Overview

Gupshup combines AI agents with campaign tools and multichannel messaging. Agents can use live conversation context to take actions such as booking appointments, cancelling tickets, or making EMI payments. Teams can set engagement rules, connect business tools, establish guardrails, and define a trusted source of truth. Complex conversations can be escalated to human support, making the platform a fit for workflows that need both automation and a human fallback.

Campaigns include triggers and drip journeys, with metrics to track their performance. Gupshup says it supports more than 50,000 businesses in over 130 countries and powers 120 billion conversations annually. That stated scale may reassure organizations planning substantial messaging programs, though it does not by itself establish fit for a particular workflow.

Key features

Agent building and control: A visual flow builder, AI bot generation, knowledge-base answers, and lead qualification support both guided flows and context-aware agents. Rules, tools, guardrails, and a trusted source of truth provide ways to shape agent behavior; human handoff covers cases automation should not finish alone.
Broad channel coverage: Channels include WhatsApp, Instagram, SMS, web and app, RCS, and voice. This suits teams reaching customers in different environments, while the range also means channel-specific fees and requirements should factor into cost planning.
Campaign journeys: Trigger campaigns and drip journeys, paired with performance metrics, support teams running ongoing customer communications rather than isolated conversations.
Integrations: Gupshup lists integrations including Salesforce Marketing Cloud, MoEngage, CleverTap, Oracle Responsys, WebEngage, Bloomreach, and Braze. It also describes custom integrations with any platform and more than 500 plug-and-play integrations across support, payments, CRM, and commerce, useful for teams connecting messaging to existing systems.
Security and compliance: Its security materials display ISOQAR, AICPA, RBI, GDPR, CCPA, and LGPD marks and describe a periodically reviewed security compliance program. Organizations should assess these against their own compliance requirements.

Pricing

Gupshup’s pricing model is paid, with a free plan and a displayed starting price of $0.00. The self-serve WhatsApp offer has no monthly platform charge in the listed plans, but it is not cost-free messaging: Gupshup charges $0.001 per message, and WhatsApp fees are billed at actuals. WhatsApp fees vary by message type and country.

Gupshup messaging fee: 0.00 USD per month, billed with a standard 0.001 USD Gupshup fee per message, applicable to all messages; WhatsApp fees are billed at actuals. This is a low-commitment entry point for teams evaluating self-serve messaging, but usage charges still apply.
WhatsApp API Self Serve: 0.00 USD per contact, billed at $0.001 per message. Template and session messages are each $0.001; media over 64KB is free, and WhatsApp fees are billed at actuals. The free platform charge can suit teams starting with WhatsApp, but it does not remove variable WhatsApp costs.

Enterprise pricing is custom and requires contacting Gupshup. The self-serve prices are specific to WhatsApp; teams using other channels should not assume the same charges apply.

Platforms

Gupshup is available via API and web. The API suits teams integrating messaging into their own systems, while the web platform provides a route for managing work without building every interaction into an application.

Who it's for

Gupshup targets marketing, performance marketing, commerce and growth, and customer support and CX teams. It is strongest for organizations combining conversational automation with campaigns and customer messaging across channels. Teams seeking a narrow, predictable-cost WhatsApp tool may find the per-message charge plus variable WhatsApp fees less straightforward.

Pros and cons

Pros

Agents can take useful actions: Appointment booking, ticket cancellation, and EMI payments extend automation beyond answering questions.
Human escalation is built into the offering: Complex cases can pass to support teams rather than being forced through automation.
Campaigns and channels sit alongside agent tools: Teams can combine journeys, metrics, and messaging across several customer channels.
Integration options are broad: Named marketing integrations and plug-and-play options across business systems can reduce the need to treat messaging as a silo.

Cons

WhatsApp use carries variable costs: The per-message charge is joined by WhatsApp fees billed at actuals, which vary by country and message type.
Enterprise pricing requires a sales conversation: Organizations needing enterprise terms cannot assess that price from the self-serve plans.
Its breadth may be unnecessary for narrow needs: Teams looking only for a single messaging channel may not need the agent, campaign, and integration scope.

Alternatives

For RCS-focused or messaging needs, the following options may fit better depending on channel and pricing priorities.

SimplyRCS is a freemium API and web option with a $0 platform pay-as-you-go plan that includes the full builder and API, with messaging at published rates and AI credits available to buy. Its Starter plan is 20.00 USD per month for about 400 AI conversations monthly, a clearer fit for teams seeking an RCS-oriented builder with a defined lower-tier AI allowance.
Telesign Communications Platform is an API and web alternative with a free plan and free trial; choose it for consideration when those entry options matter, while its listed plan requires contacting sales for pricing.
BuzZync RCS Messaging is an API and web option designed and developed by Zorya Technologies; its pay-as-you-go pricing varies with monthly messaging volume.
Bandwidth Messaging API is an API and web option with a free trial but no free plan. Its U.S. 10DLC SMS outbound plan is 0.00 USD per once, billed per message, while U.S. short code SMS outbound is 0.01 USD per once, billed per message; it may suit teams comparing specific U.S. SMS routes.
LINK Mobility RCS is an API and web RCS option with pricing that varies by message type; RCS Basic is limited to 160 characters, while RCS Conversation uses a 24-hour session.
Yup Chat RCS API is a paid API and web alternative for readers comparing RCS API options.
Esendex RCS Business Messaging offers bespoke multichannel packages and a free trial, with RCS pricing available by quote.
Route Mobile RCS is an Android and API RCS alternative with pricing dependent on service provider, message volume, and requirements.

Browse RCS Business Messaging Software, Customer Service Automation Software, RCS Messaging Platforms, Transactional SMS Software, Conversational Marketing Software, and WhatsApp Business API Providers for category comparisons.

Verdict

Choose Gupshup if your team wants agents that can act, campaigns that can be measured, and messaging across multiple channels in one platform. Its human handoff and integration breadth strengthen the case for complex customer workflows. Look elsewhere if your priority is a narrowly scoped channel tool or predictable WhatsApp costs: the per-message fee and actual WhatsApp charges remain part of the equation.

	AthenaText	Gupshup
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Free trial	No	No
Paid from	$49/mo	Free
Open source	No	No
Platforms	api, Web	api, Web
Free plan	Yes	No
Paid from	49 /mo	—
AI responses	Yes	—
Workflow builder	Yes	—
Two-way SMS	Yes	—
Message limit	1,000 messages/mo	—
MMS support	Yes	—
API access	Yes	—

AthenaText vs Gupshup

AthenaText

Gupshup