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How to Price Virtual Phone Numbers for Resale: Margins, Plans and Bundles
To price virtual phone numbers for resale, start from your full wholesale cost (the monthly number price, any one-off fee and the outgoing SMS you expect to pay for), add a margin that covers support and failed payments, and round to a clean retail price. Most resellers charge a monthly price with a discount for 12 months, pass outgoing SMS through with a small markup, and keep incoming SMS and calls free, since they cost nothing at wholesale.
In this article
Buying numbers at wholesale is the easy part. Deciding what to charge is where resellers make or lose money. This guide walks through the cost of a number, three margin models and the mistakes that eat profits.
Know your full cost first
A wholesale number has a few cost lines. With Fully Signal they all come from your prepaid partner balance:
| Cost | When you pay it | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly number price | Every 1, 3 or 12 months | Depends on the location; longer plans are cheaper per month |
| Chosen-number fee | Once | Only if you pick a specific number; a random available number has none where the network charges none |
| Premium-number fee | Once | Extra for "golden" numbers with repeating digits |
| Outgoing SMS | Per message part | Own-country price, or a per-country price abroad |
| Incoming SMS and calls | Never | Free and unlimited |
Current wholesale rates by location are on the wholesale phone numbers page. How billing and renewals work is in virtual phone number pricing.
Three ways to set your margin
1. Fixed markup
Add the same amount to every number: wholesale price + €3 a month, for example. Simple, but it makes cheap locations look expensive and leaves money on the table for dear ones.
2. Percentage markup
Multiply the wholesale price: × 2 or × 2.5. It scales with the location, but on very cheap numbers the margin can be too small to cover a single support ticket.
3. Floor plus percentage (recommended)
Use a percentage, with a minimum monthly margin. For example: wholesale × 2, but never less than wholesale + €3. Then round up to a clean price: €4.99, €6.99, €9.99.
Monthly or yearly plans?
| Plan | Why customers like it | Why you like it |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | Low commitment | Easy to sell, higher price per month |
| 3 months | Covers a stay or a project | Fewer renewals to collect |
| 12 months | Cheapest per month | Cash upfront, lower churn |
Match your plans to the wholesale ones. UK numbers can be paid 1, 3 or 12 months at a time; Australian and Brazilian numbers are paid 3 months at a time. If you sell a monthly plan on a location billed quarterly, you carry the risk of a customer leaving after one month.
Pricing outgoing SMS
Outgoing SMS is the only usage cost. Three common approaches:
- Pass-through plus margin: wholesale SMS price + 20–50%, charged from the customer's credit.
- Allowance: 50 or 100 SMS a month included, extra at a fixed price.
- Receive-only plans: the cheapest product, for customers who only need verification codes or replies.
Remember that a message longer than one part is charged per part, and that SMS abroad has its own price per country.
Bundles sell better than numbers alone
Numbers sell well next to other services. A travel seller can offer a data eSIM plus a home number for receiving bank codes abroad (why travellers want both). A SaaS platform can include a number in its higher plan (numbers for SaaS). Bundles hide the unit price and raise the value of each sale.
Mistakes to avoid
- Forgetting renewals. If the customer stops paying you but your balance keeps renewing the number, you pay for it. Cancel numbers you no longer bill.
- Unlimited outgoing SMS. It invites abuse. Always cap or charge sending.
- No margin for support. Number customers ask about SMS delivery and call forwarding. Price at least one support contact a year into every number.
- Racing to the bottom. Customers buy reliability and service, not the lowest price.
FAQ
What margin do phone number resellers make?
It depends on your market and service. Many resellers charge two to three times the wholesale monthly price, with a minimum margin per number so cheap locations still cover support.
Should I charge for incoming SMS?
You can, but at wholesale they are free, so free incoming SMS is a simple selling point that costs you nothing.
Can I sell monthly plans on numbers billed quarterly?
You can, but you carry the risk if a customer leaves after one month. Matching your plans to the wholesale billing period is safer.
How do I price outgoing SMS?
Pass the per-part wholesale price through with a margin, or include an allowance each month. Remember that SMS abroad is priced per country.
Are there setup fees on wholesale numbers?
A random available number has no setup fee where the network charges none. Choosing a specific number has a small one-off fee, and numbers with repeating digits cost a little more.
