Understanding and Managing Call Recording Storage Charges on Twilio – Twilio Support

Overview

If you notice unexpected storage charges for call recordings on your Twilio invoice, this article will help you understand why these charges occur and how to manage or prevent them.

Environment

Twilio Console

What You Need To Know

Why Am I Being Charged for Call Recording Storage?

Twilio charges for storing call recordings on its platform. Even if you have set up external storage (such as AWS S3), you may still see storage charges in certain scenarios:

Recordings Created Before External Storage Was Enabled

Any call recordings made before you enabled external storage will remain in Twilio’s storage until you manually delete them.
These older recordings continue to incur storage charges until removed from Twilio.

Recordings Not Deleted After Transfer

When you enable external storage, new recordings are sent to your external destination (e.g., AWS S3).
However, Twilio does not automatically delete the original recording from its own storage after transfer.
Unless you set up an automated deletion process, these recordings will remain in Twilio and continue to incur storage charges.

Storage Charges Are Billed to the Parent Account

If you use subaccounts, storage charges for recordings are billed to the parent (billing) account, not to individual subaccounts.
To identify which subaccount is associated with specific storage charges, use the CSV file provided with your invoice.

How to Avoid or Reduce Storage Charges

Enable External Storage for All Subaccounts

Make sure external storage (e.g., AWS S3) is enabled for every subaccount that creates recordings.
Only recordings created after enabling external storage will be sent to your external destination.

Delete Old Recordings from Twilio

Use the Twilio Console or API to list and delete any recordings that remain in Twilio’s storage.
Deleting these will stop further storage charges for those files.

Automate Deletion After Transfer

Set up a Recording Status Callback to trigger deletion of recordings from Twilio after they are successfully uploaded to your external storage.
This ensures that new recordings do not remain in Twilio’s storage and incur charges.

Step-by-Step: Deleting Recordings from Twilio

List Recordings: Use the Twilio Console or the Recordings API to view all recordings stored in your account.
Delete Recordings:
1. In the Console, select the recordings you wish to delete and use the delete option.
2. With the API, you can automate deletion for multiple recordings using their SIDs.
Verify Deletion: Confirm that the recordings are no longer present in your Twilio storage to ensure charges will not continue.

Frequently Asked Questions

I enabled external storage, but still see storage charges. Why?

Only new recordings made after enabling external storage are sent to your external destination. Old recordings remain in Twilio until deleted.

How do I know which recordings are still stored on Twilio?

Use the Twilio Console or API to list all recordings. The invoice CSV can help you match charges to specific subaccounts.

Can I automate the deletion of recordings from Twilio?

Yes, by using a Recording Status Callback, you can trigger deletion after successful transfer to your external storage.

Additional Information

If you have further questions or need help identifying specific charges, review your invoice CSV or reach out to Twilio Support for personalized assistance.