Meta is fundamentally changing how businesses pay for WhatsApp messaging. From July 1, 2025, the WhatsApp Business Platform will shift from charging per conversation to charging per message. This will be their biggest pricing restructure since WhatsApp introduced conversation-based pricing in February 2022.

If you're currently using WhatsApp Business API or planning to integrate it, this change will directly impact your messaging costs and strategy. Let's break down exactly what's changing and what it means for your business.

The big shift from per-conversation to per-message pricing

What changes from July 1, 2025

The customer service window: Your key to free messaging

The 24-hour customer service window remains central to WhatsApp pricing, but with an important update. You will again be charged per message, instead of a conversation that can last the entire 24-hour timeline.

How the customer service window works

During this window, you can send:
• Free-form messages (always free)
• Utility template messages (free starting July 1, 2025)

Let's say you run an e-commerce store. A customer messages you asking about their order status at 2 PM on Monday.

Before July 1, 2025:
• Free-form response: Free
• Utility template with order details: Charged (part of utility conversation)

After July 1, 2025:
• Free-form response: Free
• Utility template with order details: Free (within customer service window)

Volume-based pricing tiers: How they actually work

WhatsApp offers volume discounts based on the number of messages your business sends. The discount is tiered for different volumes depending on the region of operation.

Tier structure
• Tier 1: Base rate (no discount)
• Tier 2: 5% discount
• Tier 3: 10% discount
• Tier 4: 15% discount
• Tier 5: 20% discount

Important details about volume-based pricing tiers

Tiers are market and category specific: Your tier for utility messages in Brazil is separate from your tier for authentication messages in India.

Discounts apply only within tiers: If you send 10,000 messages and reach Tier 3, only the messages that come between Tier 3 and Tier 4 get the 10% discount, not all 10,000.

For example, 12,000 messages sent would mean that you’re in Tier 3. But the 10% discount will apply only for the 2000 new messages.

Tier thresholds vary by country: The number of messages needed to reach each tier differs by market and message category.

Free entry points are still valuable under the new pricing

When users click on your Meta ads or your Facebook page`'s click-to-chat buttons, you need to make the most of them.
• User clicks your WhatsApp ad
• You respond within 24 hours
• This opens a 72-hour "free entry point" window
• All template messages during this window are free

This remains unchanged with the new pricing model, making Click-to-WhatsApp ads an even more attractive option for businesses planning multi-message sequences.

How the new pricing can impact a real-world business

Let's examine how different businesses might be affected with a few examples by industry.

1. Online retailer

Previous model (conversation-based):
• Customer asks about order → Opens up a service conversation (which has been free since Nov 1, 2024)
• Send utility template for order confirmation → Opens separate utility conversation (charged)
• Send more utility templates within 24 hours → Part of same utility conversation (no additional charge)

New model (message-based):
• Customer asks about order → Customer service window opens
• Send 3 utility templates within a 24-hour window = All free (major change!)
• Send utility template next day (outside window) = 1 utility charge

2. Financial services

Previous model (conversation-based):
• Send OTP for login → Opens 24-hour authentication conversation (charged once)
• Send 5 more OTPs within same 24 hours → All part of same conversation (no additional charges)
• Send OTP after 24 hours → New authentication conversation (charged again)

New model (message-based):
• Send OTP for login → 1 authentication charge
• Send another OTP (anytime) → Another authentication charge
• Every OTP = Separate charge (even if sent minutes apart)

3. Travel agency

Previous model (conversation-based):
• Send promotional package → Opens marketing conversation (charged)
• Customer inquires about package → Opens service conversation (free after Nov 1, 2024)
• Send booking confirmation template → Opens utility conversation (charged)
• Send check-in reminder + gate change + boarding pass = Same utility conversation (no extra charge if within 24 hours)

New model (message-based):
• Send promotional package → 1 marketing charge
• Customer inquires → Customer service window opens
• Send booking confirmation within window → Free
• Send check-in reminder (2 days later) → 1 utility charge
• Send gate change + boarding pass → 2 utility charges

4. Real estate agency

Current model (conversation-based):
• Send new property listing → Opens marketing conversation (charged)
• Send 10 more listings within 24 hours → Same conversation (no extra charge)
• Client asks about viewing → Opens service conversation (free)
• Send viewing confirmation template → Opens utility conversation (charged)

New model (message-based):
• Send property listing → 1 marketing charge
• Send 10 more listings → 10 more marketing charges
• Client asks about viewing → Customer service window opens
• Send viewing confirmation within window → Free
• Send reminder next day → 1 utility charge

5. Healthcare provider

Previous model (conversation-based):
• Patient messages for appointment → Opens service conversation (free)
• Send appointment confirmation template → Opens utility conversation (charged)
• Send pre-appointment instructions + reminder = Same utility conversation (no extra charge if within 24 hours)
• Send OTP for patient portal → Opens authentication conversation (charged)

New model (message-based):
• Patient messages for appointment → Customer service window opens
• Send appointment confirmation within window → Free
• Send reminder 3 days before appointment → 1 utility charge
• Send pre-appointment instructions → 1 utility charge
• Send OTP for patient portal → 1 authentication charge

6. Educational institution

Previous model (conversation-based):
• Send course promotion → Opens marketing conversation (charged)
• Student inquires about course → Opens service conversation (free)
• Send enrollment confirmation → Opens utility conversation (charged)
• Send class schedule + fee reminder + exam notification = Same utility conversation (if within 24 hours)

New model (message-based):
• Send course promotion → 1 marketing charge
• Student inquires → Customer service window opens
• Send enrollment confirmation within window → Free
• Send class schedule (next week) → 1 utility charge
• Send fee reminder → 1 utility charge
• Send exam notification → 1 utility charge

What this means for your messaging strategy

The shift to per-message pricing requires rethinking your approach. You need to think about communicating more within a single template message and reduce the back-and-forth.

Winners in the new model
• Businesses with high customer engagement: More customer-initiated conversations mean more free utility templates.
• Support-heavy operations: All service conversations remain free.
• Businesses using WhatsApp ads: Free entry points become even more valuable.

Those who need to adapt
• Broadcast-heavy senders: Each marketing message now incurs a separate charge.
• Authentication-heavy services: Multiple OTPs within 24 hours now cost more.
• Businesses sending multiple template types: No more bundling different templates in one conversation.

Practical steps you can take to prepare for the transition

Here are some of the steps you can take to ensure that per-message charges and other July 1 pricing updates don’t affect your existing WhatsApp Business API setup and budgets.

1. Audit your current usage
• Calculate how many template messages you send (not just conversations)
• Identify what percentage fall within customer service windows
• Review your authentication message frequency

2. Optimize message timing
• Encourage customers to initiate conversations (WhatsApp QR codes, web widgets, WhatsApp links, etc.,)
• Batch utility messages within customer service windows when possible
• Consider shifting some templates to free-form messages

3. Review your templates
• Ensure utility templates are properly categorized
• Consider which messages truly need to be templates
• Optimize template content for clarity and effectiveness

4. Calculate projected costs
• Use Meta`'s pricing calculator with your actual message volumes
• Factor in your market-specific rates
• Consider volume tier thresholds for your primary markets

Optimize your WhatsApp Business strategy for customer-initiated conversations and free entry-points

While the per-message pricing simplifies understanding costs (you pay for what you send), it may increase expenses for some use cases while reducing them for others.

The key to managing costs in this new model lies in maximizing customer-initiated conversations and strategically timing your template messages. Businesses that adapt their messaging patterns to work with, rather than against, these changes will find opportunities to maintain or even reduce their WhatsApp messaging costs.