SendiventvsTwilio
Both send notifications. Sendivent is ready-to-use, Twilio is build-it-yourself.
- One API for all channels
- Pre-built notification logic
- Templates and dashboard included
- Simple per-person pricing
- Low-level communication APIs
- Maximum flexibility
- Pay per message
- Build your own stack
Choose Sendivent if...
- You want to send notifications, not build notification infrastructure
- You prefer one integration over multiple APIs
- Your team doesn't want to build template management, routing, and retry logic
- You want predictable pricing per person
?Choose Twilio if...
- You need maximum control over every aspect
- You're building a communications product (not just notifications)
- You have engineering resources to build and maintain the stack
- You need specific Twilio features like voice or video
| Feature | Sendivent | Twilio |
|---|---|---|
| Via SendGrid | ||
| SMS | ||
| Push notifications | Separate product | |
| Slack | ||
| Voice calls | ||
| Video | ||
| Template management | Build yourself | |
| Routing logic | Build yourself | |
| Retry handling | Build yourself | |
| Pricing model | Per person | Per message |
| Free tier | 1,000 people/mo | Trial credits |
How Sendivent and Twilio think about communications
Twilio provides communication primitives — APIs for SMS, voice, video, and more. You get maximum flexibility but need to build everything on top: template management, routing logic, retry handling, and orchestration.
Sendivent is a notification platform built on top of providers like Twilio. You get a ready-to-use system: one API call triggers multi-channel notifications with templates, routing, and delivery handled for you.
The core difference: Twilio gives you building blocks. Sendivent gives you the finished house.
Build vs buy
With Twilio, you'll build:
- Template storage and rendering
- Channel routing logic
- Retry and fallback handling
- Delivery tracking dashboard
- User preference management
With Sendivent, you get:
- All of the above, ready to use
- One integration instead of many
- Dashboard for non-developers
- Cross-channel analytics
Building on Twilio typically takes weeks of engineering time. Sendivent can usually be integrated in an afternoon.
When Twilio makes sense
Twilio is the right choice when:
- You're building a communications product (like a call center)
- You need voice or video capabilities
- You want complete control over every detail
- You have dedicated engineering resources
When Sendivent makes sense
Sendivent is the right choice when:
- You're adding notifications to an existing product
- You want email + SMS + Slack without multiple integrations
- Your team wants to focus on your product, not notification infrastructure
- You prefer predictable per-person pricing
Pricing comparison
Twilio charges per message across their various products. SMS costs vary by country, email through SendGrid has its own pricing. Costs can be unpredictable and multiply across channels.
Sendivent charges per person notified. One user receiving email + SMS + Slack counts as one person. Predictable pricing that doesn't penalize multi-channel communication.
The build-it-yourself trap
Many teams start with Twilio thinking "we'll just send a few texts." Then they need:
- Email (add SendGrid)
- Templates (build a system)
- Routing (write business logic)
- Retries (handle failures)
- Dashboard (build UI)
Six months later, you've built a notification platform. Sendivent lets you skip that and ship features instead.
Bottom line
Choose Twilio if you need low-level communication primitives, voice/video capabilities, or maximum control and have the engineering resources to build your stack.
Choose Sendivent if you want to send product notifications without building infrastructure. Get multi-channel notifications in an afternoon, not a quarter.
Last compared: November 2024
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