Compare
CaptiFi Connect and FireText, side by side
FireText is a UK SMS marketing platform with a long list of certifications, a free trial without a card and a named account manager. CaptiFi Connect is a newer UK service built around a two-way inbox and an API. The comparison below is from FireText's site on 16 October 2026.
How does CaptiFi Connect compare with FireText?
FireText charges 5p a text for 500 credits with discounts above 10,000, rents a reply number for £9 a month and a short-code keyword for £19, and holds ISO 27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus. CaptiFi Connect matches 5p on the smallest pack and drops to 3.5p on the largest, includes keywords and link tracking, and adds a threaded two-way inbox FireText does not have.
What FireText offers (checked 16 October 2026)
FireText sells bulk and individual texts with merge fields, scheduling and repeats, throttled sending, URL tracking with 20-character short links, templates, delivery and click reports, email to SMS, keywords with automatic replies, QR codes and tap-to-text links for opt-in, a REST API with a PHP SDK, and connectors for Zapier, Make, Power Automate and a set of named partners. Replies arrive in the account with email alerts; there is no conversation-style inbox. Support is phone, email and live chat on weekdays from 09:30 to 17:30, and a named account manager.
Pricing is a credit slider. The only tier in the page HTML is 500 credits for £25 (5p); the help centre says 5p headline with discounts above 10,000 credits, and marketing texts "typically" use two credits. A dedicated reply number is £9 a month and a keyword on the shared short code is £19 a month. Credits never expire as long as the account is used once a year. The trial needs no card and accounts are verified by hand. Certifications include ISO 27001:2022, Cyber Essentials Plus, the NHS DSP Toolkit and a CREST penetration test.
Where CaptiFi Connect differs
On the smallest pack we match FireText at 5p; above that our price falls to 4.5p, 4p and 3.5p, all shown on one page. Keywords and link tracking are free here rather than add-ons, and a dedicated number is 250 credits a month, about £10, with no minimum term. The biggest difference is the inbox: replies here sit in one thread per person, next to everything you have sent them, and you answer from the same place.
FireText is the better fit if you need a short code, QR-code opt-in pages, a named account manager, phone support, or certifications your buyer insists on. We have none of those yet.
Moving from FireText
Switching takes an afternoon. Export your contacts and opt-out list from FireText 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 | FireText | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | 5p for 500 credits (£25); larger tiers load by script; discounts above 10,000 credits. |
| Free trial | 10 free credits on every new account, no card. | Free trial, no card; accounts verified by hand; credit amount not stated on the site. |
| Credit expiry | Credits never expire. | Never, if the account is used once in 12 months. |
| Dedicated UK number | Dedicated UK mobile number: 250 credits a month (about £10), no setup fee, no minimum term. | £9 a month for a reply number. |
| Keywords and auto-replies | Free. Any number of keywords, each with a reply and a list. | Keywords with auto-reply; £19 a month on the shared short code. |
| Link tracking | Free. Short tracked links, one per recipient, with click reports and a webhook per click. | URL tracking with 20-character short links, unique click reports. |
| Two-way inbox | Two-way inbox threaded by number; replies free. | Replies in the account with email alerts; no threaded inbox. |
| Email to SMS | Email to SMS included, verified senders only. | Included, with unlimited approved senders. |
| API | REST API, test keys that send nothing, signed webhooks, OpenAPI document. | REST API, PHP SDK, Zapier, Make and Power Automate connectors. |
| Team logins | Unlimited team logins with owner, admin and member roles; two-step sign-in. | Sub-accounts on the enterprise tier. |
| Support | Email support from the people who run the service. | Phone, email and live chat, weekdays 09:30 to 17:30; account manager. |
| Certifications | No certifications yet; a UK company with UK staff. What we do to protect data is on the security page. | ISO 27001:2022, Cyber Essentials Plus, NHS DSP Toolkit, CREST test. |
Questions people ask
Is CaptiFi Connect cheaper than FireText?
The same at 500 credits (5p plus VAT at both) and cheaper above that: our 2,000 pack is 4.5p, 5,000 is 4p and 20,000 is 3.5p. FireText discounts above 10,000 credits but the tiers did not render without scripts when we checked. Keywords and link tracking are free here and £19 a month and included there.
Does CaptiFi Connect have a short code?
No. Keywords here run on your dedicated UK mobile number, which anyone can text, or on a shared number for people you have texted. FireText rents keywords on a shared five-digit short code.
Does CaptiFi Connect have an account manager or phone support?
No. Support is by email from the people who run the service. FireText offers phone, chat and a named account manager on weekdays.
What can FireText do that CaptiFi Connect cannot?
Short-code keywords, QR-code and tap-to-text opt-in pages, throttled sending, phone and chat support, named integrations and a long list of certifications. If any of those decide it, FireText is the right choice.
Where do these figures come from?
From FireText's 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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