Docs/iMessageiMessage
How many iMessage lines do I need?
Start from your daily new lead volume, then check how those leads arrive. Bursts need more capacity than a steady drip of the same total.
On this page
The limits you are sizing to
50
conversations per 24 hours, per line
30
conversations per hour, per line
The full explanation of what counts, when the counter resets, and why the limits exist is in the iMessage guide.
Volume examples
| New leads per day | Typical starting point |
|---|---|
| 30 | 1 line |
| 75 | At least 2 lines |
| 150 | At least 3 lines |
| 250 | At least 5 lines |
Leave headroom
Bursts matter as much as totals
Because a line starts up to 30 conversations inside an hour, 40 leads landing in a single hour needs more capacity than 40 leads spread across a day, even though the daily total is identical.
Paid campaigns, webinar registrations, and database reactivations all create bursts. If you are planning one, tell us the expected shape ahead of time and we will size capacity before launch.
What happens when a line reaches capacity?
Nothing breaks and nothing is thrown away. A line at its allowance stops starting new conversations for that window, and messages that cannot go out yet wait instead of failing.
| Limit reached | What happens to the message |
|---|---|
| Hourly conversation allowance (30) | New outbound messages sit in queue and go out once the hour rolls over and the line frees up |
| Daily conversation allowance (50) | The line has no room to start further conversations until the counter resets at 12:00am. Daily line usage in analytics shows how close you are |
| The line is simply busy | Messages queue behind the ones ahead of them. This is normal pacing, not a failure |
Queued is not failed
Replies inside conversations that are already open are unaffected. Capacity is about how many new conversations a line starts, so an ongoing thread keeps running even while the line is at its ceiling for new outreach.
Where you have several lines, capacity is per line, so spreading volume across lines is what buys you headroom. Lead Configuration controls how incoming API leads are distributed across your reps and lines, and in GoHighLevel the rep and line assignment does the same job. Leads are round robined across your lines rather than one line being filled to its ceiling before the next is used, so capacity is spread evenly and a single line rarely sits full while others sit idle.
What to watch in analytics: daily line usage against capacity, queue size during your busiest hour, and whether a line finishes every day at its ceiling. A line permanently pinned at capacity is a sizing problem, not a delivery problem, and line health tells you which of the two you are looking at.
Capacity is not billing
Capacity counts conversations a line starts. Billing counts unique leads processed. They are separate, and a busy conversation costs you capacity once and a lead charge once, no matter how many messages it contains. Full detail in how usage billing works.
FAQ
How many conversations can one line start per day?
Up to 50 unique conversations in a 24 hour window, with the counter resetting at 12:00am. Messages inside an open conversation are unlimited.
Is there an hourly limit as well?
Yes. One line starts up to 30 conversations inside any single hour, which paces the device so nothing fails later in the day.
Do ongoing conversations use up capacity?
Replying back and forth with an open conversation does not consume additional capacity. Capacity is about conversations started per day.
Should I size exactly to my volume?
No. Leave headroom. A line permanently pinned at its ceiling has nowhere to go on a busy day.
Still need a hand?
If your volume is going to run past the daily or hourly limits, or something is not behaving the way these docs describe, talk to our team.