If you're using Waitwhile to keep customers informed while they wait in line or remind them of an upcoming appointment, you’ll likely want to send SMS notifications to give updates such as estimated wait times, when it's their turn, or follow-up messages. To ensure your messages are sent without interruption, it's important to estimate how many message credits you'll need.
Step-by-Step: Estimating Message Credits
Here’s how you can calculate that estimate:
1. Estimate Your Number of Visitors
Start with the number of people you expect to register over a certain time period (monthly, quarterly, or annually). For example:
500 customers per week
That’s ~2,000 customers per month
2. Multiply by Average Messages Per Customer
On average, businesses send 3 messages per customer:
Confirmation message when they join the line
Update during the wait (e.g. “You’re almost up!”)
Notification when it’s their turn
So, multiply your estimated number of customers by 3:
2,000 customers × 3 messages = 6,000 messages per month
Note: If you use Automations or send surveys/follow-ups, your average per customer may be higher.
3. Factor in Message Segments
Each SMS is made up of message segments, which are typically 160 characters per segment. Longer messages will use multiple segments, which count as multiple message credits.
A 250-character message = 2 segments = 2 message credits
Emojis or special characters can reduce allowed segment size to 70 characters
You can check the segment count for your messages in your Waitwhile message editor.
4. Multiply by the Cost per Message Credit
Once you know how many message credits you need, multiply that by the cost per SMS segment. SMS costs may vary by country, but here’s an example:
9,000 message credits needed
Cost per credit: $0.02
Estimated SMS cost = 9,000 × $0.02 = $180
See How much do SMS cost, to view pricing in your country.
Quick Formula
Estimated Visitors × Avg. Messages per Visitor × Avg. Segments per Message × Cost per Message = Estimated SMS Cost
Message Credit Examples:
Scenario A: 1,000 Visits per Month
Estimated Visitors: 1,000
Avg. SMS per visit: 2 (e.g., confirmation + reminder)
Avg. Segments: 1 per message
Cost per segment (U.S.): ~$0.0079/message segment
Formula: 1,000 x 2 x 1 x $0.0079 = $15.80
Monthly Message Credit: $16
Auto-refill recommendation: Set refill amount to $16, trigger at $5 remaining.
Scenario B: 10,000 Visits per Quarter
Estimated Visitors: 10,000
Avg. SMS per visit: 3 (e.g., confirmation, alert, completed)
Avg. Segments: 2 per message
Cost per segment (U.S.): ~$0.0079/message segment
Formula: 10,000 x 2 x 2 x $0.0079 = $474
Quarterly Message Credit: $474
Auto-refill recommendation: Set refill amount to $475, trigger at $5.
Scenario C: 500 Visits per Month
Estimated Visitors: 500
Avg. SMS per visit: 3 (e.g., confirmation, alert, completed)
Avg. Segments: 1 per message
Cost per segment (Europe): $0.05/message segment (take an average across multiple countries)
Formula: 500 x 3 x 1 x $0.05 = $75
Quarterly Message Credit: $75
Auto-refill recommendation: Set refill amount to $75, trigger at $5.
Have additional questions or need assistance? Reach out to us via chat or at support@waitwhile.com.