Omnisend SMS pricing: you pay your plan fee plus prepaid SMS credits, and 1 credit equals $1
Omnisend does not bundle texts into a plan allowance. Per its help center (checked October 26, 2026), SMS credits are pay-as-you-go at 1 credit = $1 USD, the current Pro plan does not include SMS credits, and the current Free and Standard plans cannot send SMS. So the monthly cost is two layers: the plan fee, plus whatever credits you buy.
- Plan: Pro ($41.30/month billed monthly) is where SMS credits get added
- Per-text price: depends on the destination country and how much you buy at once; US rates on the pricing page run from $0.007 to $0.009
- Consent: single opt-in only, collected through forms, checkout, Text to Join or import
This guide is based on Omnisend's pricing page and help center articles as of October 26, 2026. For the full plan comparison see our Omnisend pricing guide, and for the email side of cart recovery see abandoned cart emails. Here we stay on SMS.
Which Omnisend plans include SMS? The help center and the pricing-page FAQ do not match
Per the help center, SMS needs the current Pro plan plus purchased credits. The pricing page FAQ, on the other hand, says Free accounts can use SMS and that Pro comes with bonus credits equal to the monthly bill, without stating an amount. On October 26, 2026 those two sources did not agree.
| Plan | Monthly price | Email and contacts | SMS per the help center |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 500 emails, 250 contacts | Not available (pricing FAQ says it is) |
| Standard | $11.20 | 6,000 emails/month, 500 contacts | Not available |
| Pro | $41.30 | Unlimited emails, 2,500 contacts | Add SMS credits (none included) |
| Custom | Quote | Over 150,000 active profiles | Confirm in the quote |
Sources: Omnisend pricing and the SMS channel help article, both checked October 26, 2026. Standard and Pro show a discounted first three months.
The practical move before you buy: open the pricing page, pick the plan you are considering and read its SMS line on screen. The plan selector and the SMS purchase screen (below) will show which wording applies to your account. If you only need email for now, Standard is enough to start and SMS can be added later on Pro.
One more note from the help center: accounts that held an SMS Credits Subscription before May 4, 2026 can stay on their legacy pricing. If you are signing up now, plan around the current terms.
How SMS credits work: prepaid, 1 credit = $1, tiered per-text rates
You buy credits first and each send draws them down. Where to do it:
- Purchase path: Store settings → Pricing and usage → SMS → Add credits. You can set up a recurring tier or make a one-time purchase
- On the pricing page, Pro shows Global SMS credits selectable from $10 to $30,000, with $50/month as the default. That is a choice you make, not part of the plan fee
- US per-text rates on the pricing page: $0.009 for $10–$49.99, $0.0085 for $50–$999.99, $0.008 for $1,000–$9,999.99, $0.007 for $10,000 and up. The "starting at $0.007/SMS" headline is the US high-volume tier
- MMS (picture messages) go to the US and Canada only; plain-text SMS can be sent worldwide
For other countries, the SMS prices page lists rates by destination, and on October 26, 2026 it was labeled Pro-only. Look up your main destination country there, or in the SMS purchase screen of a Pro account, before you budget.
A quick budget formula
At the lowest US tier ($0.009), $10 of credits covers roughly 1,100 texts ($10 ÷ $0.009). That is a US example only. For your own estimate: expected texts per month × the per-text rate for your destination, added to the Pro plan fee. Rates differ by country, so use your actual audience mix.
Sender setup and sending abroad: toll-free verification for the US and Canada, sender ID elsewhere
US and Canadian numbers need a verified toll-free number before you can send. Verification usually takes about 5 business days and can take up to 2 weeks; you cannot send until it is approved. Other countries do not require it, per the help center.
For the sender name shown to recipients, the sender name help article (checked October 26, 2026) lists these rules:
- 3–11 characters, letters and digits only; digits alone are not allowed; no emoji or symbols
- Set it once for the whole store under Store settings → SMS → Sender's name; you cannot change it per campaign
- Recipients cannot reply to an alphanumeric sender name
Some higher-risk countries have SMS sending switched off by default. You turn them on under Store settings → SMS → "SMS sending by country". If you sell to customers outside the US and Canada, check that list in your account for your main markets.
