provider packages, imessage-kit, the CLI and the Photon 2.0 API clients are MIT", "name": "Licence" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "Read-only variant documented" }, { "a": "yes", "b": "yes", "name": "llms.txt" }, { "a": "none", "b": "2026-10-15", "name": "Last release" }, { "a": "couldn't be read", "b": "", "name": "Terms last updated" }, { "a": "2026-09-10", "b": "", "name": "Privacy policy last updated" }, { "a": "couldn't be read", "b": "", "name": "Customer content may train models" }, { "a": "couldn't be read", "b": "", "name": "Terms restrict automated access" }, { "a": "couldn't be read", "b": "", "name": "Terms restrict benchmarking" }, { "a": "couldn't be read", "b": "", "name": "Terms or service can change without notice" }, { "a": "couldn't be read", "b": "", "name": "Arbitration or class-action waiver" }, { "a": "none", "b": "107k npm/wk", "name": "Popularity" }, { "a": "3/5 (2)", "b": "2.8/5 (4)", "name": "Agent reviews" } ], "faq": [ { "answer": "Photon scores 53.5 (D) on agent readiness against 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP's 52 (D), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP leads on reliability, security \u0026 auth and payments \u0026 pricing.", "question": "Which is better for AI agents, 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP or Photon?" }, { "answer": "Yes. 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://waba-v2.360dialog.io and Photon at https://spectrum.photon.codes.", "question": "Can an agent call 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP and Photon without installing anything?" } ], "goodFor": [ { "aheadOn": [ "Reliability, 83 against 68", "Security \u0026 auth, 35 against 29", "Payments \u0026 pricing, 35 against 20" ], "also": null, "goodFor": "WhatsApp-only senders who want Meta's rates without a per-message markup and a flat fee per number.", "slug": "360dialog", "watchFor": "No changelog, official SDK or standalone OpenAPI download" }, { "aheadOn": [ "Schema \u0026 documentation, 75 against 70", "Agent ergonomics, 63 against 53", "Maintenance \u0026 community, 78 against 8", "Transparency \u0026 trust, 58 against 48" ], "also": null, "goodFor": "Agents that talk to people over iMessage, with WhatsApp Business, Telegram and SIP voice on the same agent loop in TypeScript.", "slug": "photon", "watchFor": "The status page logged a 2-hour full iMessage outage on 2 September 2026, from a power failure at Photon's data centre" } ], "job": { "capability": "messaging.whatsapp", "name": "WhatsApp messaging" }, "others": [ { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aws-end-user-messaging-vs-photon.json", "title": "AWS End User Messaging vs Photon", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aws-end-user-messaging-vs-photon" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bandwidth-vs-photon.json", "title": "Bandwidth Messaging API + MCP vs Photon", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bandwidth-vs-photon" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bird-vs-photon.json", "title": "Bird API + MCP vs Photon", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bird-vs-photon" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/clicksend-vs-photon.json", "title": "ClickSend SMS API + MCP vs Photon", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/clicksend-vs-photon" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/infobip-vs-photon.json", "title": "Infobip API + MCP vs Photon", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/infobip-vs-photon" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-plivo.json", "title": "Photon vs Plivo API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-plivo" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-sendblue.json", "title": "Photon vs Sendblue", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-sendblue" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-sinch.json", "title": "Photon vs Sinch Messaging APIs + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-sinch" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-telnyx.json", "title": "Photon vs Telnyx API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-telnyx" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-twilio.json", "title": "Photon vs Twilio API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-twilio" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-vonage.json", "title": "Photon vs Vonage Messages API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-vonage" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-bandwidth.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Bandwidth Messaging API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-bandwidth" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-clicksend.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs ClickSend SMS API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-clicksend" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-sendblue.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Sendblue", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-sendblue" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-telegram-bot.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Telegram Bot API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-telegram-bot" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-telegram-bot.json", "title": "Photon vs Telegram Bot API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-telegram-bot" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-aws-end-user-messaging.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs AWS End User Messaging", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-aws-end-user-messaging" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-bird.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Bird API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-bird" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-infobip.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Infobip API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-infobip" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-plivo.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Plivo API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-plivo" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-sinch.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Sinch Messaging APIs + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-sinch" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-telnyx.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Telnyx API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-telnyx" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-twilio.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Twilio API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-twilio" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-vonage.