Head to head
Airship vs OneSignal
As a push notification API, OneSignal rates higher on the APIbenchmarks Index, 86.4 to 69.8, a 16.6-point gap. Here is how they compare on each criterion.
Criterion by criterion
| Criterion | Airship | OneSignal |
|---|---|---|
| Documentation & DX | ||
| Reliability | ||
| Ecosystem & SDKs | ||
| Accessibility | ||
| APIbenchmarks Index | 69.8 | 86.4 |
Specifications
| Airship | OneSignal | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Enterprise mobile engagement | Self-serve push + omnichannel engagement |
| Free tier | No | Unlimited mobile push + 10k web subs |
| Pricing | Custom MAU contract | MAU-based ($0.012/MAU) |
| Official SDKs | 11 languages | 12 languages |
Is Airship better than OneSignal?
On the APIbenchmarks Index, OneSignal rates higher (86.4 vs 69.8). It leads on the four weighted criteria, but price is reported separately, so the best choice still depends on your budget.
Verdict in one line
OneSignal leads by 16.6 points (86.4 vs 69.8) and wins 3 of 4 criteria; Airship wins 1.
Winner by criterion
| Criterion | Winner | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Documentation & DX | 74 | 84 | |
| Reliability | 88 | 85 | |
| Ecosystem & SDKs | 72 | 86 | |
| Accessibility | 38 | 92 |
Choose Airship if… / choose OneSignal if…
- →reliability matters most to you (88 vs 85)
- →your use case matches its focus: enterprise mobile engagement
- →documentation & dx matters most to you (84 vs 74)
- →ecosystem & sdks matters most to you (86 vs 72)
- →accessibility matters most to you (92 vs 38)
- →you want a free tier to start (Unlimited mobile push + 10k web subs)
- →you need broad SDK coverage (12 official SDKs vs 11)
- →your use case matches its focus: self-serve push + omnichannel engagement
Pricing side by side
- Model
- Custom MAU contract
- Free tier
- No
- Airship EssentialsCustom (quote)
- Airship Experience Platform (AXP) / EnterpriseCustom (quote)
- Model
- MAU-based ($0.012/MAU)
- Free tier
- Unlimited mobile push + 10k web subs
- Free$0/mo
- GrowthFrom $19/mo + usage
- ProfessionalCustom (annual)
- EnterpriseCustom (annual)
Vendor-published pricing, verified 2026-06-27 (Airship) and 2026-06-27 (OneSignal).
SDK and language coverage
Both · 3
React NativeFlutterUnity
Only Airship · 8
iOS / tvOS / visionOSAndroid / Android TV / FireOS / FireTVWebCordova / PhoneGapCapacitorXamarinAppcelerator TitaniumREST API
Only OneSignal · 9
iOS (Swift/Objective-C)Android (Kotlin/Java)ExpoCordova / Ionic CordovaCapacitor / Ionic Capacitor.NET MAUIHuaweiAmazonFlutterFlow
Strengths and weaknesses
- +Mature, battle-tested push infrastructure at massive scale (claimed 3+ trillion messages delivered since 2009)
- +True omni-channel reach in one platform: mobile push, web push, in-app/Scenes, SMS, email, and mobile wallet
- +Strong push-notification feature depth, rated 9.3/10 on G2's push feature breakdown
- –Among the most expensive push providers; quote-only pricing with ~$35k/yr entry plus onboarding fees prices out SMBs and indie developers
- –No public/self-serve pricing, every plan requires a sales conversation
- –Inconsistent UI across channels, requiring different approaches per channel
- +Genuinely generous free tier: unlimited mobile push sends and subscribers, enough segmentation to run real campaigns without paying
- +Very broad SDK coverage (iOS, Android, React Native, Flutter, Expo, Unity, Cordova/Ionic, Capacitor, .NET MAUI, Huawei, Amazon, FlutterFlow)
- +Clean, readable REST API and documentation; reviewers cite ~20-minute first integration
- –Support is the most common complaint, slow, templated, or doc-link responses, especially on free/lower tiers
- –Per-MAU pricing 'scales weirdly' and can get expensive as audience grows even without more sends
- –Analytics are shallower than dedicated marketing suites; attribution gets murky across concurrent campaigns
Airship vs OneSignal: questions
- Which has better documentation, Airship or OneSignal?
- OneSignal scores higher on documentation and developer experience: 84 vs 74 out of 100.
- Which is more reliable, Airship or OneSignal?
- Airship scores higher on reliability: 88 vs 85 out of 100.
- Do Airship and OneSignal have a free tier?
- Airship: no free tier. OneSignal: yes (Unlimited mobile push + 10k web subs).
- How are Airship and OneSignal priced?
- Airship: Custom MAU contract. OneSignal: MAU-based ($0.012/MAU).
- Which has more official SDKs?
- OneSignal lists 12 official SDKs, Airship lists 11.