RCS Business Messaging
Upgrade SMS to rich, branded conversations with RCS
RCS (Rich Communication Services) lives in the phone's native messaging app — but with your brand, verified trust marks, rich cards and buttons instead of 160 plain characters.
Verified sender · Rich media · Automatic SMS fallback
What is RCS Business Messaging?
RCS (Rich Communication Services) is the modern messaging standard built into the phone's default messaging app — the successor to SMS. RCS Business Messaging is its commercial layer: verified brands sending rich, interactive messages into that same inbox. Customers don't install anything or add a contact; your message simply arrives richer.
Where an SMS is 160 anonymous characters, an RCS message carries your verified name, logo and brand colors, plus hero images, carousels, suggested replies and action buttons that open maps, dial numbers or add calendar events. Read receipts and interaction analytics come back on every message — you finally see what happens after delivery.
With RCS active across most modern Android devices and rolling out on iPhone since iOS 18, and automatic SMS fallback covering the rest, RCS lets brands upgrade the channel they already use without giving up SMS's universal reach.
Rich messaging
Rich cards, carousels and buttons — in the SMS app
No app install, no new inbox. RCS turns the default messaging app into a rich channel with interactions you can measure.
Rich card
Carousel
Suggested replies
- Read receipts & typing indicators
- Delivery + engagement analytics
- High-resolution images and video
- Location, dialer and calendar actions
Trust marks
Verified branding customers can trust
Phishing has trained people to distrust text links. RCS senders are verified before the first message, so your brand arrives with proof.
Verified sender badge
Your agent is verified with the carriers and Google before launch — customers see a checkmark, not a random number.
Your name, logo and colors
The thread carries your brand identity, not a 6-digit shortcode.
Anti-spoofing by design
Only your verified agent can send as your brand — impersonation gets blocked at the network.
Comparison
RCS vs SMS vs WhatsApp
Three channels, three trade-offs. Most brands run RCS with SMS fallback — and WhatsApp where the audience prefers it.
| SMS | RCS | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Where it lands | Native SMS app | Native SMS app (upgraded) | WhatsApp app |
| Media & buttons | Text only, 160 chars | Rich cards, carousels, buttons | Rich media, buttons |
| Branding | Sender ID only | Verified name, logo, colors | Verified profile |
| Reach | Every handset | Android with RCS enabled | WhatsApp users (2B+) |
| Fallback | — | Automatic SMS fallback | SMS fallback via API |
| Billing unit | Per message part | Per message / 24h conversation | Per 24h conversation |
Use cases
What brands send over RCS
Campaigns that need more than text — and journeys where a button beats a link.
Retail & D2C promotions
Sale carousels with product cards and one-tap 'Shop now' buttons — a storefront in the inbox.
Order & delivery journeys
Branded shipping updates with live-tracking buttons and reschedule actions built in.
Banking & fintech
Verified-sender statements and payment reminders that customers can trust aren't phishing.
Travel & ticketing
Boarding passes and tickets as rich cards, with gate-change updates and add-to-calendar actions.
Feedback & surveys
Suggested-reply ratings collected in one tap — response rates plain SMS can't touch.
Re-engagement
Win-back offers with imagery and buttons, measured by read and click — not guesswork.
Conversations
How RCS conversations (and billing) work
RCS bills differently from SMS: single messages are billed individually, but once a customer replies, everything rolls into a 24-hour conversation window.
10:00
You send a rich card (A2P single message)
Billed as one A2P Single RCS message
10:12
Customer replies — a conversation opens
24-hour A2P conversation window starts
10:12 – 10:12 next day
Unlimited messages both ways
All included in the one conversation
+24h
Window closes
The next message starts a new billable unit
A text-only A2P message under 160 characters outside any conversation bills as a Basic RCS message — the cheapest unit. If the customer messages first, the business reply opens a P2A conversation instead.
Fallback
Not every handset has RCS — fallback covers it
RCS coverage is strong on Android and growing fast, but it isn't universal. Set a fallback chain and the same message delivers as SMS wherever RCS can't land — one send call, everyone reached.
- Automatic capability check per recipient before sending
- Graceful downgrade: rich card → text + link on the SMS leg
- One delivery report across both legs
- Registered sender IDs applied automatically on the SMS leg
FAQ
RCS questions, answered
Coverage, conversations, cost and how verification works.
What is RCS messaging?
RCS (Rich Communication Services) is the modern successor to SMS, built into the native Android messaging app. For businesses it adds verified branded senders, rich cards, carousels, suggested replies and read receipts — no app install required.
What's the difference between RCS and SMS?
SMS is 160 characters of plain text from a shortcode. RCS lands in the same app but supports rich media, interactive buttons, verified sender branding and engagement analytics. RCS also bills per conversation for two-way sessions, where SMS always bills per message part.
Do all phones support RCS?
Most modern Android phones support RCS through Google Messages; iPhone support has been rolling out since iOS 18. For handsets without RCS, our automatic SMS fallback delivers the same message as text — so campaigns reach everyone either way.
What is an RCS conversation?
A 24-hour billing window. It opens when a customer replies to your message (A2P conversation) or when you reply to a customer-initiated message (P2A conversation). Every message inside the window, in both directions, belongs to that one conversation.
Is RCS more expensive than SMS?
Per message, usually somewhat — but per outcome, often cheaper: one interactive RCS conversation can replace several SMS blasts, and basic text-only RCS messages are priced close to SMS. We'll model your traffic mix against the rate card before you commit.
How do I become a verified RCS sender?
Your brand registers an RCS agent — name, logo, colors and use case — which is verified with Google and the carriers. We prepare and submit the agent for you; approval typically takes a few days, and campaigns can start immediately after.
What analytics does RCS provide?
Far more than SMS: delivery and read receipts per message, plus interaction events — which card was viewed, which button was tapped, which suggested reply was chosen. That means RCS campaigns can be measured and A/B-tested like email, not fired blind like SMS.
Make your next campaign impossible to mistake for spam
Get verified, launch a rich campaign, and let SMS fallback cover the rest. We'll bring the rate card.
Verified sender setup included · Volume pricing