WhatsApp Business Platform pricing changes from October 1: Here’s what businesses need to know- Moneycontrol.com

WhatsApp Business Platform pricing changes from October 1: Here’s what businesses need to know
Meta has changed WhatsApp Business Platform pricing in India, introducing charges for service messages beyond 1,000 free monthly replies and utility messages from October 1
October 01, 2026 / 10:41 IST
WhatsApp

Meta has revised the pricing structure for the WhatsApp Business Platform in India, with businesses set to pay for certain service and utility messages from October 1. The change introduces a monthly free quota for service messages, while utility messages sent during an active customer service window will also attract a charge

1,000 free service messages per month

Under the updated pricing model, businesses in India will receive 1,000 free service messages per phone number every month. After the free quota is used, each additional service message will cost Rs 0.115

Service messages refer to non-template responses sent by a business representative or a third-party AI system. These messages can be sent only during a 24-hour customer service window, which begins when a customer contacts the business on WhatsApp

The new system replaces the earlier arrangement under which businesses could send service replies without a separate message charge

Utility messages will also be charged

Meta is also introducing charges for utility messages sent during an open 24-hour customer service window. These messages are generally used for transactional or account-related communication, such as shipping updates and other order notifications

For businesses in India, Meta’s utility messaging rate will be Rs 0.115 per delivered message. The same rate will apply to authentication messages

Meta had previously charged for utility messages sent using pre-approved templates, while utility messages delivered within an active customer service window were free from July 1, 2025

The marketing message rate remains unchanged at Rs 0.8631 per delivered message in India. The rates published by Meta do not include applicable taxes or fees that may be charged by third-party providers

Meta Business Agent has separate pricing

Businesses using Meta Business Agent will also have a separate cost for AI-generated responses. Meta charges $2 per 1 million tokens processed by the AI system

Conversations initiated when a customer clicks on a WhatsApp business advertisement will continue to have free messaging. However, businesses may still incur the separate AI token charge if Meta Business Agent handles those conversations

Meta has also said businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform through a solution provider or direct integration need to add a payment method. From October 1, service messages will no longer be delivered to businesses that do not have a payment method configured

first published: Oct 1, 2026 10:41 am

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Source: www.moneycontrol.com