# Outbound voice billing and route types

Outbound calls are billed per minute at the rate for the destination and
route type. The billed duration starts when the call is answered and is
rounded up to the billing intervals in your account's pricelist.

## Charge summary

Outbound trunks have no activation fees, monthly fees, or minimum commitments.
Emergency calls are free of charge. Rates are listed in USD, and charges are
deducted from your prepaid account balance.

| Charge | Type | When it is charged | Price depends on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Call charge | Usage | For each answered call, from answer until the call ends | Destination, route type, and the billing intervals of the rate |
| Call setup fee | Usage | Per call, only if listed in the rate sheet that applies to your account | The rate sheet that applies to your account |
| VAT | Tax | With the call charge, where applicable | The VAT status of your account. See [VAT](../../../billing/billing-and-prices/vat-tax-id.html#billing-vat). |

## How outbound calls are charged

When a call reaches DIDWW, the route is selected from the destination,
the presented Caller ID, and the available coverage. The route type sets the
rate. If the call is answered, the billed duration is rounded up to the
billing intervals of that rate, and the charge is deducted from the balance.

```
        flowchart LR

   A["Outbound call<br/>reaches DIDWW"] --> D["Route type selected:<br/>Local, Origin based,<br/>or International"]

   D --> E["Rate per minute<br/>for the destination"]

   E --> B{"Call<br/>answered?"}

   B -.->|"No"| C["Not charged"]

   B -->|"Yes"| F["Duration rounded up<br/>to billing intervals"]

   F --> G["Rate × billed<br/>duration charged"]

   classDef root fill:#e0f2fe,color:#1f2d3d,stroke:#38bdf8,stroke-width:2px;
   classDef charge fill:#fef3c7,color:#1f2d3d,stroke:#facc15,stroke-width:2px;
   classDef decision fill:#fee2e2,color:#1f2d3d,stroke:#fb923c,stroke-width:2px;

   class A,C,D,E root;
   class F,G charge;
   class B decision;
```

Route selection is automatic. For the full selection rules, see
[How route selection works](outbound-dialing.html#outbound-dialing).

## Route types

Each outbound call is classified by route type. The route type is shown as the
**Call Type** in outbound call logs, statistics, and reports.

| Route type | When it applies | Pricing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Local | The destination and an eligible DIDWW DID presented as Caller ID belong to the same country, and an in-country route is available. See [Local routes](outbound-dialing.html#outbound-dialing-local-routes). | Local termination rate of the destination country. Local rates are usually lower than international rates. |
| Origin based | The destination is a country with origin-based pricing. See [Origin-based pricing](../../../billing/billing-and-prices/origin-based-pricing.html#origin-based-pricing). | The rate depends on the country of the presented Caller ID. Calls from EEA Caller IDs are usually billed at a lower rate than calls from other countries. |
| International | Local and origin-based conditions do not apply, or local coverage is unavailable. | International termination rate of the destination. |
| Emergency | Calls to emergency numbers from source numbers of an active [Emergency Calling Service](../../emergency-calling/index.html). | Emergency calls are free of charge. The Emergency Calling Service has its own setup and monthly fees per number. |

Note

Using local or origin-based routes to avoid surcharges on international
calls between EU countries and the rest of the world is not permitted.
For such traffic, DIDWW charges the difference between the origin-based
and international rates.

## Billing intervals

Each rate has two billing intervals, written as `initial/next` in seconds:

- **Initial interval:** The minimum billed duration of an answered call.
- **Next interval:** The increment billed after the initial interval ends.

Billing intervals can differ by destination and rate. The intervals for each
destination are listed in your pricelist.

Actual **call duration** is the time from answer until the call ends,
excluding ringing time. **Billed duration** is the time used to calculate
the charge after applying the initial minimum and subsequent billing
increments.

Actual call duration is measured in milliseconds. Any fraction of an
interval is rounded up to a full interval, so even a few milliseconds
beyond a complete interval count as one more interval.

The charge for a call is the rate per minute multiplied by the billed duration
in minutes:

`Charge = Rate per minute × Billed duration (seconds) ÷ 60`

If the rate sheet that applies to your account lists a call setup fee, it is
added to this charge.

### Calculation examples

These examples use a sample rate of USD 0.012 per minute. Durations are
shown in seconds: `30.400` means 30 seconds and 400 milliseconds, while
`60.001` means 60 seconds and 1 millisecond. Use the rates and billing
intervals in your account's pricelist for actual calculations.

| Billing intervals | Actual call duration | Billed duration | Charge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `1/1` | 30.400 seconds | 31 seconds | USD 0.012 × 31 ÷ 60 = **USD 0.0062** |
| `60/60` | 30.400 seconds | 60 seconds, the initial interval | USD 0.012 × 60 ÷ 60 = **USD 0.012** |
| `60/60` | 60.000 seconds | 60 seconds | USD 0.012 × 60 ÷ 60 = **USD 0.012** |
| `60/60` | 60.001 seconds | 120 seconds | USD 0.012 × 120 ÷ 60 = **USD 0.024** |

With `60/60` billing, exactly 60 seconds is billed as one minute. The
last example exceeds that interval by 1 millisecond, starting a second
billable 60-second interval. The billed duration is therefore 120 seconds
(2 minutes).

