Knowledge base

How to purchase an SMS phone number

Explore the importance and usage of toll-free numbers in businesses for customer service, sales, and support. Our guide details how to obtain one via an SMS add-on in your subscription and the subsequent approval process.

Toll-free numbers

A toll-free number is a phone number that is free for the recipient to call. Businesses use toll-free numbers for marketing and transactional purposes, such as customer service, sales, and support.

Toll-free numbers are different from shortcodes. Shortcodes are also free for the recipient to call, but they are limited in number and require a shorter verification process. Toll-free numbers are more common and require a longer verification process to ensure that the phone number is owned by a legitimate business.

They are used mainly for:

  • Customer support 

  • Text for information

  • Shipping notifications

  • Event or appointment reminders

  • Internal communication

  • Service updates

  • Emergency alerts

  • 2FA

By default, all premium accounts will have a trial number that can only be used to send to verified recipients. To learn how to add a verified recipient, read our guide on SMS verification and limits.

To start sending SMS to customers:

  1. Go to Plan and Billing. 

  2. Choose the Phone Number add-on.

  3. Select a phone number and click Add to cart to subscribe to the add-on. 

  4. Purchase the subscription and start sending with a daily volume of up to 1,000 SMS/day!

Keep in mind that SMS is currently only available in the US and Canada. 

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