Why it matters
Usage settings help admins understand current usage and additional charges before they become a billing surprise. The Usage page separates usage monitoring from subscription and invoice management, which live under Billing.
Key Concepts
Messaging credits: Credits used by message activity. A text segment of 160 standard characters or fewer is typically one credit, while longer or special-character messages can use more than one credit.
MMS or attachment credits: A supported media attachment can use more credits than a plain SMS message.
AI minutes: Usage for AI voice or AI-assisted activity measured by minutes where applicable.
AI completed calls: A usage metric for completed AI calls.
Channels: A usage metric for active channels in the organization.
Usage breakdown: A page for reviewing usage by sub-organisation during the current billing period when available.
Step-by-Step: Review usage and credits
Open Settings from the sidebar.
Select Usage.
Review the Messaging credits card to understand message credit usage.
Review AI minutes and AI completed calls if your organization uses AI calling or AI voice features.
Review Channels to understand channel usage.
Open Usage breakdown when you need usage by sub-organisation for the current billing period.
Open Settings > Messaging if you need SMS cost controls such as maximum SMS length, translations, or emojis.
Open Settings > Billing when you need subscription or invoice information.
Tips and Best Practices
Review Usage before high-volume campaigns or busy periods.
Remember that longer SMS messages can use multiple credits because carriers split them into segments.
Avoid unnecessary emojis or special characters in SMS when credit predictability matters.
Use Messaging settings to control maximum SMS length and emoji behavior.
Use usage notifications so admins are alerted when usage approaches important thresholds.
Troubleshooting
Issue | Possible Cause | Fix |
A message used more credits than expected | The SMS was longer than one segment or used characters that reduce the segment size | Shorten the message, avoid special characters when possible, or review SMS controls in Settings > Messaging |
Credit information is not visible on Billing | Credits and usage are tracked on the Usage page | Open Settings > Usage |
Usage needs to be reviewed by sub-organisation | The main Usage page shows summary cards | Open the Usage breakdown page when it is available |
Usage alerts are not reaching the right person | Notification preferences are not enabled for Usage events | Open Settings > Notifications and enable the relevant Usage notifications |