## When outbound calls are charged

Standard outbound calls are charged only after they are answered. Ringing
time is excluded, and calls that end before answer have no call charge.
Emergency calls are free of charge.

| Call outcome or type | Charged? | How billing applies |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Call is answered | Yes | Charged from answer, the `200 OK` SIP response, until the call ends. The applicable rate and billing intervals determine the amount. |
| Call disconnects after answer | Yes | Charged from answer until disconnection. The same billing intervals apply as for other answered calls. |
| Call ends before answer | No | Includes unanswered, busy, rejected, and failed call attempts. The call log shows a charge of `0`. |
| Forwarded call | Yes, if answered | The answered outbound call is charged at the local rate of the forwarding destination. Diversion-based forwarding uses local routes only. The inbound call to your DID number is billed separately under that DID's charges. See [Call forwarding](call-forwarding.html#call-forwarding). |
| Emergency call | No | Free of charge. Shown as **Emergency** in call logs and under **Emergency Cost** in reports. |

## Find outbound call rates and pricelists

Outbound call rates and billing intervals are listed by destination in the
outbound trunk pricelist. To download the rates that apply to your account:

1. In the User Panel, go to **Phone Numbers > Buy Numbers**.
2. Click **Download Pricelist**.
3. Under **Other pricelists**, select **Outbound Trunk & phone.systems(TM) Termination Rates**.

Only services enabled on your account have a pricelist.

For public rates, open the [SIP Trunking Pricing](https://www.didww.com/coverage-and-prices/sip-trunking-pricing) page.
Select a country to view starting per-minute rates, or click **Download
Pricelist** and complete the form to request the public pricelist.

For more details, see [Download
pricelists](../../../phone-numbers/buy-numbers/download-pricelists.html#services-coverage-pricing-access-pricelists).

The rate in your account-specific pricelist at the time of the call is the
rate that applies. Rates, billing intervals, and route availability vary by
destination and can change. DIDWW can change outbound rates with 7 days'
prior notice.

Note

If you want to keep outbound call spending within a budget, set a
**24 hour limit (USD)** for each outbound trunk. The limit applies to
charges accumulated on that trunk during a rolling 24-hour period.

When the limit is reached, the trunk is disabled, new calls are blocked,
and active calls are disconnected shortly afterward. The final charge
can slightly exceed the limit. See [Limits and
notifications](../outbound-trunk-reference.html#outbound-trunk-limits-and-notification) for details.

## Review outbound call charges and usage

Start with [Outbound call logs](../../../logs-analytics/call-logs/outbound-logs.html#outbound-cdr-logs) to check the
rate,
billed duration, and charge of an individual call. Use statistics and
reports to review total costs across calls. For CSV downloads or automated
delivery of call records, use exports or CDR streaming.

| Source | What it shows |
| --- | --- |
| [Outbound call logs](../../../logs-analytics/call-logs/outbound-logs.html#outbound-cdr-logs) | Each call with its **Call Type**, **Call / Billing Duration (sec)**, **Rate (USD)**, and **Charged (USD)**, together with the **CLI**, **Destination Number**, **Destination Country**, and **Outbound voice trunk** needed to reconcile it. |
| [Outbound voice statistics](../../../logs-analytics/statistics/index.html#userpanel-statistics-voice-out) | **Total Cost** of outbound calls, filtered by call type, destination country, or trunk. |
| [Outbound voice reports](../../../logs-analytics/reports/index.html#userpanel-reports-voice-out) | **International Cost**, **Origin-based Cost**, **Local Cost**, **Emergency Cost**, and **Total Charge**, grouped by destination country, trunk, or P-Charge-Info. |
| [Outbound call log exports](../../../logs-analytics/exports/index.html#userpanel-exports-outcalllogs) | A CSV file of outbound calls with their billing duration, rate, and charge. |
| [Outbound voice CDR streaming](../../../call-events/termination-cdr.html#termination-cdr-streaming) | Real-time call records with `call_type`, `rate`, `initial_billing_interval`, `next_billing_interval`, `billing_duration`, `price`, and `customer_vat`. |
| [Billing history reports](../../../billing/billing/reports.html#billing-history-reports) | Monthly totals, with outbound calls under **Origination and Termination**. |

## Related resources

- [Outbound dialing](outbound-dialing.html) - Understand how routes are selected and which
  countries have local routes.
- [Origin-based pricing](../../../billing/billing-and-prices/origin-based-pricing.html#origin-based-pricing) - Review the destinations
  where the Caller ID country affects the rate.
- [Download pricelists](../../../phone-numbers/buy-numbers/download-pricelists.html#services-coverage-pricing-access-pricelists) -
  Download public or account-specific SIP trunking pricelists.
- [Services, Coverage, and Pricing](../../../billing/billing-and-prices/didww-pricing.html#services-coverage-pricing) - Compare
  DIDWW services and pricing models.
- [Outbound call logs](../../../logs-analytics/call-logs/outbound-logs.html#outbound-cdr-logs) - Review the charges of
  individual calls.
- [VAT](../../../billing/billing-and-prices/vat-tax-id.html#billing-vat) - Check how VAT applies to your account.