Credit Costs Reference
This article lists the exact credit cost for every component of a MessageFuture message. All figures shown are the default platform rates.
Base Costs by Content Type
| Content | Credits |
|---|---|
| Text message (body) | 2 |
| Image attachment | 3 |
| Audio (up to 5 minutes) | 5 |
| Audio – each additional minute over 5 min | +1 |
| Video (up to 2 minutes) | 10 |
| Video – each additional minute over 2 min | +2 |
Recipients
The first recipient is included in the base cost. Each additional recipient adds to the total:
| Recipients | Extra credit cost |
|---|---|
| 1 recipient | +0 |
| 2 recipients | +1 |
| 3 recipients | +2 |
| 5 recipients | +4 |
| 10 recipients | +9 |
Formula: extra credits = (number of recipients − 1) × 1
Timeless Message Multiplier
If a message is set to Timeless delivery, the entire subtotal (content + recipients) is multiplied by 3×.
This reflects the long-term storage guarantee associated with Timeless messages (up to 20 years).
Example:
| Component | Credits |
|---|---|
| Text message | 2 |
| Audio (3 min, within threshold) | 5 |
| 1 extra recipient | 1 |
| Subtotal | 8 |
| Timeless multiplier (×3) | +16 |
| Total | 24 |
Worked Examples
Example 1 – Simple scheduled text message to 1 recipient
| Component | Credits |
|---|---|
| Text | 2 |
| Total | 2 |
Example 2 – Scheduled message with image and 2 recipients
| Component | Credits |
|---|---|
| Text | 2 |
| Image | 3 |
| 1 extra recipient | 1 |
| Total | 6 |
Example 3 – Timeless message with audio (8 minutes) to 1 recipient
| Component | Credits |
|---|---|
| Text | 2 |
| Audio base (up to 5 min) | 5 |
| Audio extra (3 min over threshold) | 3 |
| Subtotal | 10 |
| Timeless multiplier (×3) | +20 |
| Total | 30 |
Example 4 – Free plan: first Timeless text message
| Component | Credits |
|---|---|
| Text | – |
| Total | 0 (free tier exemption) |
Free plan users receive their first 3 Timeless text-only messages at zero credit cost. Once all 3 are used, the standard Timeless pricing applies.
Minimum Charge
Every finalised message costs a minimum of 1 credit, even if the calculated subtotal rounds to zero.
Seeing Your Cost Before Committing
The exact itemised cost breakdown is shown on the Review & Confirm screen before you tap Confirm. You can go back and adjust your message (remove an attachment, change recipients, etc.) if the cost is higher than expected.