WhatsApp pricing — what Meta charges for
Which messages Meta charges for, the 1,000 free service replies a month, and where you see the charges. Meta bills you directly, separately from your Vatli plan.
Meta charges for WhatsApp Business messages per delivered message. The price depends on the message category and the country of the customer’s phone number.
Changed on 1 October 2026. Replies inside the 24-hour window used to be free. Meta now charges them after a free allowance of 1,000 service messages per phone number per month, and Utility templates sent inside the window are charged too.
What’s charged and what’s free
| Message | Charged? |
|---|---|
| Marketing templates | Charged per delivered message |
| Utility templates | Charged per delivered message, inside or outside the 24-hour window |
| Authentication templates | Charged per delivered message |
| Service messages — any non-template reply inside the 24-hour window | First 1,000 a month per phone number free, then charged at the Utility rate of the customer’s country |
| Messages inside a 72-hour free entry point (customer came from a click-to-WhatsApp ad or Page button) | Free |
Rates are in Meta’s official pricing table and change from time to time. Check developers.facebook.com → WhatsApp → Pricing for current rates in your country.
Who bills you
- Meta bills messages to the payment method in your WhatsApp Business Account. See Add a payment method in Meta.
- Vatli bills your plan separately. See Plans and limits.
See your spend in Vatli
Reports → WhatsApp Business Insights shows Free delivered, Paid delivered and Approx. Meta charges for the period. It’s an estimate — your Meta invoice is the final figure. See Reports.
Keep costs down
- Choose the right category. Order updates, reminders and account alerts are Utility, not Marketing. See Template categories.
- Know your allowance. The first 1,000 service replies each month are free per phone number; after that each reply is charged. Unused free replies don’t carry over.
- Use click-to-WhatsApp ads for acquisition — the first 72 hours are free.
- Clean invalid numbers from your lists — messages that fail aren’t charged, but they hurt your quality rating.