Compare
CaptiFi Connect and Esendex, side by side
Esendex is a long-established UK provider, part of Commify, selling SMS alongside WhatsApp, RCS, email and voice on monthly plans. CaptiFi Connect is pay as you go and SMS only. The comparison below is from Esendex's UK site on 16 October 2026.
How does CaptiFi Connect compare with Esendex?
Esendex sells monthly plans from £54 for 500 messages, with a dedicated number and sender name included, and holds ISO 27001 and Cyber Essentials. CaptiFi Connect sells prepaid packs from £25 with texts at 3.5p to 5p plus VAT, no monthly fee, credits that never expire, and a dedicated number for 250 credits a month, all bought by card without asking for a quote.
What Esendex offers (checked 16 October 2026)
Esendex sells a messaging platform and APIs across SMS, WhatsApp, RCS, email and voice, plus landing pages, surveys, automations set up with its services team, an SMS Chat inbox with agent assignment, email to SMS, shared and dedicated short codes, sender IDs and managed services. It states ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials, UK hosting and PECR compliance, shows a UK phone number, and offers office-hours technical support with a four-hour target and paid 24-hour support.
Pricing is three monthly plans: Starter at £54 for 500 messages, Growth at £143 for 2,500 and Enterprise at £468 for 10,000, each including a dedicated number, sender ID, platform and API access, and each with a "Get a quote" button rather than a buy button. Worked out per message that is 10.8p, 5.7p and 4.7p. The FAQ page says "from 2.3p" for contract customers. The trial is described as 7 days with no card on the sign-up page and as 30 days with 100 free credits on the bulk SMS page. Inbound cost, keyword cost and credit expiry are not published.
Where CaptiFi Connect differs
You can see every price and buy without talking to anyone. Our four packs run from £25 for 500 credits (5p a text) to £700 for 20,000 (3.5p), plus VAT, with no monthly fee and no expiry. At Esendex's published plan prices, 500 messages cost £54 a month and 10,000 cost £468; the same volumes with us are £25 and £350 (two Business packs) as a one-off, with the credit kept until used.
Esendex includes a dedicated number and sender name in every plan; ours are separate, the number at 250 credits a month and the sender name free after checking. Esendex is the better fit if you need WhatsApp, RCS, landing pages, surveys or a managed service, or if a certification is a condition of your procurement.
Moving from Esendex
Switching takes an afternoon. Export your contacts and opt-out list from Esendex as CSV, create a CaptiFi Connect account, and import both: contacts go in with column mapping, opt-outs go in under Opt-outs so nobody who has stopped hears from you again. Sender names are re-checked by us, which takes a working day or two, so ask for them first.
- Set everything up while we check your account: contacts, lists, templates, keywords and API keys all work before approval.
- Build against the API with a test key, then swap in a live key. The request shapes are documented on one page and in the OpenAPI document.
- Run the first campaign to a small list and compare the delivery report with what you are used to.
Head to head (checked 16 October 2026)
| CaptiFi Connect | Esendex UK | |
|---|---|---|
| Price per text | From 3.5p to 5p plus VAT a text, depending on the pack. Four packs from £25 to £700, shown on the pricing page. | Plans at £54 for 500, £143 for 2,500, £468 for 10,000 a month (10.8p to 4.7p); "from 2.3p" on contract; quote-led. |
| Free trial | 10 free credits on every new account, no card. | 7 days, no card, on the sign-up page; 30 days with 100 credits on another page. |
| Credit expiry | Credits never expire. | Not published. |
| Dedicated UK number | Dedicated UK mobile number: 250 credits a month (about £10), no setup fee, no minimum term. | Included in every plan. |
| Keywords and auto-replies | Free. Any number of keywords, each with a reply and a list. | Keyword responses through automations; set up via API or services team. |
| Link tracking | Free. Short tracked links, one per recipient, with click reports and a webhook per click. | Short URLs; click tracking on landing pages. |
| Two-way inbox | Two-way inbox threaded by number; replies free. | SMS Chat with agent assignment and audit trail. |
| Email to SMS | Email to SMS included, verified senders only. | Included. |
| API | REST API, test keys that send nothing, signed webhooks, OpenAPI document. | REST APIs per channel, developer hub. |
| Team logins | Unlimited team logins with owner, admin and member roles; two-step sign-in. | Role-based team access. |
| Channels | SMS only, UK mobiles only. | SMS, WhatsApp, RCS, email, voice, landing pages, surveys. |
| Support | Email support from the people who run the service. | UK phone; office hours free, 24-hour paid. |
| Certifications | No certifications yet; a UK company with UK staff. What we do to protect data is on the security page. | ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials, PCI DSS, UK hosting. |
Questions people ask
Is CaptiFi Connect cheaper than Esendex?
At the plan prices Esendex publishes, yes at every volume: 500 messages are £54 a month there and £25 as a one-off here; 10,000 are £468 a month there and £350 here. Esendex quotes lower rates on contract ("from 2.3p"), which you have to ask for.
Does CaptiFi Connect include a dedicated number like Esendex?
Not in the price of a pack. A dedicated UK mobile number is 250 credits a month, about £10, with no minimum term. Shared numbers, which every account uses by default, are free and support replies.
Does CaptiFi Connect hold ISO 27001 or Cyber Essentials?
Not yet. Esendex does. If a certification is a condition of your purchase, choose a certified provider. What we do to protect your data is set out on the security page.
What can Esendex do that CaptiFi Connect cannot?
WhatsApp, RCS, email and voice from one platform, landing pages and surveys, short codes, phone support and a managed service. We send SMS to UK mobiles and nothing else.
Where do these figures come from?
From Esendex's UK website on 16 October 2026. Prices and terms change, so check their site before deciding, and tell us if something here is out of date.
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