US billing model

This document outlines the billing model for RCS for Business traffic on US carriers.

Important: US carriers set the price for the billable message types described in the following sections. They also determine the developer's final charge for sending RCS for Business messages. This document serves as an informative guide on how billable message types and events are defined in the US market. For additional pricing or billing information, please contact the appropriate carrier representatives.

• For information about the standard billing model (for non-US traffic), see the Billing FAQ.
• For information about reporting, see the guide to Billing reports and activity logs.

Overview of US billing classifications

Every message to or from a US phone number is automatically classified into one of three types based on its format:

• Rich Message (bi-directional)
• Rich Media Message (bi-directional)
• Suggested Action Click (user-initiated)

Refer to the following sections for detailed specifications.

A note on terminology

To describe the direction of messaging traffic, US carriers typically use MT/MO terminology. These terms correspond to the A2P/P2A terminology used throughout the RCS for Business documentation:

• MT (Mobile Terminated) is A2P (Application-to-Person): A message sent by the business.
• MO (Mobile Originated) is P2A (Person-to-Application): A message or action initiated by the user.

Agent-to-Person (A2P/MT) event billing

This section covers the billing logic for messages sent by an agent (that is, A2P or MT messages).

Rich Messages (A2P)

A message is classified as a Rich Message if it only contains a combination of the following elements:

• Text
• Suggested replies
• Suggested actions of the following types only:
  • Dial a number
  • Open URL in the standard browser, not a webview

Billing logic for Rich Messages

A Rich Message is billed based on segments.

• Segment size: 1 segment = 160 bytes of UTF-8 encoded text.
• Calculation: The total UTF-8 byte length of the message's text is divided by 160 and always rounded up to the nearest whole number.
• Exclusions: The text and postback data within suggested replies or actions are not included in the segment count.
• Example: A 300-byte text message has 2 segments (300 / 160 = 1.875, rounded up to 2).

Byte count

Some unicode characters (like emojis or accented letters) are multi-byte, so the total UTF-byte count may differ from the character count.

To check the exact byte count of a message, type or paste it below.

Rich Media Messages (A2P)

A message is classified as a Rich Media Message if it contains at least one of the following:

• A rich card or a carousel (even without media)
• A media file attachment (image, video, audio)
• A suggested action other than Dial a number or Open URL with browser, including:
  • View location
  • Share location
  • Create calendar event
  • Open URL in a webview

Billing logic for Rich Media Messages

A Rich Media Message is billed as a single, flat-rate event.

• The billing is the same regardless of the text length, number of cards, or size of the media file.
• Segmentation does not apply.

A2P API response examples

These examples show the richMessageClassification field in a successful RBM API call response for messages sent by the agent.

Example API response for a RICH_MESSAGE

{
  "name": "...",
  "sendTime": "2025-05-22T20:03:35.474764Z",
  "contentMessage": {
     ...
  },
  "richMessageClassification": {
    "classificationType": "RICH_MESSAGE",
    "segmentCount": 5
  }
}

Example API response for a RICH_MEDIA_MESSAGE

{
  "name": "...",
  "sendTime": "2025-05-22T20:03:35.474764Z",
  "contentMessage": {
     ...
  },
  "richMessageClassification": {
    "classificationType": "RICH_MEDIA_MESSAGE"
  }
}

Person-to-Agent (P2A/MO) event billing

This section covers billing for messages and actions initiated by a user (that is, P2A or MO messages).

Rich Messages (P2A)

A user message is classified as a Rich Message if it contains only text. This includes both free-form text and the text that results from tapping a suggested reply. (Suggested replies may include a postback data identifier in the message payload.)

Billing logic: Billed based on segments. For details on segment count calculations see Billing logic for Rich Messages.

Rich Media Messages (P2A)

A message is classified as a Rich Media Message if it contains an uploaded file (image, video, audio).

Billing logic: Billed as a single, flat-rate event. Segmentation does not apply.

Suggested Action Clicks

A user tap on any suggested action generates one billable event called a Suggested Action Click. (Suggested actions may include a postback data identifier in the message payload.)

Billing logic: Generates one billable event per click.

Note: A user's tap on a suggested reply (which sends text) does not generate a Suggested Action Click. Instead, the resulting message is billable as a Rich Message.

Special case: Share location

Locating sharing is unique in that it generates two separate P2A billable events:

• The suggested action click: The user's tap on the Share location suggested action generates one Suggested Action Click event.

• The location message: After the user selects a location from the map interface, a message with location coordinates is sent to the agent. This MO message generates a Rich Message event with a segment count of one.

P2A webhook response examples

These examples show the richMessageClassification field in webhooks sent to the agent for user-initiated events.

Example webhook for a user-sent RICH_MESSAGE

{
  "agentId": "AGENT_ID",
  "senderPhoneNumber": "PHONE_NUMBER",
  "messageId": "MESSAGE_ID",
  "sendTime": "2025-05-22T20:03:35.474764Z",
  "text": "Hello, world!",
  "richMessageClassification": {
    "classificationType": "RICH_MESSAGE",
    "segmentCount": 1
  }
}

Example webhook for a user-sent RICH_MEDIA_MESSAGE

{
  "agentId": "AGENT_ID",
  "senderPhoneNumber": "PHONE_NUMBER",
  "messageId": "MESSAGE_ID",
  "sendTime": "2025-05-22T20:03:35.474764Z",
  "userFile": "...",
  "payload": "...",
  "richMessageClassification": {
    "classificationType": "RICH_MEDIA_MESSAGE"
  }
}

Example webhook for a SUGGESTED_ACTION_CLICK

{
    "agentId": "...",
    "senderPhoneNumber": "...",
    "messageId": "...",
    "sendTime": "...",
    "suggestionResponse": {
        "text": "Click here",
        "postbackData": "...",
        "type": "ACTION"
    },
    "richMessageClassification": {
        "classificationType": "SUGGESTED_ACTION_CLICK"
    }
}

Example webhook for a location message

This is the second billable event in the Share location flow, sent after the user shares their location from the map.

{
    "agentId": "...",
    "senderPhoneNumber": "...",
    "messageId": "...",
    "sendTime": "...",
    "location": {
      "latitude": 37.422000,
      "longitude": -122.084056
    },
    "richMessageClassification": {
        "classificationType": "RICH_MESSAGE",
        "segmentCount": 1
    }
}

Technical and implementation notes

• Segments are for billing purposes only: Long messages are delivered as a single unit to the user's device. The segment count is a virtual calculation for billing purposes; it doesn't affect how messages are delivered or presented to the user.
• Automatic classification: The message classification is fully automatic based on message content and can't be manually overridden.
• Rollout: The US billing model was enabled across the RCS for Business platform on July 15, 2025. From this date onwards, Google's reporting and API responses reflect the new classifications.