WhatsApp Service Message Charges: How 1,000 Free Replies Work

Hypothetical example: Meenal runs a photography business in Jaipur. A customer messages about an album delivery, and her team sends a reply. Later, the customer asks another question. Meenal wants to know whether those replies count as one conversation or two messages when she estimates WhatsApp service message charges.

WhatsApp service message charges on the WhatsApp Business Platform are based on delivered replies, not conversations. Each business phone number gets 1,000 free delivered service messages per calendar month. These are free-form business replies sent inside the 24-hour customer service window. The allowance resets monthly, does not roll over and cannot be shared across numbers. From 1 October 2026, additional delivered service messages cost the applicable market's utility-message rate, with no volume tiers. In India, that rate is ₹0.115 per delivered service message, plus 18% GST. A customer who receives several eligible replies can therefore use several messages from the allowance. Template messages follow separate pricing rules, and a qualifying free entry point window is an exception. These rules apply to the WhatsApp Business Platform, not ordinary replies in the free WhatsApp Business mobile app. Check which product you use, your delivered-message counts and the current Meta rate card before estimating a bill. See Meta for Developers: Upcoming pricing updates for service and utility messages and Meta for Developers: Pricing on the WhatsApp Business Platform.

How do the 1,000 free service messages work?

The allowance is per business phone number and per calendar month, not per customer or chat. In a sample month, if Meenal's Platform number delivers 850 eligible service replies, all 850 fit within its allowance. The unused 150 do not carry into the next month. A second business number has its own allowance rather than sharing the first number's balance, as set out by Meta for Developers: Upcoming pricing updates for service and utility messages.

For a practical count, record delivered service replies separately for each number. In Meenal's hypothetical chat, two delivered free-form replies count as two messages even though both answer the same customer.

What are WhatsApp service message charges after the allowance?

From 1 October 2026, Meta charges for delivered service messages beyond the allowance at the market's utility-message rate, without volume tiers. The Meta WhatsApp rate card (India, INR) lists the India service rate effective that date as ₹0.115 per delivered message, plus 18% GST. Check the current rate card before budgeting for a later month.

Worked example: one Jaipur business number in one calendar month. Suppose it delivers 1,200 eligible service replies. Subtract the 1,000 free messages to get 200 chargeable replies. At ₹0.115 each, 200 × ₹0.115 = ₹23 before GST. Adding 18% GST gives ₹27.14. This is a sample calculation for Meta service-message charges, not a quote for the business's complete setup; check any separate software-provider fees.

Are WhatsApp replies free in the customer service window?

Not necessarily. The 24-hour customer service window determines when a business can send a free-form service reply after a customer messages it. For Platform messages from 1 October 2026, being inside that window does not itself remove a charge: delivered service replies use the monthly allowance, then incur the applicable rate. Utility templates sent inside an open window are also charged from that date; previously, in-window utility templates were free. See Twilio: Changes to WhatsApp Pricing for the service-message change.

There is a distinct free entry point exception. Messages inside a qualifying 72-hour window remain free when a customer starts the chat through a Click-to-WhatsApp ad or Facebook Page call-to-action. Check the entry point and timing rather than assuming every new chat qualifies.

Is there a WhatsApp service conversation price?

No flat service-conversation price applies to the current Platform calculation. Since 1 July 2025, Meta has charged per delivered marketing, utility or authentication template instead of per 24-hour conversation. From 1 October 2026, it also charges per delivered service message after the monthly allowance. Count the delivered messages and identify their categories rather than pricing an entire chat as one unit, as the SleekFlow WhatsApp Business pricing guide describes.

The free WhatsApp Business mobile app is different from the Platform: Meta does not bill ordinary app messages at these Platform per-message rates. Confirm which product your business uses before applying this calculation.

How can an Indian business estimate its monthly reply bill?

For each Platform number, subtract 1,000 from that calendar month's eligible delivered service-message count. If the result is positive, multiply it by the current India service rate and include the applicable GST in your estimate. Keep template deliveries and any software-provider fees separate.

Sample calculation: A Bengaluru salon's single Platform number delivers 1,500 eligible service replies in a calendar month. The chargeable count is 1,500 − 1,000 = 500. At the stated India rate, 500 × ₹0.115 = ₹57.50 before GST, or ₹67.85 with 18% GST. This example excludes templates and provider fees.

Monthly message-cost checklist

• Confirm whether you use the Business mobile app or the Business Platform.
• Record delivered service replies by number and calendar month.
• Separate service replies from marketing, utility and authentication templates.
• Check whether any messages qualify for a free entry point window.
• Verify Meta's current rate card and your provider's current fees.

If shared replies and booking changes are taking staff time, Intellibook AI is one option to assess alongside those message costs. Compare the workflow you need with Intellibook AI pricing; a software subscription and Meta's Platform message charges are separate budget items.

Frequently asked questions about WhatsApp service message charges