# Dial vs Bland Agent Phone Plan (2026): Which phone number should an AI agent use?

On Dial, the cheapest number that can send a text on its first day costs $35 a month as of November 2026, and on a metered Dial number every minute the agent spends on a call is billed on top. Bland's [Agent Phone Plan](https://www.bland.ai/ai-phone-number) gives one AI agent a dedicated US number with calls and texts to the US and Canada included, for $9.99 for the first month (once per account owner), then $19.99 a month. Bland's page of [AI agent phone plans compared](/compare/agent-phone-plan) covers the other options.

## Which is better, Bland or Dial?

For a person who wants an AI agent to call and text businesses on their behalf, Bland's Agent Phone Plan is a better choice than Dial, because one flat monthly price covers a dedicated US number, calls, and texts. Dial is the better fit for a developer building a product that needs iMessage, WhatsApp, or texts to other countries, with each minute metered.

<div class="cmp-usewhen"><div class="cmp-usewhen-own"><p><strong>Use Bland when</strong></p><ul><li>A person wants an AI agent to have its own US number that calls, texts, and takes calls</li><li>The monthly bill should stay the same however long the agent waits on hold, within fair use</li><li>The agent lives in ChatGPT, Claude, Claude Code, OpenClaw, or another assistant Bland supports</li></ul></div><div><p><strong>Use Dial when</strong></p><ul><li>A developer is building a product that messages its users over iMessage or WhatsApp, and the budget covers $215 or $100 a month per number for it</li><li>The agent texts people outside the US and Canada, priced per message by destination</li><li>A team runs its own language model and pays Dial per minute for speech and phone</li></ul></div></div>

| Feature | Bland Agent Phone Plan | Dial |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly price | $19.99 after the first month | $3.00 Virtual, $35.00 Local, or $300.00 All channels per number |
| Calls | Included to the US and Canada, fair use, one at a time, plus $10 of international calling credits with the first plan purchase | $0.13 a minute with a team's own model, $0.22 managed by Dial |
| Texts | SMS in and out, included | $0.02 a US text on Virtual after up to 3 days of 10DLC registration; included on Local from day one |
| Texts outside the US and Canada | No | Yes, in seven price tiers up to $1.00 a message |
| iMessage | No | Yes, +$215 a month on Local, included in All channels |
| WhatsApp | No | Yes, +$100 a month on Local, allowlist only |

<details><summary>What these rows mean</summary>

- **Texts:** US carriers require businesses that text from a 10-digit number to register under 10DLC, the carrier system for business texting. Dial manages that registration for a Virtual number, for a one-time fee, and its Local number needs none.

</details>

## How do Bland and Dial compare?

The main difference between Bland and Dial is what the monthly fee buys: Bland's Agent Phone Plan price includes the number, calls, and texts, while Dial's fee buys the number and, without Dial's optional subscription, meters every call minute after it. Dial also hands a developer an API, SDKs, and a CLI to build on, where Bland runs each call and text for a person's agent and reports back.

### Bland overview

Bland's Agent Phone Plan is a self-serve plan that gives an AI agent one dedicated US local number. The agent places a call with a task, such as asking about a late checkout, then reports back with a transcript and summary. The same number sends texts and takes calls in, and Bland answers text replies toward the goal the agent gave it.

<div class="cmp-proscons cmp-proscons-own"><div class="cmp-proscons-pros"><p><strong>Pros</strong></p><ul><li>Calls and texts to the US and Canada included in one monthly price, under fair use</li><li>A dedicated US number that calls, texts, and takes calls</li><li>No per-minute or per-text charges on the plan</li><li>Text replies answered from the number toward the agent's goal</li></ul></div><div class="cmp-proscons-cons"><p><strong>Cons</strong></p><ul><li>Built for one agent running one person's errands, one call at a time, so a team placing calls at volume needs Bland's Build plan or Enterprise</li></ul></div></div>

### Dial overview

Dial describes itself as "Calls, SMS, WhatsApp and iMessage for AI agents. One API, one CLI, one MCP server." Dial sells three kinds of number. Virtual is a VoIP or toll-free number, Local is what Dial calls a real carrier number, and All channels is a Local number with iMessage and WhatsApp.

<div class="cmp-proscons" data-rival="dial"><div class="cmp-proscons-pros"><p><strong>Pros</strong></p><ul><li>iMessage and WhatsApp on the same number as calls and SMS</li><li>Texts to other countries, priced by destination</li></ul></div><div class="cmp-proscons-cons"><p><strong>Cons</strong></p><ul><li>Every call minute billed on metered numbers, so the monthly total moves with use</li><li>The $3.00 Virtual number needs up to 3 days of 10DLC registration, with a one-time fee, before it texts</li><li>A number that texts from day one costs $35.00 a month before any calls</li><li>Free accounts are capped at 5 minutes per call and 2 calls at once until the first top-up</li></ul></div></div>

## How much do Bland and Dial cost?

Bland's Agent Phone Plan costs $9.99 for the first month (once per account owner), then $19.99 a month, with calls and texts included, while Dial charges $3.00 to $300.00 a month per number and, without its optional subscription, bills every call minute on top. Bland has a longer page on a [flat monthly plan vs pay per minute](https://www.bland.ai/ai-phone-number/ai-phone-number-cost).

### Bland pricing

$9.99 for the first month (once per account owner), then $19.99 a month. Renews monthly on the card on file until cancelled. The plan includes unlimited voice minutes and SMS to US and Canada numbers, subject to fair use, and has no trial. The first plan purchase also includes an extra $10 of international calling credits, so the agent can make international calls, and the plan includes live call transfer to the owner and voice cloning. A person can still try Bland for free, and that try covers outbound calls only, from a shared Bland number, with no dedicated number, no texting, and no incoming calls.