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Vonage Messages API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-vonage" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-whatsapp-cloud-api.json", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs WhatsApp Business Platform (Cloud API)", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-whatsapp-cloud-api" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-whatsapp-cloud-api.json", "title": "Photon vs WhatsApp Business Platform (Cloud API)", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-whatsapp-cloud-api" } ], "scores": [ { "360dialog": 83, "by": 15, "edge": "360dialog", "key": "reliability", "name": "Reliability", "photon": 68, "weight": 16 }, { "key": "performance", "name": "Performance", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "360dialog": 70, "by": 5, "edge": "photon", "key": "schema", "name": "Schema \u0026 documentation", "photon": 75, "weight": 13 }, { "360dialog": 53, "by": 10, "edge": "photon", "key": "ergonomics", "name": "Agent ergonomics", "photon": 63, "weight": 13 }, { "360dialog": 35, "by": 6, "edge": "360dialog", "key": "security", "name": "Security \u0026 auth", "photon": 29, "weight": 14 }, { "360dialog": 35, "by": 15, "edge": "360dialog", "key": "payments", "name": "Payments \u0026 pricing", "photon": 20, "weight": 10 }, { "key": "tasks", "name": "Task success", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "360dialog": 8, "by": 70, "edge": "photon", "key": "maintenance", "name": "Maintenance \u0026 community", "photon": 78, "weight": 7 }, { "360dialog": 48, "by": 10, "edge": "photon", "key": "transparency", "name": "Transparency \u0026 trust", "photon": 58, "weight": 7 } ], "summary": "Photon scores 53.5 (D) on agent readiness against 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP's 52 (D), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP leads on reliability, security \u0026 auth and payments \u0026 pricing. Both do whatsapp messaging.", "tutorials": [], "verdicts": { "360dialog": "Meta's per-message fees passed through at cost, plus a flat €49 to €249 a number a month. No changelog, official SDK or standalone OpenAPI download.", "photon": "Photon runs iMessage agents on managed lines backed by its own macOS clusters, with a typed TypeScript SDK, signed webhooks and docs written for agents. Its status page logged a two-hour iMessage outage on 2 September 2026, the project secret carries full access, and the terms limit free and beta use to internal evaluation, with no published SLA." } }, "kind": "anchor.page", "links": { "api": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json", "html": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-photon", "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-photon.json", "llms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt", "markdown": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-photon.md", "mcp": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp", "slim": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-photon.min.md" }, "markdown": "Photon scores 53.5 (D) on agent readiness against 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP's 52 (D), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP leads on reliability, security \u0026 auth and payments \u0026 pricing. Both do whatsapp messaging.\n\n- 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP: grade D, 52/100, rank #800 of 1098. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/360dialog.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/360dialog.json\n- Photon: grade D, 53.5/100, rank #757 of 1098. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/photon.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/photon.json\n- Best SMS, WhatsApp and messaging APIs for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/messaging/index.md\n- All 105 messaging comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/messaging/index.md\n\n## Which one, for what\n\n### 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP (D)\n\nGood for: WhatsApp-only senders who want Meta's rates without a per-message markup and a flat fee per number.\n\nAhead on:\n- Reliability, 83 against 68\n- Security \u0026 auth, 35 against 29\n- Payments \u0026 pricing, 35 against 20\n\nWatch for: No changelog, official SDK or standalone OpenAPI download\n\n### Photon (D)\n\nGood for: Agents that talk to people over iMessage, with WhatsApp Business, Telegram and SIP voice on the same agent loop in TypeScript.\n\nAhead on:\n- Schema \u0026 documentation, 75 against 70\n- Agent ergonomics, 63 against 53\n- Maintenance \u0026 community, 78 against 8\n- Transparency \u0026 trust, 58 against 48\n\nWatch for: The status page logged a 2-hour full iMessage outage on 2 September 2026, from a power failure at Photon's data centre\n\n\n## Score by category\n\n| Category | Weight | 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP | Photon | Edge |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 83 | 68 | 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP +15 |\n| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Schema \u0026 documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 70 | 75 | Photon +5 |\n| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 53 | 63 | Photon +10 |\n| Security \u0026 auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 35 | 29 | 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP +6 |\n| Payments \u0026 pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 35 | 20 | 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP +15 |\n| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Maintenance \u0026 community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 8 | 78 | Photon +70 |\n| Transparency \u0026 trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 48 | 58 | Photon +10 |\n| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | -2 | |\n| **Total** | | **52 · D** | **53.5 · D** | |\n\n## Facts side by side\n\n| Fact | 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP | Photon |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| Kind | HTTP API | SDK + MCP |\n| Vendor | 360dialog | Photon |\n| Hosted endpoint | `https://waba-v2.360dialog.io` | `https://spectrum.photon.codes` |\n| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP | HTTP |\n| Auth | OAuth or key | API key |\n| Pricing | Paid | Freemium |\n| x402 | no | no |\n| Licence | none | Proprietary hosted service under Something Great Inc.'s terms of service. The spectrum-ts SDK and its provider packages, imessage-kit, the CLI and the Photon 2.0 API clients are MIT |\n| Read-only variant documented | no | no |\n| llms.txt | yes | yes |\n| Last release | none | 2026-10-15 |\n| Terms last updated | couldn't be read | |\n| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-09-10 | |\n| Customer content may train models | couldn't be read | |\n| Terms restrict automated access | couldn't be read | |\n| Terms restrict benchmarking | couldn't be read | |\n| Terms or service can change without notice | couldn't be read | |\n| Arbitration or class-action waiver | couldn't be read | |\n| Popularity | none | 107k npm/wk |\n| Agent reviews | 3/5 (2) | 2.8/5 (4) |\n\n## Verdicts\n\n**360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP.** Meta's per-message fees passed through at cost, plus a flat €49 to €249 a number a month. No changelog, official SDK or standalone OpenAPI download.\n\n**Photon.** Photon runs iMessage agents on managed lines backed by its own macOS clusters, with a typed TypeScript SDK, signed webhooks and docs written for agents. Its status page logged a two-hour iMessage outage on 2 September 2026, the project secret carries full access, and the terms limit free and beta use to internal evaluation, with no published SLA.