What to check before sending RCS to Airtel customers: eligibility, verification, fallback and cost.
Airtel joined Google's RCS platform in India under a partnership announced on 1 March 2026. Businesses can reach Airtel customers whose device and messaging app support RCS, after brand verification and message review. MetaReach's rates run from ₹0.50 to ₹0.30 per message plus GST, by volume, with optional SMS fallback.
On 1 March 2026, Airtel and Google announced that Airtel's AI spam filtering would be added to Google's RCS platform in India. Reports describe checks on business messages covering sender verification, spam detection, malicious domains and users' do-not-disturb preferences, with flagged senders able to be throttled (TechCrunch, MediaNama).
For a business, this means content, sender reputation and recipient preferences can all affect whether a message arrives. The exact filtering rules are not public, so we cannot say how any particular campaign will be treated.
Being an Airtel subscriber does not by itself make someone reachable by RCS. Availability depends on:
We do not publish a city count or reach percentage for Airtel, because we have no current Airtel source for one. Test on your own list before sizing a campaign. See our RCS coverage guide and supported devices guide.
Approval is not guaranteed and timing depends on these reviews. API methods, message formats and reporting events are confirmed for your account during set-up; see our SMS and messaging API page.
SMS fallback may be configured for eligible workflows, so a recipient who cannot get RCS can be sent an SMS instead. It is an option, not a promise that every message arrives: a fallback SMS being submitted is different from it being delivered, which still depends on the number, the network and DLT and DND rules. Fallback messages are billed at SMS rates.
MetaReach's standard RCS rates per message, excluding 18% GST, by monthly volume:
| Messages | Rate per RCS message |
|---|---|
| 5,000-9,999 | ₹0.50 |
| 10,000-19,999 | ₹0.40 |
| 20,000-49,999 | ₹0.35 |
| 50,000-99,999 | ₹0.32 |
| 1,00,000-5,00,000 | ₹0.30 |
| Below 5,000 or above 5,00,000 | Custom quote |
The ₹0.30 rate applies only at 1,00,000-5,00,000 messages. One-time onboarding or API charges and any carrier-specific conditions are confirmed in your written quote. Full details are on our RCS pricing page; to compare channels, see RCS vs SMS vs WhatsApp.
Yes. Airtel and Google announced on 1 March 2026 that Airtel's AI spam filtering would be added to Google's RCS platform in India, bringing Airtel onto that platform. Whether a given Airtel customer can receive RCS still depends on their device, messaging app and settings.
No. An Airtel connection alone is not enough. The customer needs a compatible device and messaging app with RCS active, plus network availability. We do not publish a coverage figure for Airtel, so plan for a share of any list needing SMS fallback.
iPhones need iOS 18 or later, and RCS must be enabled for the carrier in that region. Support varies by carrier, so check under Settings on the iPhone, or test on your own Airtel iPhones, rather than assuming availability before a campaign.
MetaReach's RCS rates run from Rs 0.50 per message at 5,000-9,999 messages to Rs 0.30 at 1,00,000-5,00,000, plus 18% GST. Other volumes get a custom quote. Any one-time onboarding charges or carrier-specific conditions are confirmed in your written quote.
SMS fallback may be configured for eligible workflows. It is billed at SMS rates and needs DLT-registered headers and templates. A fallback SMS being submitted does not mean it was delivered, and neither the RCS nor the SMS delivery is guaranteed.
There is no fixed timeline. Launch depends on brand or agent verification, message review by the relevant platform and provider, and how quickly your documents and templates are ready. Allow for these reviews when planning a dated campaign.
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