Why Tambua. Vonage Verify is a configurable verification API with workflows that can move across channels. Tambua offers a comparable idea, an ordered fallback journey, with a focus on African routes and a dashboard-first setup.
Why teams choose Tambua over Vonage Verify
- You want fallback configured once per app in a dashboard, with request-level override
- You want M-PESA verification and African carrier focus
- You want public per-country pricing
Pricing: Tambua vs Vonage Verify
| Topic | Tambua | Vonage Verify |
|---|---|---|
| How you are charged | KES 0.50 per SMS OTP in Kenya, with no separate verification fee | Per-message pricing by destination and channel. |
| Failed attempts | Free | See Vonage Verify's pricing page |
| Sender ID and numbers | Shared Tambua sender included, nothing to buy | See Vonage Verify's pricing page |
| Fallback to another channel | A setting, not an add-on fee | See Vonage Verify's pricing page |
See Tambua's full per-country rates, or check Vonage Verify's own pricing for your destination before you compare.
Tambua at a glance
| Topic | Tambua |
|---|---|
| Focus | OTP generation, delivery and verification API for Africa |
| Channels | SMS, WhatsApp, voice, email, M-PESA, Reverse OTP (Telegram, USSD and shortcode are coming soon) |
| Sender ID and numbers | Shared Tambua sender ID and numbers included. Nothing to buy, lease or register |
| Channel fallback | Ordered journey of up to three channels per app, on failure or after a timer; one code across attempts |
| Failed attempts | Not billed; only carrier-accepted attempts are charged |
| Pricing | Public per-country rates on the pricing page |
| Free testing | Test keys return the code in the API response, no messages sent |
| Webhooks | Signed webhooks for sent, delivered, verified and fallback events |
What Vonage Verify publishes
| Topic | Vonage Verify |
|---|---|
| Verification product | Verify API (v2) with configurable workflows source |
| Channels | SMS, voice, email, WhatsApp and silent authentication source |
| Fallback | Its workflow documentation describes moving to the next channel in a workflow source |
| Code length | Configurable between 4 and 10 digits source |
Frequently asked questions
Why choose Tambua over Vonage Verify for OTP?
You want fallback configured once per app in a dashboard, with request-level override. You want M-PESA verification and African carrier focus. You want public per-country pricing. Tambua is built only for sending and verifying one-time codes across Africa, so you integrate in two calls and start free with test keys.
How do I switch from Vonage Verify to Tambua?
Create a free test key, call send to deliver a code and verify to check it. Most teams replace their existing send and check logic in an afternoon, then swap to a live key.