Are WhatsApp Business replies still free?
Up to a point. Since 1 October 2026, Meta gives every business phone number 1,000 free service messages a month and charges each one after that. Here is the rate in every market, what a month of replies costs, and how the free windows still work.
Updated October 2026
Meta charges by the country of the number you message.
Messages you send per month
Offers, launches, reminders to buy
Order, payment and booking updates
One-time passwords
Replies within 24 hours of a customer's message
Each gets 1,000 free replies a month
How you pay
Businesses in India are billed in rupees; everyone else in US dollars.
Your total per month
₹6,814
Two bills. That’s all. GST included.
1 · Paid to Meta, directly
₹5,635
Charged to the card on your own WhatsApp Business Account at Meta’s official rates. This money never passes through Mywa.
- Marketing · 5,000 × ₹0.8631₹5,092
- Utility · 3,000 × ₹0.115₹407
- Authentication (OTP) · 0 × ₹0.115₹0.00
- Service replies · 1,000 × ₹0.115₹136
1,000 service replies free this month (1,000 per number).
2 · Paid to Mywa
₹1,179
One flat subscription. Every feature and 5 team members included.
- No markup on Meta's rates
- No per-message fee from Mywa
- No per-seat or setup fees
Meta’s list rates effective 1 October 2026, before tax. Utility and OTP rates drop at high volume, and chats that start from a click-to-WhatsApp ad are free for up to 7 days. All rates by country
1,000 free a month per number, then charged
When a customer messages you, a 24-hour customer service window opens. Anything you send in it that isn't a template is a service message: answers, photos, documents, links.
Until 1 October 2026 those replies were free. Now each business phone number has a free tier of 1,000 delivered service messages a month, and Meta charges from the 1,001st at the service rate of the customer's country. The free tier is per phone number, doesn't roll over, and without a payment method on your account Meta stops delivering service messages once it's used up.
Most small businesses never pass the free tier. Busy support teams do, and for them the rate per reply matters.
WhatsApp reply cost after 1,000 free, every market (USD)
Meta's service rates effective 1 October 2026, before tax. One business phone number; cheapest first.
| Market | Per reply | 3,000 replies / month | 10,000 replies / month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colombia | $0.0008 | $1.60 | $7.20 |
| Turkey | $0.0009 | $1.80 | $8.10 |
| India | $0.0014 | $2.80 | $12.60 |
| Sri Lanka | $0.002 | $4.00 | $18.00 |
| Nepal | $0.0034 | $6.80 | $30.60 |
| United States & Canada | $0.0034 | $6.80 | $30.60 |
| Egypt | $0.0036 | $7.20 | $32.40 |
| Bangladesh | $0.0037 | $7.40 | $33.30 |
| Rest of Africa | $0.004 | $8.00 | $36.00 |
| Israel | $0.0053 | $10.60 | $47.70 |
| Nigeria | $0.0067 | $13.40 | $60.30 |
| Brazil | $0.0068 | $13.60 | $61.20 |
| Other | $0.0077 | $15.40 | $69.30 |
| Iraq | $0.0079 | $15.80 | $71.10 |
| Mexico | $0.0085 | $17.00 | $76.50 |
| Rest of Middle East | $0.0091 | $18.20 | $81.90 |
| South Africa | $0.0095 | $19.00 | $85.50 |
| Saudi Arabia | $0.0107 | $21.40 | $96.30 |
| Rest of Asia Pacific | $0.0113 | $22.60 | $101.70 |
| Rest of Latin America | $0.0113 | $22.60 | $101.70 |
| Qatar | $0.012 | $24.00 | $108.00 |
| Poland | $0.0122 | $24.40 | $109.80 |
| Malaysia | $0.014 | $28.00 | $126.00 |
| Pakistan | $0.015 | $30.00 | $135.00 |
| United Arab Emirates | $0.0157 | $31.40 | $141.30 |
| Singapore | $0.016 | $32.00 | $144.00 |
| Rest of Western Europe | $0.0171 | $34.20 | $153.90 |
| Kazakhstan | $0.018 | $36.00 | $162.00 |
| Chile | $0.02 | $40.00 | $180.00 |
| Spain | $0.02 | $40.00 | $180.00 |
| Rest of Central & Eastern Europe | $0.0212 | $42.40 | $190.80 |
| United Kingdom | $0.022 | $44.00 | $198.00 |
| Morocco | $0.023 | $46.00 | $207.00 |
| Oman | $0.0247 | $49.40 | $222.30 |
| Indonesia | $0.025 | $50.00 | $225.00 |
| Argentina | $0.026 | $52.00 | $234.00 |
| Hong Kong | $0.026 | $52.00 | $234.00 |
| Romania | $0.029 | $58.00 | $261.00 |
| Ukraine | $0.0298 | $59.60 | $268.20 |
| France | $0.03 | $60.00 | $270.00 |
| Italy | $0.03 | $60.00 | $270.00 |
| Peru | $0.03 | $60.00 | $270.00 |
| Hungary | $0.035 | $70.00 | $315.00 |
| Russia | $0.04 | $80.00 | $360.00 |
| Kuwait | $0.044 | $88.00 | $396.00 |
| Netherlands | $0.05 | $100.00 | $450.00 |
| Germany | $0.055 | $110.00 | $495.00 |
Monthly figures subtract the 1,000 free replies. Service messages have no volume tiers. Regional markets (“Rest of …”) cover the countries listed on the pricing-by-country page.
Three ways replies stay free
- 1
The first 1,000 each month
Per business phone number, every month. A business with two numbers has two free tiers.
- 2
Click-to-WhatsApp ad leads
When a customer messages you from an ad in the WhatsApp mobile app and you reply within 24 hours, a free window opens for up to 7 days: Meta charges nothing for any message in it.
- 3
Messages from customers
Customers messaging you never cost you anything on Meta's side; only what you send is charged.
How support teams keep reply costs down
The rate is low, but it adds up for busy inboxes:
- 1
Answer in fewer, complete messages instead of many short ones: each delivered message counts.
- 2
Use saved replies that answer the whole question at once.
- 3
Run click-to-WhatsApp ads for sales enquiries: those chats are free for up to 7 days after your reply.
- 4
Avoid providers that add a fee to every message, including replies: on a service rate of a fraction of a cent, a fee can cost more than Meta does.
Frequently asked questions
The first 1,000 a month per business phone number are. Since 1 October 2026, Meta charges each service message after that at the customer's country rate: $0.0034 in the US, $0.022 in the UK.
Per business phone number. Each number gets its own 1,000 free service messages a month, and unused ones don't carry over.
Meta charges each further service message at its service rate. If there's no payment method on your WhatsApp Business Account, Meta stops delivering service messages until you add one.
Yes. When the customer messaged from the ad in the WhatsApp mobile app and you reply within 24 hours, every message in the following window, up to 7 days, is free. Chats started from desktop or web don't qualify.
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