Sendbird Pricing 2026
Sendbird is a chat API and SDK platform that developers embed in their own iOS, Android and web apps. It is not a help desk or shared support inbox, and it charges by monthly active users (MAU), not agent seats. On 24 September 2026 its Chat pricing page listed a free trial for up to 1,000 MAU, Starter at $349/month billed annually ($399 billed monthly) for 5,000 MAU, Pro at $499/month annually ($599 monthly) for the same 5,000 MAU with translation and image moderation added, and custom Enterprise pricing (sendbird.com/pricing/chat).
About Sendbird: Sendbird is a chat API and SDK platform that developers embed in their own iOS, Android and web apps. It is not a help desk or shared support inbox, and it charges by monthly active users (MAU), not agent seats. On 24 September 2026 its Chat pricing page listed a free trial for up to 1,000 MAU, Starter at $349/month billed annually ($399 billed monthly) for 5,000 MAU, Pro at $499/month annually ($599 monthly) for the same 5,000 MAU with translation and image moderation added, and custom Enterprise pricing (sendbird.com/pricing/chat).
What features does Sendbird offer?
Sendbird's feature set is intentionally built around what its target customer base values most, with a primary focus on messaging APIs and communication infrastructure. It uses a usage-based pricing model starting at $349/mo — a fundamentally different cost structure from a flat-rate alternative like Converge, which is $49/month for up to 15 agents with all messaging channels and AI tooling included as standard. The feature grid below shows what matters most when evaluating Sendbird for its primary use case, even though Sendbird and Converge ultimately serve very different product categories. Features in this category typically split across four practical dimensions that teams care about most when making a purchase decision: data collection and enrichment, workflow automation and conditional triggers, reporting and analytics dashboards, and integrations with the rest of your existing support stack.
What does each Sendbird plan include?
What each tier includes and costs
Sendbird offers 4 plans, starting at $349/mo on a usage-based model. Pick the tier that matches your messaging APIs and communication infrastructure workflow needs and team size. Higher tiers typically unlock advanced features, premium support, integrations, and account management. Watch which features are gated behind upgrade tiers and which are paid add-ons — those decisions usually determine the real-world cost of running Sendbird.
How does Sendbird's pricing model work?
How the pricing works
Sendbird uses a usage-based pricing model, which is the underlying structural decision that determines how the total subscription cost actually scales as your support team grows over time. Understanding the model is essential before committing, because the same listed starting price can produce wildly different total annual costs depending on which model the vendor chose and how your specific team uses the platform in production. The detailed implications grid directly below covers the four most important practical consequences of this specific pricing model for a typical small support team, drawn from the vendor's public pricing pages. In particular, monthly costs vary based on actual usage. For comparison, Converge sidesteps the model question entirely by charging $49/month flat for up to 15 agents regardless of team size, channel count, or usage volume.
Sendbird uses usage-based pricing, where costs are tied to volume metrics like conversations, messages, or API calls.
What this means in practice
- Monthly costs vary based on actual usage
- Overage fees apply when limits are exceeded
- Costs can spike during busy periods
- Budgeting requires forecasting usage volume
Up to 5,000 MAU at $349/mo billed annually or $399/mo billed monthly (sendbird.com/pricing/chat, checked 24 Sep 2026). Peak concurrent connections capped at 5% of MAU; overage fees apply above the MAU limit at an unpublished rate. The only printed 10K/25K Starter prices ($499/$1,199) are from a table Sendbird labels June 2021.
Is Sendbird worth the price?
An honest evaluation
Sendbird is worth the price if your team specifically needs the workflow its target customer base actually values, and also values whatever reviewers single out as its standout capability. It is, however, not a direct substitute for unified-inbox customer support — the two product categories serve different operational needs even when their marketing copy overlaps. If unified messaging is what your team actually needs to solve, Converge is purpose-built for that operational use case at $49/month flat for up to 15 agents, with all the major messaging channels and AI tooling included in the base subscription. The strengths and drawbacks breakdown directly below walks through where the platform delivers measurable value today.
Sendbird's core strength is comprehensive sdk with voice, video, and messaging. It is best suited for Developers building custom in-app messaging experiences.
