SMS Billing Explained

What Is an SMS Segment — and Why Does It Matter?

A plain-English breakdown of how text message costs work inside Church Funnels, so you always know what you're paying for.

The SMS standard was built decades ago with a hard limit of 160 characters per message. Modern carriers still slice every text into 160-character pieces behind the scenes — each piece is called a segment. You get billed per segment, not per message.

Most short, simple texts fit in one segment and cost the same as sending a single text. Longer messages — or messages that contain emojis — automatically split into two, three, or more segments, and each one is billed separately.

Visual example — a 200-character message
Segment 1 — 160 characters
Seg 2 (40 chars)

Even though only 40 characters spill into the second segment, you're billed for 2 full segments.

Encoding Types

Emojis shrink your character limit to 70

The moment you include an emoji or special character, the entire message switches encoding — and your per-segment character count drops from 160 to just 70.

Encoding Chars / Segment Triggered by Cost impact
GSM-7 — Standard 160 Plain letters, numbers, basic punctuation Normal
Unicode / UCS-2 70 Emojis, curly quotes, accented characters 2–3× segments
Copy-paste hidden chars Varies Text pasted from Word, Google Docs, websites Unexpected cost
Your Pricing

Here's exactly what texts cost in your account

These are LC Phone pass-through rates — Church Funnels does not mark them up.

SMS / Text Message Rates
US domestic outbound segments
$0.00913
Per segment
~1,095
Segments per $10
~1,095
Simple texts per $10
$ 10
What does $10 actually get you?
With a plain-text message (1 segment each), $10 reaches roughly 1,095 people. Add emojis or write longer messages and that number drops — a 2-segment message cuts your reach to ~547 people for the same $10.
~1,095 Segments
Best Practices

4 ways to keep your SMS costs low

Small habits make a big difference when you're texting hundreds or thousands of contacts.

1
Skip emojis in bulk blasts

Emojis trigger Unicode encoding and cut your segment size from 160 to 70 characters — more than doubling your cost on longer messages. Save them for personal follow-up texts, not mass sends.

2
Type directly — don't paste from Word or Google Docs

Copied text often carries hidden formatting characters that silently switch your message to Unicode. When in doubt, paste into a plain text editor first, then copy from there into Church Funnels.

3
Keep messages under 160 characters when possible

One tight, clear sentence usually fits in a single segment. Use the character counter in your message editor to stay under the limit before sending a broadcast.

4
Use a link instead of more text

If you need to share detailed info, link out to a landing page or resource instead of writing a multi-paragraph text. Your audience gets what they need — you save on segments.

For Reference

Phone call rates in your account

These are billed per minute, separate from your text segment costs.

$0.0154 / min
Making Calls · ~650 per $10
$0.00935 / min
Receiving Calls · ~1,070 per $10

Have questions about your SMS billing or usage?
Reach out to our support team at [email protected] — we're happy to help.