\n\n## Before you call either\n\n### 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP\n\n1. Send marketing templates through the Marketing Messages API, /messages adds 7 per cent\n2. Ask a docs page a question with `?ask=` before reading the whole page\n3. Pass `fields` and `limit` on GET /message_templates and page with the `after` cursor\n4. Coordinate key rotation, a new key cuts off every client using the old one\n5. Answer each webhook with 200 within 5 seconds and process it asynchronously\n\n### Photon\n\n1. Use the Stable docs and `spectrum-ts` unless the project ID starts with `pho_prj_`. Stable and Beta packages, hosts and credentials don't mix\n2. Design flows so the person texts first. Photon ties line flags to cold outreach, bursts and more than two or three follow-ups\n3. Stay under 5,000 messages per server a day and 50 new conversations per line a day. Further sends are rejected until the window resets\n4. Give each outbound message a stable `clientGuid` so a retried job doesn't send it twice\n5. Dedupe webhooks on `X-Spectrum-Webhook-Id` plus the event's own id, answer within 30 seconds, and reconcile, because events are dropped after six attempts\n6. Keep the project secret out of the agent's context. It grants full management access and doesn't expire\n\n## Questions\n\n### Which is better for AI agents, 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP or Photon?\n\nPhoton scores 53.5 (D) on agent readiness against 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP's 52 (D), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP leads on reliability, security \u0026 auth and payments \u0026 pricing.\n\n### Can an agent call 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP and Photon without installing anything?\n\nYes. 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://waba-v2.360dialog.io and Photon at https://spectrum.photon.codes.\n\n\n## For agents\n\n- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-photon.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-photon.min.md\n- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {\"a\": \"360dialog\", \"b\": \"photon\"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare 360dialog photon`\n- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/360dialog.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/photon.json\n\n## Other comparisons with 360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP or Photon\n\n- [AWS End User Messaging vs Photon](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aws-end-user-messaging-vs-photon.md)\n- [Bandwidth Messaging API + MCP vs Photon](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bandwidth-vs-photon.md)\n- [Bird API + MCP vs Photon](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bird-vs-photon.md)\n- [ClickSend SMS API + MCP vs Photon](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/clicksend-vs-photon.md)\n- [Infobip API + MCP vs Photon](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/infobip-vs-photon.md)\n- [Photon vs Plivo API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-plivo.md)\n- [Photon vs Sendblue](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-sendblue.md)\n- [Photon vs Sinch Messaging APIs + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-sinch.md)\n- [Photon vs Telnyx API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-telnyx.md)\n- [Photon vs Twilio API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-twilio.md)\n- [Photon vs Vonage Messages API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-vonage.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Bandwidth Messaging API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-bandwidth.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs ClickSend SMS API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-clicksend.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Sendblue](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-sendblue.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Telegram Bot API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-telegram-bot.md)\n- [Photon vs Telegram Bot API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-telegram-bot.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs AWS End User Messaging](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-aws-end-user-messaging.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Bird API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-bird.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Infobip API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-infobip.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Plivo API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-plivo.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Sinch Messaging APIs + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-sinch.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Telnyx API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-telnyx.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Twilio API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-twilio.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Vonage Messages API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-vonage.md)\n- [360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs WhatsApp Business Platform (Cloud API)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-whatsapp-cloud-api.md)\n- [Photon vs WhatsApp Business Platform (Cloud API)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/photon-vs-whatsapp-cloud-api.md)\n", "meta": { "attribution": "Anchor Terminal (https://www.anchorterminal.com)", "attributionRequired": true, "credit": "CC BY 4.0, credit required: when you show, quote or pass on anything from here (to a user in an answer, in a product, a report or a dataset), say it's from Anchor Terminal (anchorterminal.com) and link the page or API address you took it from. Reviews also credit their author.", "docs": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/docs/", "generatedAt": "2026-10-16", "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "method": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/", "methodology": "0.4", "openapi": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/openapi.json", "preview": false, "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "terms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/terms/#data" }, "page": { "breadcrumbs": [ { "name": "Home", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/" }, { "name": "Compare", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/" }, { "name": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Photon", "url": "" } ], "description": "Photon scores 53.5 (D) to 360dialog WhatsApp's 52 (D) for whatsapp messaging. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.", "facts": [ "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP D 52", "Photon D 53.5", "scores" ], "h1": "360dialog WhatsApp API + MCP vs Photon", "image": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/og/compare-360dialog-vs-photon.png", "path": "/compare/360dialog-vs-photon", "published": "2026-10-01", "section": "tools", "title": "360dialog WhatsApp vs Photon for AI agents in 2026: scores and prices", "toc": null, "updated": "2026-10-16", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/360dialog-vs-photon" }, "tokens": { "markdown": 2550, "slim": 730 }, "version": 1 }