Getting SMS consent: single opt-in only, and keep a record
SMS uses single opt-in; double opt-in exists for email only. The opt-in methods article (checked October 26, 2026) lists six ways to collect consent.
| Method | How it works |
|---|---|
| Signup forms | Add a phone field and an SMS opt-in; a TCPA legal-text block is available for US and Canadian audiences |
| Preference center and landing pages | Let subscribers choose SMS on a preference page or landing page |
| Text to Join | Default keywords JOIN, SUBSCRIBE and START; generate the toll-free number in Store settings → SMS |
| Shopify checkout | Turn on the SMS marketing field under Marketing consent in Shopify's Checkout settings; opted-in numbers sync as subscribed |
| WooCommerce checkout | Add an SMS consent field; phone numbers from WooCommerce and BigCommerce sync as unsubscribed by default |
| CSV import | Choose "Import phone numbers as subscribed to SMS channel", only for contacts with documented consent |
Three practices from the help center:
- Leave checkboxes unticked by default (the WooCommerce checkout is the one exception)
- For US and Canadian audiences use a separate SMS-only checkbox; for GDPR audiences one combined email-and-SMS checkbox is acceptable
- Store consent time, source and method in custom properties so you can show when and where each person agreed
For US and Canadian audiences the required wording covers your business name, the message type, a note that consent is not a condition of purchase, message frequency, "Msg & data rates may apply", STOP/HELP instructions, and links to your privacy policy and terms. Rules in other countries are not covered in the help article, so check the requirements for the markets you send to.
Add SMS to your abandoned cart automation in 7 steps
Insert an SMS block into the existing cart workflow. The help article on SMS in automations (checked October 26, 2026) lays out the setup.
Before you start:
- Phone numbers stored in international format (for example +44…)
- SMS opt-in records on the contacts
- A sender set up (toll-free verification for US and Canada)
- SMS credits bought on the current Pro plan. You can build the workflow without credits, but you need them before it can send
Steps:
- After the abandoned cart trigger, add an SMS block, usually after a delay (for example, 1 hour)
- Write the message. An empty body triggers a warning. The sender name comes from Store settings; for US and Canadian numbers start with your brand name because the number is what shows
- Add personalization tags, a discount code (Shopify, BigCommerce and WooCommerce only) or an image (MMS, US and Canada only)
- Add opt-out wording: "Reply STOP to opt out" for the US, an unsubscribe link elsewhere
- Check the preview (there are US/CA and non-US/CA tabs)
- Turn on "Pass non-opted-in contact to next workflow step" so contacts with no phone, no opt-in or an empty credit balance do not get stuck; it is required if the flow also sends email
- Click Update
Two cart-specific settings:
- Turn on "Automatically shorten links" so clicks are tracked
- Generate a discount code per channel (the reuse setting is available)
To test, set the delay to immediate and abandon a cart yourself. Restore the real delay afterward. For subject lines and timing on the email side, see abandoned cart emails.
Before you sign up: a short checklist
SMS costs money on every send, so the consent capture should come first. If you collect phone numbers through a popup, the setup in our signup popup guide is a natural place to add the SMS field.
- Read the SMS line for your plan on the pricing page, and compare it with what your account shows
- In a Pro account, look up the per-text rate for your main destination countries and check the "SMS sending by country" list
- Decide your consent method and wording, and where you will store the record
- Budget as plan fee plus expected texts times the per-text rate
FAQ
Is Omnisend SMS free? The help center says the current Free and Standard plans cannot send SMS and that Pro needs purchased credits. The pricing FAQ suggests Free can use SMS, so confirm on your own account before relying on either.
How much does one Omnisend text cost? One credit is $1, and the per-text rate depends on country and purchase size. On the pricing page, US rates run from $0.007 to $0.009.
Do I need Pro for SMS? Per the help center, yes: current Pro plus credits.
Can I use double opt-in for SMS? No. SMS is single opt-in only; double opt-in is for email.
Does Omnisend send SMS outside the US? The help center says SMS is supported worldwide, with rates and sender rules varying by country. MMS is limited to the US and Canada.
Do I need a dedicated number? US and Canadian sending needs a verified toll-free number. Other countries do not require one.
Next step: check the SMS terms on your plan, then price your first send
SMS slots into the automations you already run. Start with the plan page to read the SMS conditions for the tier you want, then open Store settings → Pricing and usage → SMS in your account to see credit options and rates for your countries. With a rate in hand, monthly texts times price plus the Pro fee gives you your budget.
Pricing source · 2026-09-06
Official sources checked (October 26, 2026)
