WhatsApp Conversation Pricing

WhatsApp's pricing model charges businesses per conversation — a 24-hour message exchange session — rather than per message. Conversations are categorized into four types with different rates: utility (transactional notifications like order confirmations), authentication (verification codes), marketing (promotional messages), and service (customer-initiated conversations, which are free for the first 1,000 per month). Rates vary by country and conversation category.

Understanding conversation pricing is essential for managing WhatsApp support costs. AI agents optimize WhatsApp costs by resolving customer issues within a single conversation window (avoiding additional charges for follow-up conversations), handling higher volumes at lower cost than human agents, and using free service conversations efficiently when customers initiate contact. Businesses should monitor their conversation category mix to optimize spending.