Fair use means one call at a time across the account, 20 calls an hour, 50 calls a day, 1,000 call minutes a day, 60 minutes at most per outbound call, 20 texts an hour, and 100 texts a day. While a call is live, a new caller hears a busy message. More calls at once need Bland's Build plan, on the [pricing page](https://www.bland.ai/pricing). Enterprise pricing is custom, set with Bland's sales team.

### Dial pricing

Dial charges $3.00 a month for a Virtual number, $35.00 for Local, and $300.00 for All channels, with "no base fee, no minimums." Calls cost $0.13 a minute when a team runs its own model and $0.22 when Dial's hosted model runs the call. On a Virtual number a US text is $0.02, and on a Local number texts are included. iMessage adds $215 a month and WhatsApp $100 a month to a Local number.

Every Dial account starts with $5 of credit and no card on file, and a free account is capped at 5 minutes per call and 2 calls at once until its first top-up or subscription. Dial also offers an optional flat monthly or yearly subscription per number with unmetered usage, and shows its price only in the Dial dashboard.

### Value comparison

Take away Dial's $3.00 Virtual fee and $16.99 is left before Dial passes Bland's $19.99 month. At Dial's managed rate of $0.22 a minute, that buys about 77 minutes of calls, before texts or the registration fee. A Local number skips the registration wait at $35.00 a month, so one hour of managed calls on it comes to $48.20. On Bland, an agent that sits 40 minutes on hold with an airline and then calls three plumbers for quotes costs the same $19.99 as one that makes a single call.

## How does each one connect to ChatGPT, Claude, or OpenClaw?

Bland's Agent Phone Plan connects to ChatGPT, Claude, and OpenClaw through Bland's hosted MCP server, while Dial connects to ChatGPT and Claude through its own remote MCP server and to OpenClaw through a CLI skill. MCP, the Model Context Protocol, is the standard way an AI assistant plugs into an outside tool.

### Setting up Bland

In ChatGPT, a person turns on developer mode for apps and connectors, adds Bland's MCP server as a custom connector, and signs in with Bland, so ChatGPT can place outbound calls and read results. The plan is bought in the Bland dashboard, and a ChatGPT user should check that their ChatGPT plan can add a custom connector with write actions before subscribing. Bland's page on how to [give ChatGPT a phone number](https://www.bland.ai/ai-phone-number/chatgpt-phone-calls) walks through it.

In the Claude app, a person adds a custom connector under Settings, Connectors, pointing at Bland's MCP server, then signs in with Bland. OpenClaw adds Bland's MCP server under mcp.servers in ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json, with the key in the BLAND_API_KEY environment variable, or signs itself up from Bland's docs. Codex, Meta Muse, Poke, and Grok Bot, from SpaceXSI (formerly xAI), have steps on Bland's [agent setup page](https://www.bland.ai/ai-phone-number/agents). An agent can also start its own signup by showing the owner a link and a short code to approve in a browser.

### Setting up Dial

Dial's remote MCP server takes a browser sign-in from Claude, Cursor, or ChatGPT. Dial's CLI installs a skill into Claude Code, Codex, OpenClaw, and five other agents. An agent signing itself up runs the CLI, Dial emails the owner a one-time code, and a new account also needs the owner's own phone number that can receive texts, which can't be a Dial number. Bland isn't partnered with or endorsed by OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta, or SpaceXSI.

## Why is Bland the best Dial alternative for an AI agent?

Bland is the best Dial alternative for a personal AI agent because Bland's Agent Phone Plan turns a metered phone API into one known monthly price, with a dedicated US number that calls, texts, and takes calls. Nobody has to top up a credit balance or pay for each minute on a call.

A person who wants an assistant to request a table or ask about a delivery window is buying something simpler than Dial's developer stack. The [Dial review](/blog/dial-review) and [AgentPhone vs Dial](/blog/agentphone-vs-dial) look at Dial more closely, and Bland's page on an [AI phone number that can text](https://www.bland.ai/ai-phone-number/ai-phone-number-to-text) covers texting.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is Bland better than Dial?

For a personal AI agent, Bland is better than Dial, because Bland's Agent Phone Plan includes a dedicated US number, calls, and texts for one monthly price. Dial suits a developer whose product needs iMessage, WhatsApp, or texts abroad.

### Is Bland cheaper than Dial?

Bland is cheaper than a Dial Virtual number for an agent on more than about 77 minutes a month of managed calls, and cheaper than a Dial Local number from the first minute. Bland's Agent Phone Plan is $9.99 for the first month (once per account owner), then $19.99 a month with calls and texts included. Dial charges $3.00 or $35.00 a month per number, plus $0.22 a minute for managed calls.

### Can Dial send texts from its number?

Yes, Dial sends and receives SMS. A $3.00 Virtual number pays $0.02 a US text after up to 3 days of 10DLC registration, and a $35.00 Local number texts from day one with texts included.

### Does Dial work with ChatGPT and Claude?

Yes, Dial's remote MCP server works with ChatGPT and Claude through a browser sign-in. Bland's Agent Phone Plan connects to both through a custom connector and a sign-in with Bland.

### Does Dial support iMessage and WhatsApp?

Yes, Dial sells iMessage for $215 a month and WhatsApp for $100 a month on a Local number, or both in its $300 All channels number, and WhatsApp is allowlist-only. Bland's Agent Phone Plan number does voice calls and SMS only.

### Can Bland or Dial call and text outside the US?

Bland's Agent Phone Plan calls and texts US and Canadian numbers, and the first plan purchase adds $10 of international calling credits so the agent can make international calls, while texts stay within the US and Canada. Dial says an agent "can call and text anyone on Earth", and prices texts outside the US and Canada from $0.10 to $1.00 a message by destination.