Engineering
May 14, 2024
The Best OTP Service Providers
A list of OTP providers to match your app’s technical needs
If you or someone you know is developing an app, you already know that validating user identities for onboarding or any other user-triggered process is a massive concern. With the frequency of identity theft and online fraud, it isn’t uncommon for hackers to gain illegitimate access to user accounts and mishandle funds and information. After all…
According to The Identity Theft Research Center (ITRC) Annual Data Breach Report, 2023 had a record high number of data compromises in the U.S. in a single year. A 72% point hike from the previous all-time high number of compromises set in 2021. At least 353 million individuals were impacted. Source
Online payment fraud is predicted to cost businesses $343 billion between 2023-2027. Source
An easy way to avoid such fraud is to utilize OTP-based verification. The OTP is sent over an SMS, the user enters the OTP into the app, and there is no cause for concern.
However, given that OTP verification is such an essential part of app functionality, it tends to be quite expensive for app builders, especially if they are at the startup stage. Figuring out which OTP providers work best for them is another important (but somewhat tedious) task CTOs and engineering teams must work out for themselves.
To make their lives a little easier, I’ve compiled a list of OTP providers who provide guaranteed state-of-the-art services to match your app’s technical needs, regardless of user volume or industry.
Features to look for in your preferred SMS OTP Provider
Speed and reliability: The OTP should reach the intended customer’s phone within seconds. If more than a couple of seconds pass between a customer’s input and receiving the OTP, you can chalk that up to a bad user experience.
Adequate security features: In the current age, “adequate” would translate to “high-level,” in all honesty. The provider should be able to detect fraud when requesting and sending the OTP.
Regulatory compliance: The provider should comply with all legal regulations that apply to your chosen industry and region.
Easy setup: If you’re looking for SMS verification that helps you grow, start at the beginning. The SMS API in question should be easy to download, integrate, and activate. The provider should also offer clear documentation and developer-friendly setup pipelines to simplify and speed up the initial processes.
Integrates with other applications: Integrating third-party apps is essential for any modern, customer-facing software to function. Your chosen provider should be able to integrate with multiple other applications, enabling it to provide OTPs for customers across different apps and software systems.
Solid customer support: You should be able to connect with the provider whenever you have a roadblock. Choose a vendor with 24/7 support and one ready to put down a quick Average Speed to Answer in their SLAs.
Transparent pricing and service details: The best OTP service provider will give you complete transparency into the details of your pricing and what you’re paying for. Prelude, a French OTP provider, charges less per SMS and includes fraud protection. Prelude also provides a dashboard where customers can see exactly what their money is being used for. Throughout the month, you can view a dashboard and see how your SMS costs are being factored and savings per SMS sent.
Flexible billing: You should be able to adjust your billing based on your usage. Once again, Prelude allows you to pay for more expensive routes to increase conversion. If not, they choose the cheapest and fastest route by examining multiple carriers and choosing one that costs the least without affecting delivery.
Three Best OTP Providers (SMS & more...)
🥇 Prelude
Prelude provides SMS verification and onboarding infrastructure through a set of unified APIs developers might actually like. We’re dedicated to more reliable fraud detection, elegant transparency, and increased reliability — all at a better price.
Why Prelude stands out
We’ve noticed here at Prelude that our customers come to us when they face one of the two following issues:
They receive a hefty bill from their OTP provider and don’t understand why it’s so exorbitant. Generally, they are being charged for fraud.
They’re trying to build an app and need SMS verification services that don’t cost them a small fortune.
They need a vendor who understands how fast startups need to move and build…and supports them with lightning-fast customer support and assistance.
At Prelude, we try to solve both problems with our pricing model and dashboard.
In general, businesses cut their SMS verification costs by 30-40% when switching to Prelude while increasing conversion from SMS sent to SMS entered in your app… compared to their previous provider.
Prelude costs less. We charge less for fraud protection and your carrier fee. Customers can also choose to optimize OTP delivery for cost or conversion. Prelude will examine multiple carriers and find the best route for the lowest price if you choose the former. If we find a better route for less, we switch you to this route and give you the money back.
Feel free to review what Prelude charges per SMS in every country on the public website. On average, our prices are 60% below market price while offering multi-routing and antispam protection.
Prelude offers a dashboard where customers can see how their SMS costs are being factored in and the savings they get with every SMS sent. Customers get complete transparency and know exactly what they are paying for.
Additionally :
Prelude uses cross-signal risk scoring to identify spam with the highest possible accuracy. That means we only send OTP SMS to real users.
Prelude’s granular approach to fraud detection lets companies connect with real users in countries known for frequent fraudulent traffic (e.g., emerging markets like Vietnam and Brazil).
The Prelude dashboard provides analytical insight into acquisition numbers by country, platform, and application version. Customers can also view acquisition costs in real-time, as well as conversion rate and time to convert.
