# How to Estimate a Voice Broadcast's Cost Before You Launch (2026) > Work out what a voice broadcast campaign will cost before launch: the formula, how 60-second pulse billing and message length change it, answer-rate assumptions, run time, and Edesy's built-in cost estimate. Source: https://edesy.in/blog/estimate-voice-broadcast-cost-before-launch-2026 **A voice broadcast costs: answered calls x billed minutes per call x the per-minute rate, plus GST and number rental.** On Edesy that's Rs 0.50 per minute with a 60-second pulse, unanswered calls free, plus 18% GST. A message under 60 seconds bills one minute per answered call. The campaign wizard shows a cost estimate before you launch, priced from your actual rate card. > **See the estimate for your own list:** [Open the Voice app](https://voice-app.edesy.in/?utm_source=edesy.in&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=estimate-voice-broadcast-cost-before-launch-2026), build the campaign and check the cost before you press launch. ## The formula ``` Cost = answered calls x billed minutes per call x rate per minute + number rental + GST (18%) ``` | Input | Where it comes from | Edesy value | |---|---|---| | Contacts | Your CSV or API leads, after DNC and duplicate removal | Your list | | Answer rate | Your history or a test batch | Your data | | Billed minutes per answered call | Message length, rounded up to whole minutes | 60-second pulse | | Rate per minute | Your rate card | Rs 0.50 | | Unanswered calls | n/a | Free | | Number rental | Per caller ID number | Rs 499/month mobile or 92-series, Rs 449 landline | | GST | n/a | 18% extra | ## Message length is the biggest lever With a 60-second pulse, every answered call is billed in whole minutes: | Message length (including greeting) | Billed per answered call | Cost per answered call (before GST) | |---|---|---| | 20 to 55 seconds | 1 minute | Rs 0.50 | | 61 to 115 seconds | 2 minutes | Rs 1.00 | | 121 to 175 seconds | 3 minutes | Rs 1.50 | Leave a few seconds of margin: a call that runs 62 seconds is billed as two minutes, doubling its cost. If your recording is 58 seconds, trim it. The [voice broadcast features page](https://edesy.in/voice-broadcasting/features) covers how to upload audio or use TTS. Remember that people hang up early. Not every answered call runs the full message, but for budgeting, assume they do. ## Worked example (illustrative) A 10,000-contact reminder list, a 40-second message, one mobile caller ID. **Upper bound (every contact answers):** | Item | Amount | |---|---| | 10,000 answered calls x 1 minute x Rs 0.50 | Rs 5,000 | | Number rental | Rs 499 | | Subtotal | Rs 5,499 | | GST at 18% | Rs 989.82 | | Total | Rs 6,488.82 | **With an assumed 60% answer rate** (an example figure, not a benchmark; use your own): | Item | Amount | |---|---| | 6,000 answered calls x 1 minute x Rs 0.50 | Rs 3,000 | | Number rental | Rs 499 | | Subtotal | Rs 3,499 | | GST at 18% | Rs 629.82 | | Total | Rs 4,128.82 | The 4,000 unanswered calls cost nothing. If you retry them, budget the retry pass the same way using the expected answer rate for the retry. ## Edesy's built-in estimate Before you launch, the campaign wizard shows an estimate. Here's what it does, so you can read it correctly: | Part of the estimate | How it's worked out | |---|---| | Pending contacts | Contacts not yet completed or failed | | Assumed talk time | 30 seconds per call by default; change it to your real message length | | Estimated cost | Priced off the same rate card that will actually charge you, assuming every pending contact answers for the assumed talk time | | Rated vs unrated contacts | Numbers that don't match a rate are shown separately, not priced at zero | | Estimated run time | Pending contacts divided by max concurrent calls, times (talk time + ring time) | Two things to note: - **It's an upper bound on answered-call cost**, because it assumes everyone answers. Your real bill will usually be lower. - **Run time ignores dialing-hour closures.