How the platform works

Learn the main concepts of the platform and how they fit together.

Your account

All access starts with your account. From there, you manage your users, roles, and permissions, channels, products, API keys, settings, and billing, and contact Support.

You can log in to the web interface using a password, SSO, Google, or GitHub. When logging in from a new device, you will also complete a two-factor authentication (2FA) check. Developers typically connect through the API using an API key and the base URL provided in their account. You can connect AI agents through MCP using an API key or OAuth 2.1.

Every account starts as a single account, suitable for one brand or a small team. If you need to manage multiple customers or brands, see Account types and structures.

Channels

A channel is a communication method you use to interact with customers, such as SMS, WhatsApp, Email, Voice, RCS, Viber, or Apple Messages for Business. Each channel supports different capabilities. Depending on the channel and your configuration, you can send messages, receive messages, or both, enabling two-way conversations.

You send from a resource

To communicate through a channel, you use a resource: the communication asset associated with that channel and the sender identity your recipient sees. Depending on the channel, this can be a phone number, an alphanumeric sender, an email domain, an RCS sender, or another channel-specific sender. In the documentation and APIs, the terms sender and number may also refer to a resource.

During the free trial, you send messages using a shared test sender. Shared test senders vary by channel, and some channels require registration before you can test them.

For production, you use your own resource. Resources and numbers explains the requirements for each channel and how to obtain the resources you need.

Requirements vary by channel and country

Depending on the channel and country, you may need to meet specific requirements before sending messages or each time you send. Some requirements apply when obtaining a resource, while others apply to every message.

These include:

• Registration and approval: Register your sender, brand, campaign, or business when required by the channel or market.
• Messaging rules: Follow applicable content, template, consent, and regional rules.

For example:

• WhatsApp: You can reply freely within 24 hours of the last message from a customer. Outside this window, you can start a conversation only with a message template approved in advance by WhatsApp.
• SMS in India: Indian regulations require DLT registration. Before sending, you must register your business, sender IDs, and message templates on a regulator-mandated platform.
• SMS in the US: Before sending from any US number, you must register your brand and the purpose of your messages, known as a campaign. This applies to regular 10-digit numbers (10DLC), toll-free numbers, and short codes. Each number type has a different registration process.

These requirements are set by channels, countries, and mobile operators. They apply to every sender using the relevant channel or operating in the relevant market. Registration can take time, so plan ahead before going live. Check the documentation for your channel to understand which requirements apply.

Products and tools build on channels

Channels carry the messages, while products and tools use, manage, analyze, or extend those channels.

With them, you can:

• Send messages by connecting your own systems through the API, or without code from the web interface. Send on one channel, or on several.
• Make and manage calls, from programmatic call control to voice menus and private numbers.
• Engage customers in the web interface with journeys, chatbots, AI agents, and a shared inbox for your team.
• Verify users and prevent fraud, for example with one-time PINs sent to their phone.
• Analyze traffic and delivery in the web interface, or pull the data into your own systems through the API.
• Protect delivery and reputation by checking numbers before you send and respecting opt-outs.

For the products and tools behind each area, see Products and tools.

You choose how you build

You can work with the platform in several ways, and combine them:

• In the web interface, without code.
• Through the API or an SDK, from your own systems.
• Through an AI agent connected over MCP. You describe what you want in plain language, and the agent calls the platform for you.
• From a tool you already use, such as Salesforce or HubSpot, through an integration or an Exchange app.

Accepted does not mean delivered

When you send a message, the platform confirms whether it accepted the message for processing. That confirmation does not mean the message was delivered. Delivery happens afterward, and the final outcome arrives separately.

A message moves through intermediate (pending) and final statuses. Final statuses are:

• Delivered
• Undeliverable
• Expired
• Rejected

Their meaning can vary by channel. For what each status means, see Message status codes.

From setup to the final status, sending a message follows these steps:

To check the final status of a specific message, use message logs or reports in the web interface, or use the API. You can also receive each delivery report (DLR) automatically through a webhook, a notification sent to your own system.

Dashboards and most other reports group results, for example by channel or sender, so they show totals and trends rather than individual messages. A delivery report includes the final status, timestamps, network information where available.

For failed messages, the Error code reference explains each code and how to fix it. To handle errors in your own integration, see Handling errors.