🥈 Twilio’s Verify API
Among the many communication APIs it offers, Twilio also provides the Verify API, which is designed to offer OTP services, i.e., two-factor authentication (2FA) via SMS, email, and voice calls at a price.
Why Twilio stands out
It enables customers to customize the content of SMSes, emails, and voice calls, which is important for branding and user experience.
It supports multiple channels for verification, such as SMS, email, passkeys, WhatsApp, voice calls, etc.
Allows customers to establish rate limits on verification attempts and set particular expiration dates/times for OTPs.
Offers cross-platform support, making it usable across web, mobile, and IoT programs.
The language of the OTP can be changed as required. The API comes with multi-language support.
Provides tools for tracking verification attempts, successes, and errors.
It has built-in features to protect against threats like brute force and unauthorized access.
It has a highly scalable infrastructure capable of handling large numbers of verification attempts.
It is compliant with regulations such as GDPR and CCPA.
Customers pay for Twilio’s Verify API based on:
The number of times the customer tries to verify a user’s phone number. Each attempt costs a fixed rate, which differs based on factors like geography.
The number of times a customer checks details about a phone number, such as its carrier or type (landline/mobile).
🥉 Vonage’s Verify API
Yes, Vonage offers a Verify API of its own. Much like the other names on this list, the Vonage Verify API helps brands and businesses authenticate users’ phone numbers via SMS, voice, etc. It provides 2FA authentication built on Vonage’s patented tech and can be used without any telecom or security experience.
Why Vonage stands out
It enables verification of phone numbers via SMS, calls, WhatsApp, email, and Silent Authentication.
It enables 2FA authentication for registration or user login.
It supports number verification and OTP delivery across the globe.
It allows customizing messages to customers, which is helpful for branding purposes.
Offers a retry option for OTP delivery: the OTP is automatically resent if the initial verification attempt fails.
Provides detailed reports on delivery and status, helping businesses track success/failure rates.
Carries in-built security features to protect user data, such as data encryption in transit and at rest.
Scalable and equipped with dev-friendly docs, SDKs, and code samples.
Customers only have to pay for successful verifications.
So, which one do you pick?
Ask yourself first: what do you want?
If you want to send marketing messages and initiate two-way conversations on messaging platforms, Twilio or Vonage are your answer.
Choose Prelude if you want flawless, fraud-less, low-price SMS & OTP verification. That’s all we do, and we do it very well. We offer lower prices, better fraud protection, more transparency, fewer outages, and round-the-clock support (for real).
Tell your developers that we make every ping count for your customer experience, not your bill.
If you or someone you know is developing an app, you already know that validating user identities for onboarding or any other user-triggered process is a massive concern. With the frequency of identity theft and online fraud, it isn’t uncommon for hackers to gain illegitimate access to user accounts and mishandle funds and information. After all…
According to The Identity Theft Research Center (ITRC) Annual Data Breach Report, 2023 had a record high number of data compromises in the U.S. in a single year. A 72% point hike from the previous all-time high number of compromises set in 2021. At least 353 million individuals were impacted. Source
Online payment fraud is predicted to cost businesses $343 billion between 2023-2027. Source
An easy way to avoid such fraud is to utilize OTP-based verification. The OTP is sent over an SMS, the user enters the OTP into the app, and there is no cause for concern.
However, given that OTP verification is such an essential part of app functionality, it tends to be quite expensive for app builders, especially if they are at the startup stage. Figuring out which OTP providers work best for them is another important (but somewhat tedious) task CTOs and engineering teams must work out for themselves.
To make their lives a little easier, I’ve compiled a list of OTP providers who provide guaranteed state-of-the-art services to match your app’s technical needs, regardless of user volume or industry.
Features to look for in your preferred SMS OTP Provider
Speed and reliability: The OTP should reach the intended customer’s phone within seconds. If more than a couple of seconds pass between a customer’s input and receiving the OTP, you can chalk that up to a bad user experience.
Adequate security features: In the current age, “adequate” would translate to “high-level,” in all honesty. The provider should be able to detect fraud when requesting and sending the OTP.
Regulatory compliance: The provider should comply with all legal regulations that apply to your chosen industry and region.
Easy setup: If you’re looking for SMS verification that helps you grow, start at the beginning. The SMS API in question should be easy to download, integrate, and activate. The provider should also offer clear documentation and developer-friendly setup pipelines to simplify and speed up the initial processes.
Integrates with other applications: Integrating third-party apps is essential for any modern, customer-facing software to function. Your chosen provider should be able to integrate with multiple other applications, enabling it to provide OTPs for customers across different apps and software systems.
Solid customer support: You should be able to connect with the provider whenever you have a roadblock. Choose a vendor with 24/7 support and one ready to put down a quick Average Speed to Answer in their SLAs.
Transparent pricing and service details: The best OTP service provider will give you complete transparency into the details of your pricing and what you’re paying for. Prelude, a French OTP provider, charges less per SMS and includes fraud protection. Prelude also provides a dashboard where customers can see exactly what their money is being used for. Throughout the month, you can view a dashboard and see how your SMS costs are being factored and savings per SMS sent.
