WhatsApp Business Messages Will Become Paid From 1 October: What Indian Businesses Need To Know
Pune, 30th September 2026: Businesses using WhatsApp Business in India will pay for customer-service messages from October 1, 2026, as Meta updates its pricing.
Until now, many non-template service replies sent during a 24-hour customer-service window were free. From October 1, Meta will charge businesses per message for service replies and certain utility responses.
The change will affect businesses that rely on WhatsApp for customer support, order updates and queries.
Service messages are replies sent after a customer starts a conversation. They can be written by a human or generated by a third-party AI tool, but only within WhatsApp’s 24-hour window.
Previously, many of these messages were free. From October 1, Meta will bill them individually, aligning service-message pricing with existing utility and authentication rates in each country.
For Indian businesses, charges will be in rupees. Global accounts may see dollar rates converted to INR on the delivery date.
Meta has set September 30 as the deadline to add a valid payment method to WhatsApp Business accounts. Without it, service messages may stop working from October 1.
WhatsApp will still offer a free entry-point window for conversations that start after a user clicks a click-to-WhatsApp ad. Delivery charges for those messages remain free, though Meta’s AI Business Agent can still attract separate token-based fees.
For small businesses, the update could mean higher operating costs. Larger brands handling high volumes of queries will need tighter message planning, automation and billing oversight.
