HonkIOPricing
Pay per message. No packages.
SMS and email, billed per message in Canadian dollars from one prepaid balance. No contracts, no minimums, no monthly fee.
$0.03
per SMS · CAD
$0.0025
per email · CAD
Prices in CAD, before applicable taxes.
Start free, no credit card SMS: everything included
- CASL consent tracking + CRTC DNCL checking (coming soon)
- REST API + HMAC-signed webhooks
- Canadian number provisioning
- Inbound SMS on all numbers ($0.03/segment)
- Support by email
- Phone number verification (OTP): $0.25/verify + SMS
Phone number & add-on pricing
1-800 numbers are coming soon.
| Number type | Availability | Monthly cost | One-time activation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local long code (10DLC) | All Canadian provinces | $2.50/mo | $1.00 |
| Toll-free (833, 844, 855, 866, 877, 888) | Canada-wide, SMS after verification | $99.00/mo | None |
| Toll-free SMS verification | Per application, up to 5 numbers | n/a | $499.00 |
| Phone verification (OTP) | Per verification request | $0.25 + SMS | n/a |
Send and receive email on your own domain, stored in Canada, from the same balance as your SMS. Test-mode sends are free.
$0.0025 CAD per recipient$2.50 per 1,000 recipients · 2 MB of attachments included
Inbound email$0.0025 CAD per messageCovers the first 1 MB of each message, then $0.002 per started MB. Charged once a message is accepted. Mail blocked as a virus is free.
- Sending from your own domain, with DKIM and a return path
- Receiving at a managed address, or on your domain with one MX record
- Templates with versions, batches of up to 100 and scheduled sends
- CASL consent check on commercial email, with one-click unsubscribe
- Automatic suppression of bounces and complaints
- The same signed webhooks, API keys and test mode as SMS
FAQ
- Are prices in Canadian dollars?
- Yes. All pricing is in CAD, so there are no currency conversion surprises. Your invoices are in Canadian dollars.
- How does billing work?
- HonkIO is prepaid. Add credit via Stripe (Visa or Mastercard) from your dashboard or the API. Each message deducts from your balance; sends are refused once it runs dry, until you top up again.
- Any setup fees or monthly minimums?
- No monthly minimums and no packages. You pay only for the messages you send and receive, plus $2.50/month per leased phone number and a one-time $1.00 activation fee when you add a number.
- How does verification (OTP) pricing work?
- Each verification request costs $0.25 CAD, plus the standard $0.03 SMS fee for the code delivery.
- How are long messages billed?
- A text over 160 characters (70 if it contains emoji) is sent as several SMS parts and billed per part, at the same rate. Curly quotes, dashes and ellipses are converted to standard characters first, so they do not force the shorter Unicode limit. Carriers cap a message at 10 parts; a longer body is refused before anything is charged. Received messages are billed per part the same way, and STOP, START and HELP replies are free.
- Do you offer volume discounts?
- Not at this time. HonkIO is built for transactional and relationship messaging (reminders, order updates, two-way conversations, verification codes), not campaigns, so pricing is one flat rate for everyone. Accounts start at 250 messages a day and grow by request once you have been sending for 30 days. If your volume outgrows that, talk to us; we may offer volume pricing for approved accounts in the future, but bulk marketing will not be the fit either way.
- How does toll-free SMS work, and what does it cost?
- Toll-free messages cost the same $0.03 per segment as local ones, and a toll-free number is $99.00/month. Before a toll-free number can send SMS, the carrier has to verify your business: a one-time $499.00 fee per application, covering up to 5 numbers. The fee is refunded in full if HonkIO declines the application; once the application has gone to the carrier it is not refunded, but a carrier rejection can be fixed and resubmitted at no charge. Canadian toll-free messaging also needs double opt-in: each recipient confirms by replying YES before you text them from a toll-free number.
- How is email billed?
- Per accepted recipient: every address in to, cc and bcc that passes the suppression and consent checks counts once. A recipient refused before sending is not charged. The price comes out of the same prepaid balance as SMS.
- Do test-mode emails cost anything?
- No. Emails sent with a test key never leave HonkIO and are always free, including the simulated deliveries, bounces and complaints.
- Do attachments cost extra?
- The first 2 MB per recipient are included. Above that, $0.002 per MB per recipient, rounded up to the next MB, up to 25 MB per email. A 10 MB attachment to one recipient costs $0.0185 all in.
- How is received email billed?
- Each message accepted at one of your receiving addresses costs $0.0025 CAD for its first 1 MB, and $0.002 for each started MB after that, measured on the whole message as received. It comes from the same prepaid balance, the way a received SMS does. Mail blocked as a virus is free, and so is mail over your daily receiving cap (1,000 a day by default), which is recorded without its body.
Start sending SMS and email today
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Test keys work without a card.