WhatsApp will begin charging businesses for certain customer service messages sent through its Business Platform from October 1, 2026.
The new pricing will affect businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform, formerly known as the WhatsApp Business API. It will not apply to individuals or businesses using the standard WhatsApp Business app.
Under the new system, businesses will pay for delivered service messages that were previously free under WhatsApp’s 24-hour customer service window.
For businesses in Nigeria, a chargeable utility message sent to a Nigerian number will cost about $0.0101, or roughly N14, while marketing messages will cost about $0.062, equivalent to approximately N84 per message.
The charges could add significantly to the operating costs of companies that handle large volumes of customer interactions on the platform.
For example, a Nigerian fintech sending 500,000 chargeable messages at $0.0101 each would spend about $5,050 in Meta messaging fees alone.
Additional charges from business solution providers or software platforms may also apply.
WhatsApp has become a major customer communication channel for Nigerian businesses, including banks, fintechs, airlines, retailers, telecommunications companies and small businesses.
Meta began moving to a per-message pricing model in July 2025, replacing its previous conversation-based pricing system for business-initiated template messages.
However, service messages remained free when sent within the 24-hour customer service window.
The new changes will remove some of those free messages from October.
The charges will vary depending on the recipient’s country and the category of message, meaning businesses operating across different markets will pay different rates.
The change is expected to push businesses, particularly startups and small enterprises, to monitor their WhatsApp communication more closely and reduce unnecessary chargeable messages.
WhatsApp said the new charges will not affect ordinary users. Businesses using the standard WhatsApp Business app will also not be charged per message under the new policy.
The charges apply specifically to businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform to communicate with customers at scale.
