Do You Have API Documentation for RCS Integration?

RCS API Documentation and Developer Resources

If you're integrating RCS into your systems, here's what to expect from the API and developer experience.

Core API Capabilities

Message Sending:

• Send single or bulk messages
• Support for all RCS features (rich cards, carousels, buttons)
• SMS fallback handling
• Scheduled send times
• Message queuing and batching

Template Management:

• Create, update, delete templates
• Submit for carrier approval
• Version control
• Multi-language support

Contact Management:

• Upload contact lists
• Manage opt-in/opt-out status
• Segmentation and tagging
• Contact attributes and custom fields

Analytics and Reporting:

• Real-time delivery status
• Engagement metrics
• Campaign performance
• Custom report generation

REST API Endpoints

Authentication:

POST /v1/auth/login
GET /v1/auth/token
POST /v1/auth/refresh

Send Messages:

POST /v1/messages              # Send single message
POST /v1/messages/bulk         # Send bulk messages
POST /v1/messages/schedule     # Schedule for later
GET /v1/messages/{id}          # Get message status

Templates:

GET /v1/templates              # List all templates
POST /v1/templates             # Create new template
PUT /v1/templates/{id}         # Update template
DELETE /v1/templates/{id}      # Delete template
POST /v1/templates/{id}/submit # Submit for approval

Contacts:

GET /v1/contacts               # List contacts
POST /v1/contacts              # Add contact
PUT /v1/contacts/{id}          # Update contact
DELETE /v1/contacts/{id}       # Remove contact
POST /v1/contacts/import       # Bulk import

Webhooks (incoming):

POST /v1/webhooks              # Register webhook
GET /v1/webhooks               # List webhooks
DELETE /v1/webhooks/{id}       # Remove webhook

Webhook Events

Message Status Events:

• message.queued - Message accepted, queued for delivery
• message.sent - Message sent to carrier
• message.delivered - Delivered to recipient device
• message.read - Recipient opened message (if read receipts enabled)
• message.failed - Delivery failed (with error code)
• message.expired - Message expired before delivery

Engagement Events:

• message.clicked - Recipient tapped a button or link
• message.replied - Recipient replied to message
• message.optout - Recipient opted out via STOP
• message.complained - Recipient marked as spam

Template Events:

• template.approved - Template approved by carrier
• template.rejected - Template rejected (with reason)

SDKs and Libraries

Official SDKs:

• Python: pip install rcs-sdk
• Node.js: npm install @rcs/sdk
• Java: Maven/Gradle dependency
• PHP: Composer package
• Ruby: RubyGems
• Go: Go modules

SDK features:

• Authentication handling
• Request signing
• Automatic retries with exponential backoff
• Rate limiting
• Error handling
• Webhook signature verification

Example (Python):

from rcs_sdk import Client

client = Client(api_key='your_api_key')

message = client.messages.create(
    to='+1234567890',
    template_id='cart_recovery',
    variables={
        'first_name': 'Sarah',
        'cart_items': cart_items,
        'discount_code': 'COMEBACK15'
    }
)

print(f"Message sent: {message.id}")

Authentication

API Key Authentication:

• Simple, suitable for server-to-server
• Include in header: Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY
• Rotate keys regularly (quarterly)
• Use different keys for dev/staging/production

OAuth 2.0:

• More secure, suitable for multi-tenant apps
• Authorization code flow
• Refresh token rotation
• Scope-based permissions

IP Whitelisting:

• Additional security layer
• Restrict API access to known IPs
• Reduce attack surface

Sandbox Environment

What's included:

• Full API access
• Test phone numbers
• Simulated carrier responses
• No message delivery (or limited)
• Reset state anytime
• No charges for test messages

Test phone numbers:

• Most providers offer test numbers
• Try various device types and capabilities
• Test RCS rendering and fallback

Example workflow:

1. Develop and test in sandbox
2. Get carrier approval for templates
3. Test with small pilot (10-100 recipients)
4. Verify delivery and rendering
5. Scale to production

Rate Limits

Typical limits:

• 100-1,000 messages per second (varies by provider)
• 10,000-100,000 messages per minute
• Daily/monthly caps based on plan
• Burst limits for high-volume sends

Handling rate limits:

• Implement exponential backoff
• Queue messages for batch sending
• Monitor rate limit headers
• Contact provider for limit increases

Error Handling

Common error codes:

• 400 - Bad request (check parameters)
• 401 - Unauthorized (check API key)
• 403 - Forbidden (check permissions)
• 404 - Not found (check resource ID)
• 429 - Rate limited (slow down)
• 500 - Server error (retry with backoff)

Best practices:

• Implement automatic retries (3-5 attempts)
• Use exponential backoff between retries
• Log all errors for debugging
• Alert on persistent failures
• Have fallback mechanisms

Documentation Quality

What to look for:

• Complete API reference
• Code examples in multiple languages
• Postman collection for testing
• Webhook testing tools
• SDK documentation
• Migration guides
• Changelog and versioning

Red flags:

• Outdated documentation (last updated 2+ years ago)
• Missing error code documentation
• No webhook examples
• Incomplete SDK coverage
• No sandbox environment

Integration Patterns

Synchronous (Request-Response):

• Send message, get immediate response
• Use for: single message sends, immediate confirmations
• Example: Send appointment confirmation

Asynchronous (Queue-Based):

• Add message to queue, process later
• Use for: bulk campaigns, scheduled sends
• Example: Send 100K marketing messages

Webhook-Driven:

• React to events in real-time
• Use for: delivery tracking, engagement updates
• Example: Update CRM when message is read

Event-Driven:

• Trigger from system events
• Use for: cart abandonment, transactional messages
• Example: Send message when order ships

Testing and Debugging

Postman/Insomnia:

• Test API calls interactively
• Save request collections
• Share with team
• Generate code snippets

cURL examples:

• Quick command-line testing
• Script automation
• CI/CD integration

Logging and monitoring:

• Log all API requests/responses
• Monitor error rates and latency
• Set up alerts for anomalies
• Use APM tools (Datadog, New Relic, etc.)

Common Integration Use Cases

E-commerce:

• Cart abandonment recovery
• Order confirmations
• Shipping notifications
• Delivery updates

CRM:

• Lead nurturing sequences
• Customer re-engagement
• Account updates
• Support notifications

Marketing Automation:

• Drip campaigns
• Behavioral triggers
• A/B test messaging
• Multi-channel orchestration

Custom Applications:

• User notifications
• System alerts
• Two-factor authentication
• Verification codes

The Bottom Line

RCS APIs are well-documented and developer-friendly. Look for providers with comprehensive documentation, sandbox environments, official SDKs, and webhook support. The integration complexity depends on your use case, but most implementations take 2-6 weeks.

Start with sandbox testing, use the SDKs to speed development, and implement proper error handling and webhook processing. Most importantly, test thoroughly before production launch.

Need help with RCS API integration? I can review provider documentation, recommend SDKs for your stack, and help you design the integration architecture.