Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, is set to
introduce per-message charges for certain messages sent by businesses through
the WhatsApp Business Platform from October 1, 2026.
The development was announced in a WhatsApp Business
Platform pricing update published in July 2026 and will affect companies that
use the official platform, formerly known as the WhatsApp Business API, to
manage customer communications at scale.
Businesses likely to be affected include banks,
fintech companies, e-commerce platforms, telecommunications operators,
logistics firms and large retailers that rely on WhatsApp for customer service
and transactional communications.
However, the new pricing will not affect ordinary
WhatsApp users or most small businesses using the regular WhatsApp Business app
on their mobile phones.
Under the existing pricing structure, when a customer
sends a message to a business, a 24-hour customer service window is opened.
Businesses can currently respond with free-form service messages and certain
utility messages within that period without being charged by Meta.
That will change from October 1, when Meta begins
charging businesses on a per-message basis for service messages sent during an
open customer service window.
In its developer documentation, Meta stated that all
service messages would become chargeable from October 1, 2026, under the same
general per-message model used for template messages. Service messages have not
been charged since November 2024.
Meta will also introduce charges for utility messages
sent in response to customers within an active 24-hour service window. These
messages have been free since July 2025.
Utility messages typically include payment
confirmations, order updates, delivery notifications and similar transactional
communications.
The company has also warned businesses and Solution
Providers to add valid payment methods before the new pricing takes effect.
Meta said businesses or Solution Providers without a
payment method on file by September 30, 2026 may have their service
messages blocked once the charges take effect on October 1.
For businesses in Nigeria, a chargeable service or
utility message is expected to cost approximately $0.0101, equivalent to
about ?14 per message based on an exchange rate of roughly ?1,340 to $1.
Marketing messages will be significantly more
expensive, at approximately $0.062 per message, or around ?84 at
the same exchange rate.
However, Meta’s fees may not represent the full cost
businesses incur. Companies that access the WhatsApp Business Platform through
Business Solution Providers or other third-party platforms could also face
additional service or provider charges.
The pricing change is expected to increase
communication costs for businesses that handle large volumes of customer
interactions through WhatsApp, potentially prompting companies to review how
they manage customer service and transactional messaging on the platform.
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