Strengths
- Comprehensive SDK suite
- Excellent developer documentation
- Scalable infrastructure
- Rich feature set for in-app messaging
Drawbacks
- Expensive for small businesses
- Complex pricing structure
- Limited social media integrations
- Steep learning curve
Bottom line: Sendbird is a strong choice for teams that need messaging APIs and communication infrastructure capabilities. Evaluate based on your specific requirements and compare with alternatives in the same category.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sendbird pricing starts at $349/mo. Plans range from Free trial ($0) to Enterprise (Custom).
Yes, Sendbird offers a free plan with limited features.
Sendbird is a messaging APIs and communication infrastructure tool. Chat, calls, and live streaming APIs for mobile and web. It is best for Developers building custom in-app messaging experiences.
Sendbird's Free trial plan includes: Up to 1,000 MAU, Up to 20 peak concurrent connections, All Pro features, no credit card, Community support. Higher tiers add more advanced capabilities.
Sendbird's strength is comprehensive sdk with voice, video, and messaging. It is best for Developers building custom in-app messaging experiences. Consider your specific messaging APIs and communication infrastructure needs and compare with alternatives before committing.
Alternatives to Sendbird in the messaging APIs and communication infrastructure space include similar tools in the category. For customer support needs specifically, platforms like Converge offer unified messaging at $49/month flat.
On 24 September 2026 Sendbird's Chat pricing page listed Starter at $349/month billed annually or $399/month billed monthly for up to 5,000 monthly active users (MAU), and Pro at $499/month annually or $599/month monthly for the same 5,000 MAU with translation, image moderation and supergroup channels added. Enterprise is custom-priced for millions of MAU, and a free trial covers up to 1,000 MAU with all Pro features (sendbird.com/pricing/chat). The only 10K and 25K MAU prices in that page's text ($499 and $1,199 on Starter, $749 and $1,799 on Pro) sit in a table Sendbird labels June 2021, so ask for a current quote before budgeting above 5,000 MAU.
Sendbird charges by monthly active user (MAU), not per agent or seat. An MAU is any end user who connects to Sendbird's servers through your app's client SDK within the past 30 days (sendbird.com/pricing/chat, checked 24 September 2026). Costs therefore scale with how many of your users open chat, not with how many staff you employ. A marketplace app with 5,000 active buyers fits Starter at $349/month on annual billing, but the bill follows the user base: on Sendbird's June 2021 monthly table, Starter went from $399 at 5,000 MAU to $1,199 at 25,000. Sendbird also caps peak concurrent connections at 5% of the MAU limit on Starter and Pro and counts devices rather than users, so a traffic spike can trigger overages even when MAU stays within the plan.
On 24 September 2026 Sendbird's plan cards show one free option: a free trial for up to 1,000 MAU and 20 peak concurrent connections, with all Pro features, no credit card, community support and no overages allowed (sendbird.com/pricing/chat). The FAQ on the same page says a Developer plan stays free as long as you log into the dashboard once a year, but publishes no limits for it. The 100-MAU and 10-connection limits usually quoted come from Sendbird's February 2022 launch post (sendbird.com/blog). Business Messaging has no published free tier; its pricing page is a quote form.
Sendbird's Starter plan at $349/month billed annually comes to $4,188 a year for 5,000 MAU, before the engineering time to integrate the SDKs, customize the UIKit and keep up with version upgrades across iOS, Android and web. Building in-house means running WebSocket infrastructure, message storage, push notification routing, moderation tooling and a client SDK per platform yourself. The Sendbird math gets harder to defend in two cases: when MAU growth pushes you past the 5,000-MAU rung, where the only prices in Sendbird's page text date from 2021, and when the team realizes it is using Sendbird to build a customer support inbox rather than in-app messaging. For pure support use cases, aggregating WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger, Discord, email and a website widget, a dedicated support inbox is a closer fit than a chat API. Our Sendbird alternatives guide splits the options into chat SDKs and support inboxes.
Looking for customer support software instead?
If you're actually looking for customer support software — not messaging APIs and communication infrastructure — Converge is purpose-built for it. Converge unifies WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger, Instagram, Discord, and Zalo at $49/month flat for up to 15 agents.
Sendbird focuses on messaging APIs and communication infrastructure. If you need a unified inbox for customer conversations across WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger, Discord, and more, Converge offers all channels at $49/month flat for up to 15 agents with a 7-day free trial.
Ready to try Converge?
$49/month flat. Up to 15 agents. 7-day free trial, no credit card required.
Start Free Trial