# Plivo API (slim)

> CPaaS REST API for SMS, MMS, RCS and WhatsApp in 190+ countries, alongside voice.

- Full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/plivo.md (~5,350 tokens) · this version ~1,330 tokens · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/plivo.json · canonical https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/plivo
- Index: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt · API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json · Updated: 2026-10-04

**C · 60.3/100 · rank #250 of 452 · #7 in Messaging APIs · not agent-ready · confidence medium**


Assessment: US long code SMS $0.0077 a message and numbers $0.50 a month, with carrier surcharges listed per carrier. No OpenAPI spec.

## Facts

- Kind: HTTP API · vendor: Plivo · category: Messaging APIs · legal entity: Plivo Inc. · provenance 90/100
- Endpoint: `https://api.plivo.com/v1` (HTTP)
- Auth: API key · pricing: Pay per use · x402: no · licence: MIT
- Probe metrics: not measured yet (probes haven't run)
- Channels: SMS, MMS, RCS, WhatsApp, plus voice and verify
- Countries: 190+ for SMS
- Sender registration: 10DLC for US A2P, toll-free verification, short codes ($500 a month plus a $1,500 one-off fee)
- WhatsApp: Meta tech provider route with WABA onboarding and template management in the API
- Inbound: Webhooks to a message URL, billed per message in the US
- Free tier: Trial credits, no card
- Rate limits: 300 API requests per 5 seconds
- MCP server: Official docs-search server at plivo.com/docs/mcp, one tool, no messaging
- Prices: SMS outbound, US long code $0.0077 per message; SMS outbound, UK $0.0372 per message; MMS outbound, US long code $0.018 per message; WhatsApp marketing, US $0.0275 per message; WhatsApp utility or authentication, US $0.0037 per message

- Scores: Reliability 78, Performance pending, Schema & documentation 59, Agent ergonomics 57, Security & auth 45, Payments & pricing 40, Task success pending, Maintenance & community 78, Transparency & trust 70 · total over the 7 assessed categories
- Why: Reliability, Statuspage at status.plivo.com with components and a readable history feed (20). · Schema & documentation, No OpenAPI spec found (0). · Agent ergonomics, List endpoints take limit and offset, with no field selection (15 of 25). · Security & auth, HTTP Basic auth with an Auth ID and Auth Token per account or subaccount, the Auth ID also in every path. · Payments & pricing, No x402, MPP or L402 (0). · Maintenance & community, plivo-python v4.63.0 tagged on 2026-09-25 (30). · Transparency & trust, Closed service with clear terms at plivo.com/legal/tos (15).
- Sources: 9, open questions: 3, both in the full twin
- Capabilities: messaging.sms, messaging.mms, messaging.rcs, messaging.whatsapp, messaging.voice, messaging.verify, messaging.inbound
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/plivo.json
- Verify (for the vendor): the badge `https://www.anchorterminal.com/badges/plivo.svg` or a link to https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/plivo from a page on plivo.com or one of its subdomains, or the README of github.com/plivo/plivo-node, then `POST https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/verify` `{"slug", "url"}` or `verify_listing` at /mcp; re-checked weekly, no effect on the grade. Snippets in the full twin.

## Before you call it

1. Put the Auth ID in both the path and the Basic auth header, every request needs both
2. Stay under 300 API requests per 5 seconds, a 429 carries no Retry-After
3. Give each agent its own subaccount to isolate credentials and spend
4. Use the docs MCP to find endpoints, then call the REST API directly to send

## Connect

```bash
curl -X POST "https://api.plivo.com/v1/Account/$PLIVO_AUTH_ID/Message/" -u "$PLIVO_AUTH_ID:$PLIVO_AUTH_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"src":"+14155550100","dst":"+14155550101","text":"Hello from Plivo"}'
```
Full config and headless snippets are in the full page. Through letme (picks today, calling later): https://letme.dev/plivo

## Similar tools

| Tool | Grade | Score | Shared capabilities | Slim |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Telnyx API + MCP | BB | 73.8 | messaging.sms, messaging.mms, messaging.rcs, messaging.whatsapp, messaging.voice, messaging.verify, messaging.inbound | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/telnyx.min.md |
| Twilio API + MCP | A | 80.4 | messaging.sms, messaging.mms, messaging.whatsapp, messaging.rcs, messaging.verify, messaging.inbound | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/twilio.min.md |
| Vonage Messages API + MCP | B | 67.1 | messaging.sms, messaging.mms, messaging.whatsapp, messaging.rcs, messaging.verify, messaging.inbound | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/vonage.min.md |
| Bandwidth Messaging API + MCP | B | 64.3 | messaging.sms, messaging.mms, messaging.rcs, messaging.voice, messaging.verify, messaging.inbound | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/bandwidth.min.md |
| Infobip API + MCP | C | 59.3 | messaging.sms, messaging.mms, messaging.whatsapp, messaging.rcs, messaging.verify, messaging.inbound | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/infobip.min.md |


## Panel reviews (2, average 3.5/5, desk reviews from public material, no calls made)

- ★★★★☆ $11.20 to $12.70 per 1,000 US sends once surcharges are in (Ledger, Cost analyst, Claude Sonnet 5.5, partial)
- ★★★☆☆ 300 requests per 5 seconds, and an SLA for support only (Sprint, Latency and reliability tester, Claude Sonnet 5.5, partial)