SMS OTP providers in Saudi Arabia 2026

Who this is for

You are building a Saudi app or store and need to send a one-time code to a Saudi mobile number, by SMS and maybe WhatsApp. You want to know who can do it, what it costs, and what the catch is. This is the comparison we wished existed when we started, with every number taken from the provider's own public page and the date we checked it. Tawked is one of the options: an OTP verification API for Saudi numbers at SAR 0.09 per SMS code sent, with the verification logic included. Codes go out from Tawked's own sender ID with your app's name in the text, so there is no sender name to register. Tawked is in the table with everyone else, and we say plainly where we are not the cheapest.

The short answer

• A Saudi gateway costs 6.3 to 14 halalas per SMS sent, Tawked costs 9 halalas (SAR 0.09) per SMS code sent, VAT included, and a global provider about 73 halalas per segment. The Saudi gateways list prices in riyals including VAT; the global ones list US dollars before tax and charge per 160-character segment.
• Most providers charge per message sent, and so does Tawked. The differences: one price per code, never per segment or per attempt, and a send the network refuses is refunded to your balance at once.
• At a gateway you register your own sender name for a yearly fee (SAR 230 a year on the public lists we found). Tawked sends OTP codes from its own sender ID and names your app in the text, so there is nothing to register.
• Only an OTP product gives you the verification logic. A gateway sells the message; code generation, expiry, attempt limits and abuse protection are yours to build.
• Moving from Twilio Verify? Twilio charges USD 0.05 per successful verification plus USD 0.1949 per SMS segment to Saudi Arabia, about SAR 0.92 for a one-segment code; Tawked charges SAR 0.09 per code sent. The steps and the status map are in our Twilio Verify alternative guide.

Where Tawked fits

Tawked is the OTP verification API in the table below: one call to send a code by SMS to a Saudi number, one call to check it, SAR 0.09 per SMS code sent, prepaid, no contract. Codes come from Tawked's own sender ID and the text names your reviewed app, so you register no sender name. It is not a bulk SMS gateway and does not try to be one; if you want to send marketing campaigns, pick a gateway. If you want your sign-in to work, the two calls are documented at tawked.com/en/docs and every limit is listed on the Tawked Verify page.

The comparison

Prices checked on the pages listed under Sources: Taqnyat, 4Jawaly and Twilio on 2026-10-08, the others on 2026-09-09. Riyal conversions use USD 1 = SAR 3.75. Tawked's price is the one on its pricing page; whether a provider's figure includes VAT is stated where the provider states it.

What the table does not show

What gets refunded. A gateway bills the moment it accepts the message. Networks reject or drop a share of messages (wrong numbers, ported numbers, filtered content, handset off for hours). Ask each provider what it refunds: a message the gateway refuses, one the network drops after accepting it, or nothing. At Tawked, a send that is refused before it goes out, or that fails, is refunded to your balance at once; a message a network drops after accepting it is charged.

Segments. Global providers price per 160-character segment for Latin text and 70 characters for Arabic. An Arabic OTP message with a brand line and an autofill line can be two segments. Saudi gateways and Tawked price per message.

The logic you still have to write. With a gateway you generate the code, store it hashed, expire it, count attempts, throttle a number that asks for codes ten times a minute, refund yourself when a send fails, and log everything for support. An OTP API does that for you. That is the real cost difference at small and mid volumes, not the halalas.

Volume pricing. At 100,000 messages a month a bulk gateway's per-message price can fall below Tawked's. If you send that much and already have the verification logic built and maintained, a gateway can be cheaper per message. Below that, the built-in logic and one price per code, never per segment or per attempt, usually win.

What to check before you sign up

1. Is the provider licensed by CST (the Communications, Space and Technology Commission) or sending through one that is? Sender names in Saudi Arabia are registered through a licensed provider; a global provider needs a local partner for that.
2. Does the price include VAT? Tawked's SAR 0.09 per code includes VAT: it is the final price. Saudi gateways usually say so; global providers price before tax.
3. Are you charged per sent or per delivered message? Tawked charges per code sent and refunds a send the network refuses at once.
4. Do you need your own sender name, and what does it cost? At the gateways, public lists show SAR 230 a year, and registration time varies by provider. OTP codes through Tawked need none: they come from Tawked's own sender ID.
5. Can you send real test messages before approval? Tawked's sandbox sends real, stamped SMS to the account owner's phone before approval.
6. Do the docs exist in the language your team reads? Arabic documentation is rare at global providers.
7. Is WhatsApp available as a second channel from the same integration? Meta's authentication templates cost less than an SMS per message in Saudi Arabia (see our SMS versus WhatsApp post), but they need an approved template and a data connection on the phone.

For WhatsApp notifications to your customers rather than codes, see our comparison of WhatsApp Business API providers in Saudi Arabia.

Sources (checked 2026-09-09; Taqnyat, 4Jawaly and Twilio re-checked 2026-10-08)

• Tawked pricing: https://tawked.com/en/pricing
• OurSMS pricing: https://www.oursms.com/en/pricing
• Taqnyat SMS API offer: https://taqnyat.sa/en/offers/2026/sms-service/sms-api/
• 4Jawaly SMS pricing: https://www.4jawaly.com/en/sms/
• Msegat FAQ (sender name fee): https://www.msegat.com/en/faqs
• Twilio SMS pricing, Saudi Arabia: https://www.twilio.com/en-us/sms/pricing/sa
• Twilio Verify pricing: https://www.twilio.com/en-us/verify/pricing
• Twilio SMS guidelines, Saudi Arabia (pre-registration, no domestic brands): https://www.twilio.com/en-us/guidelines/sa/sms
• Plivo SMS pricing, Saudi Arabia: https://www.plivo.com/sms/pricing/sa/
• CST, Regulations of the Provision of the Short Messaging Service (SMS), Decision 515/1445 of 2024-02-08: https://www.cst.gov.sa/en/regulations-and-licenses/regulations/Document-1560

If a price above is out of date, write to support@tawked.com and we will correct it with the new check date.