** If your window is 10:00 to 19:00 and the estimate says 12 hours, the campaign will run across two days. The estimate is also available through the API. See the [campaigns docs](https://edesy.in/docs/voice-api/campaigns). ## Estimate run time too Cost isn't the only thing to plan. Run time depends on max concurrent calls: ``` Run time = (contacts / max concurrent calls) x (message length + ring time) ``` With 10,000 contacts, 20 concurrent calls, a 40-second message and 30 seconds of ring time: 10,000 / 20 x 70 seconds = 35,000 seconds, about 9.7 hours of dialing. If that has to finish in one day's dialing hours, raise concurrency or split the list. ## Other costs to include | Item | When it applies | Price (plus GST) | |---|---|---| | Backup (fallback) caller ID | If you add one for carrier failover | Rs 499/month (mobile or 92-series) | | Premium TTS voices | If you choose a premium voice | Rs 0.03 per character | | Recorded audio | If you upload WAV or MP3 | No TTS charge | | Retries | Second pass on no-answer, busy, machine | Same per-minute rate | | Answering machine detection | If turned on | Machine-answered calls are billed as answered | Read [fallback caller ID for voice campaigns](https://edesy.in/blog/fallback-caller-id-voice-campaigns-2026) and [answering machine detection](https://edesy.in/blog/answering-machine-detection-voice-broadcast-2026) for when those are worth it. ## Ways to bring the cost down 1. **Keep the message under 55 seconds.** One-minute billing per answered call. 2. **Clean the list.** Remove duplicates and invalid numbers; suppress DNC. 3. **Call at the right time.** Better answer rates mean fewer retries. 4. **Use AMD before retrying,** so you don't pay to repeat a message a person already heard. 5. **Run a test batch** of a few hundred contacts first and use its real answer rate. ## Paying for it Campaigns are paid from a prepaid INR wallet topped up with Razorpay, deducted in real time, with GST invoices and GSTIN capture for input tax credit. Top up a little more than the estimate so the campaign doesn't stop part way. There's no minimum commitment. See [voice broadcasting pricing](https://edesy.in/voice-broadcasting/pricing). ## Checklist before launch - List cleaned and DNC suppressed - Message timed (under 55 seconds if possible) - Assumed talk time in the estimate set to your real length - Estimate reviewed and wallet topped up - Dialing hours and concurrency checked against run time - Test call heard on your own phone More on the product: [voice broadcasting](https://edesy.in/voice-broadcasting). [Build your campaign and check the estimate](https://voice-app.edesy.in/?utm_source=edesy.in&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=estimate-voice-broadcast-cost-before-launch-2026). ## Frequently Asked Questions ### How do I estimate a voice broadcast's cost? Multiply the number of answered calls by the billed minutes per call and the per-minute rate, then add GST and number rental. On Edesy: answered calls x billed minutes x Rs 0.50, plus 18% GST. Unanswered calls are free. ### What is a 60-second pulse? Calls are billed in whole minutes, rounded up. A 25-second call is billed as 1 minute and a 65-second call as 2 minutes. That is why keeping a message under a minute matters. ### What answer rate should I assume? Use your own past campaigns if you have them. If you don't, run a small test batch first and use its answer rate. For a safe upper bound, assume every contact answers: that is what Edesy's built-in estimate does. ### Does Edesy show the cost before launch? Yes. The campaign wizard has a cost estimate before launch. It prices the pending contacts off your actual rate card, assuming each answers for an assumed talk time (30 seconds by default, adjustable), and also shows a rough run time. ### Does text-to-speech cost extra? Premium TTS voices are priced at Rs 0.03 per character, so check which voice your message uses. An uploaded WAV or MP3 recording doesn't use TTS at all. ### What else should I budget for? Number rental (Rs 499 a month for a mobile or 92-series number), a backup caller ID if you use one, retries, and 18% GST on everything.