Flexible billing: You should be able to adjust your billing based on your usage. Once again, Prelude allows you to pay for more expensive routes to increase conversion. If not, they choose the cheapest and fastest route by examining multiple carriers and choosing one that costs the least without affecting delivery.
Three Best OTP Providers (SMS & more...)
🥇 Prelude
Prelude provides SMS verification and onboarding infrastructure through a set of unified APIs developers might actually like. We’re dedicated to more reliable fraud detection, elegant transparency, and increased reliability — all at a better price.
Why Prelude stands out
We’ve noticed here at Prelude that our customers come to us when they face one of the two following issues:
They receive a hefty bill from their OTP provider and don’t understand why it’s so exorbitant. Generally, they are being charged for fraud.
They’re trying to build an app and need SMS verification services that don’t cost them a small fortune.
They need a vendor who understands how fast startups need to move and build…and supports them with lightning-fast customer support and assistance.
At Prelude, we try to solve both problems with our pricing model and dashboard.
In general, businesses cut their SMS verification costs by 30-40% when switching to Prelude while increasing conversion from SMS sent to SMS entered in your app… compared to their previous provider.
Prelude costs less. We charge less for fraud protection and your carrier fee. Customers can also choose to optimize OTP delivery for cost or conversion. Prelude will examine multiple carriers and find the best route for the lowest price if you choose the former. If we find a better route for less, we switch you to this route and give you the money back.
Feel free to review what Prelude charges per SMS in every country on the public website. On average, our prices are 60% below market price while offering multi-routing and antispam protection.
Prelude offers a dashboard where customers can see how their SMS costs are being factored in and the savings they get with every SMS sent. Customers get complete transparency and know exactly what they are paying for.
Additionally :
Prelude uses cross-signal risk scoring to identify spam with the highest possible accuracy. That means we only send OTP SMS to real users.
Prelude’s granular approach to fraud detection lets companies connect with real users in countries known for frequent fraudulent traffic (e.g., emerging markets like Vietnam and Brazil).
The Prelude dashboard provides analytical insight into acquisition numbers by country, platform, and application version. Customers can also view acquisition costs in real-time, as well as conversion rate and time to convert.
🥈 Twilio’s Verify API
Among the many communication APIs it offers, Twilio also provides the Verify API, which is designed to offer OTP services, i.e., two-factor authentication (2FA) via SMS, email, and voice calls at a price.
Why Twilio stands out
It enables customers to customize the content of SMSes, emails, and voice calls, which is important for branding and user experience.
It supports multiple channels for verification, such as SMS, email, passkeys, WhatsApp, voice calls, etc.
Allows customers to establish rate limits on verification attempts and set particular expiration dates/times for OTPs.
Offers cross-platform support, making it usable across web, mobile, and IoT programs.
The language of the OTP can be changed as required. The API comes with multi-language support.
Provides tools for tracking verification attempts, successes, and errors.
It has built-in features to protect against threats like brute force and unauthorized access.
It has a highly scalable infrastructure capable of handling large numbers of verification attempts.
It is compliant with regulations such as GDPR and CCPA.
Customers pay for Twilio’s Verify API based on:
The number of times the customer tries to verify a user’s phone number. Each attempt costs a fixed rate, which differs based on factors like geography.
The number of times a customer checks details about a phone number, such as its carrier or type (landline/mobile).
🥉 Vonage’s Verify API
Yes, Vonage offers a Verify API of its own. Much like the other names on this list, the Vonage Verify API helps brands and businesses authenticate users’ phone numbers via SMS, voice, etc. It provides 2FA authentication built on Vonage’s patented tech and can be used without any telecom or security experience.
Why Vonage stands out
It enables verification of phone numbers via SMS, calls, WhatsApp, email, and Silent Authentication.
It enables 2FA authentication for registration or user login.
It supports number verification and OTP delivery across the globe.
It allows customizing messages to customers, which is helpful for branding purposes.
Offers a retry option for OTP delivery: the OTP is automatically resent if the initial verification attempt fails.
Provides detailed reports on delivery and status, helping businesses track success/failure rates.
Carries in-built security features to protect user data, such as data encryption in transit and at rest.
Scalable and equipped with dev-friendly docs, SDKs, and code samples.
Customers only have to pay for successful verifications.
So, which one do you pick?
Ask yourself first: what do you want?
If you want to send marketing messages and initiate two-way conversations on messaging platforms, Twilio or Vonage are your answer.
Choose Prelude if you want flawless, fraud-less, low-price SMS & OTP verification. That’s all we do, and we do it very well. We offer lower prices, better fraud protection, more transparency, fewer outages, and round-the-clock support (for real).
Tell your developers that we make every ping count for your customer experience, not your bill.
Author
Shreya Bose
Writer
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