WhatsApp starts charging for replies: what changes on October 1

In this article

Since November 2024, replying to a customer inside the 24-hour window cost nothing on the WhatsApp Business Platform. That ends on October 1, 2026, when Meta starts charging service messages per message.

What becomes paid

• Service messages. Free-form replies, without a template, sent inside the 24-hour window a customer opens when they write to you.
• Utility templates inside that window. They were free when sent while the window was open. They are charged too from October 1.

What stays free

• The first 1,000 service messages of each number, every month. The allowance resets each month and unused messages do not carry over.
• Messages your customers send you. Receiving has never been charged.
• The free entry point window. Replies after someone arrives from a click to WhatsApp ad or from the button on your Facebook Page are still free.

How much each reply costs

Meta charges service messages at the same rate as utility and authentication templates in each market, per delivered message and without volume discounts. The price for each country is on Meta's pricing page.

Keep a payment method on the account

The 1,000 free replies arrive either way. From the 1,001st onwards, without a payment method on the WhatsApp Business account, Meta stops delivering replies.

WhatsApp does not change for your customers. What changes is the bill: every reply becomes a line on it.

And AI agents

Since August 1 Meta also charges for messages from its own agent, Meta Business Agent, by token. A third-party agent that answers through the API, like the Connect assistant, sends service messages: each answer counts toward the 1,000 and, past them, is charged like any other reply.

How it works with Connect

• You pay Meta directly, with no markup. The WhatsApp Business account is yours, so the charge goes to your payment method. We charge for the platform, not for messages.
• The assistant only answers when called. It opens a session only when a message starts with your keyword. Everything else goes to your team's inbox.
• Fewer messages per question. The number is linked to the customer's account, so the assistant does not need to ask for a customer number or an order in several messages. It looks it up in your API and answers.

Before October 1

1. Check how many replies each number sends a month. In the analytics the category is SERVICE.
2. Add a payment method to your account if you go over 1,000.
3. Review the utility templates you send inside the window. They count now.

Source: Upcoming pricing updates for Meta Business Agent, service and utility messages, Meta for Developers.

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