How TNZ Pricing Works (Billing and Costs)
Learn how TNZs usage-based pricing works. Explore billing units, cost factors, postpaid invoicing, and real-world examples for SMS, Email, and Voice.
TNZ operates on a usage-based, transactional pricing model specifically designed to offer scalability and transparency for businesses, developers, and marketers.
This guide explains how our platform fees work, how usage is calculated across different channels, and how you can manage your monthly billing.
Overview of Our Pricing Model
All TNZ accounts operate on a hybrid model that includes a low monthly platform fee (which grants you access to the TNZ Dashboard, APIs, and integrations) combined with pay-as-you-go usage charges based on your actual activity.
For example, on a standard Starter Plan, your costs are structured as:
- Platform Fee: $20.00 / month
- SMS (NZ Mobiles): $0.10 per SMS part
- Email: $0.05 per email sent
- Etc.
Note: We do not offer zero-monthly plans. However, registered non-profits and charities may be eligible for specific plans that include monthly credit allowances. Please contact our team for details.
For up-to-date pricing, see the TNZ Pricing page.
How Charges Are Calculated
Core Billing Units
Your charges are always based on the size, type, and destination of the message. Each communication channel has its own core billing unit:
- SMS: Charged per SMS part. A standard SMS part is typically 160 characters (unless using special characters like emojis).
- Voice: Charged per minute, billed in 60-second increments.
- Email: Charged per email sent (supporting attachments up to 15MB per message).
When Do Charges Apply?
In most scenarios, charges are applied at the moment a message is sent or dispatched to the carrier network. If the TNZ platform identifies a message as invalid before sending it (for example, attempting to send an SMS to a known landline prefix), no charge is applied.
Because each channel has distinct delivery mechanics, billing principles remain consistent: you are charged per successful transaction attempt. For deep technical details on chargeable outcomes, refer to our specific Result Code documentation for SMS, Email, Voice/TTS, Fax and WhatsApp.
A Note on WhatsApp: WhatsApp pricing differs from standard SMS. Meta charges for the initial message, which opens a 24-hour conversational window. Subsequent messages sent within that 24-hour window may not incur additional per-message costs from Meta.
Real-World Pricing Examples
To help you estimate your costs, here is how TNZ pricing applies to three common types of users.
1. The Solo Operator (e.g. A Local Tradesperson)
Use Case: Sending automated appointment reminders via SMS to New Zealand clients to reduce no-shows.
- Monthly Platform Fee: $20.00
- Usage: 200 short reminders (1 SMS part each) at $0.10/part = $20.00
- Estimated Monthly Total: $40.00 NZD + GST
2. The Growing Practice (e.g. A Medical Clinic)
Use Case: Sending out email newsletters and engaging patients via 2-way SMS. They often use emojis in their SMS, which changes the character encoding to UCS2 (reducing the character limit per part) and splits messages into 3 parts.
- Monthly Platform Fee: $20.00
- Email Usage: 2,000 newsletters at $0.05/email = $100.00
- SMS Usage: 500 reminders with emojis (3 parts each = 1,500 total parts) at $0.10/part = $150.00
- Estimated Monthly Total: $270.00 NZD + GST
3. The Software Developer (SaaS Platform via API)
Use Case: An application integrating high-volume transactional alerts and One-Time Passwords (OTPs) to users in both New Zealand and Australia.
- Monthly Platform Fee: $20.00
- NZ SMS Usage: 1,000 standard OTPs (1 part each) at $0.10/part = $100.00
- AU SMS Usage: 1,000 longer notification messages to Australia (300 characters = 2 parts each = 2,000 parts total) at $0.10/part = $200.00
- Estimated Monthly Total: $320.00 NZD + GST
For up-to-date pricing, see the TNZ Pricing page.
Billing Structure, Invoicing, and Payment
Postpaid Billing Cycle
TNZ operates on a postpaid billing system. There is no prepaid credit system to manage. You are simply billed at the end of the cycle for what you used.
- Billing frequency: Monthly
- Invoice date: The 2nd of each month (covering the previous month’s usage)
- Payment due: The 20th of the month
If your plan includes a monthly usage allowance (e.g., "$300 of included SMS credits"), this allowance is applied at billing time. Unused credits expire at the end of the month and do not roll over.
If you overpay an invoice, this is loaded as account credit and offset against any future invoices. Unused prepaid credit expires after 12-months.
See the Paying TNZ guide for details.
Cost Controls and Preventing Bill Shock
To protect your business from unexpected charges (whether from a coding error in your API or a compromised account) all accounts feature a configured credit limit.
- Once your usage hits this limit, outbound messaging is automatically paused.
- There are no default rate limits (speed limits) on sending; you can send at scale as long as you are within your financial credit limit.
Tip: We recommend restricting your allowed messaging destinations (e.g., NZ and AU only) in the Dashboard to prevent accidental international sending.
Free Trials
New users can explore the TNZ platform via a 14-day free trial, which includes 30 credits usable across SMS, Voice, and Email.
Please note that trials do not include access to dedicated numbers, WhatsApp services, or EDI/IoT services. When your trial ends, you will not be charged unless you actively choose to convert your account to a paid plan.
Register for a Free Trial→
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was my message split into multiple segments and charged multiple times?
SMS networks restrict messages to a specific number of characters (usually 160 for standard text, or 70 if you include special characters/emojis). If your message exceeds this limit, it is split into multiple "parts" to be transmitted across the network, and you are billed for each part. See the Multi-Part SMS guide for details.
Why do international messages cost more?
Every telecommunications carrier in every country sets their own pricing to receive messages. TNZ dynamically passes these regional costs through based on the destination of your message. See the SMS Geographies guide for pricing guidance.
Why was I charged for a failed message?
You are charged when TNZ incurs a cost from the carrier network. If a carrier accepts the message from us, but the message ultimately fails on their end (e.g., the destination mobile phone is disconnected or inactive), the carrier still charges TNZ, and that cost is passed on. See our specific Result Code documentation for SMS, Email, Voice/TTS, Fax and WhatsApp.
Do I get charged for incoming messages?
Generally, no. Standard replies to your dedicated numbers are free to receive. The only exceptions are specific inbound services designed to shift the cost away from the consumer, such as Toll-Free numbers (0800) or Free-to-Text (FTEU) short codes. With these services, you pay for the inbound communication so your customer doesn't have to. For example, the Understanding Short Codes guide outlines Standard vs. Free-to-Text NZ Short Codes.
Need Further Assistance?
For the most current rates per destination, always refer to our live Pricing Page.
If you are an enterprise sender looking for high-volume pricing, or if you need help optimising your payload sizes to reduce costs, please contact the TNZ support team.
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