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Pricing is quote-based.
Azure Communication Services has no free plan, but Job Router includes 0–100 jobs per month free, and qualifying Microsoft 365 users get free Teams API/SDK interactions. Azure also lists $200 in Free Account credit; its duration is not published. Beyond those limits, Pay-As-You-Go charges accrue by minute, message, request, email and data transferred. Some important voice, phone-number and SMS rates are not published on the main page, so a complete budget requires checking the current rate card.
01Every plan, line by line
| Plan | Billed annually | Billed monthly | Built for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pay-As-You-Go | — | Quote | Teams paying for communication usage |
Add-ons and overages
- Voice and Video Calling over IP: $0.004/user minute
- SIP Direct Routing: $0.004/minute
- Closed Captions: $0.021/minute
- Call Recording: $0.002/minute mixed audio; $0.01/minute mixed audio and video; $0.0012/minute/participant unmixed audio
- Line Type Number Lookup: $0.005/request
- Phone number leasing: geographic, toll-free, short code and 10DLC/local prices vary or are not published
- Chat: $0.0008/message sent
- SMS: toll-free, short code, alphanumeric sender ID, 10DLC and mobile rates not published on the main page
- Email: $0.00025/email sent plus $0.00012/MB transferred
- Messaging Connect (Preview): $0.0025/message
- Advanced Messaging: $0.005/user message; WhatsApp channel fee not published
- Job Router beyond 100 jobs: $0.01/job routed
- Voice Calling - PSTN rates not published
02What the plan grid doesn't tell you
Per-unit usage adds up
Calling, captions, recording, chat and messaging have separate usage rates. Forecast units by feature and account for mixed or unmixed recording rates.
Unpublished rates
PSTN voice rates, many SMS rates and phone-number leasing prices are not published on the main page; request current rates before launch.
Email data transfer
Email costs $0.00025 per email sent plus $0.00012 per MB transferred, so message volume and payload size both affect the bill.
Job Router overage
The first 100 jobs per month are free; each additional job routed costs $0.01.
03Which plan should you buy?
| If you are… | Get | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Prototype using Job Router | Pay-As-You-Go | The first 0–100 Job Router jobs per month are free; usage above that costs $0.01 per job. |
| Teams API/SDK users | Pay-As-You-Go | Qualifying Microsoft 365 users get free Teams interactions; confirm seat and usage limits, which are not published. |
| Production communications team | Pay-As-You-Go | There is no fixed recurring fee, but model each usage unit and obtain unpublished phone, PSTN and SMS rates. |
04Is Azure Communication Services worth the money?
Pay-As-You-Go can fit workloads where usage is measurable and the listed per-unit rates cover the features you need. The free Job Router allowance and qualifying Teams interactions help at small volumes, but they are not a general free tier. Production costs are hard to forecast when PSTN voice, phone-number leasing and several SMS rates are unpublished on the main page. Get a full rate quote and confirm the service roadmap before building a long-lived dependency.
Azure Communication Services pricing FAQ
Is Azure Communication Services free?
There is no free ACS plan listed. Job Router includes 0–100 jobs per month free, while qualifying Microsoft 365 users get free Teams API/SDK interactions. Azure also lists $200 in Free Account credit, but its duration is not published.
What is the cheapest Azure Communication Services rate?
Among the listed paid rates, email costs $0.00025 per email sent, while chat is $0.0008 per message sent. Job Router is free for 0–100 jobs per month and costs $0.01 per job routed beyond that allowance.
How much does ACS email cost?
The listed ACS email rate is $0.00025 per email sent plus $0.00012 per MB transferred. Estimate both message volume and transferred data. Confirm current rates and the service roadmap with Microsoft before using ACS Email in a new production system.
Are Azure Communication Services prices published for SMS and voice?
Some rates are published: Voice and Video Calling over IP is $0.004 per user minute, and SIP Direct Routing is $0.004 per minute. PSTN voice rates and many SMS rates are not published on the main page, so request current rates for your destinations and use case.