Businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform will be charged per 24-hour conversation, with different rates by conversation category starting June 1st, 2023.
Business-initiated conversations(BICs) will be split into 2 new categories:
Utility, and Marketing.
User-initiated conversations(UICs) will be called Service Conversations.
Conversation categories and how they apply to your pricing
Businesses can initiate a conversation using a template message. The category of the template message used will define the conversation category.
Four new conversation categories effective June 1, 2023
There are two business-initiated conversation categories (all of which require customer opt in):
Utility conversations - Facilitate a specific, agreed-upon request or transaction or update to a customer about an ongoing transaction, including post-purchase notifications and recurring billing statements
Marketing conversations - Include promotions or offers, informational updates, or invitations for customers to respond / take action. Any conversation that does not qualify as utility or authentication is a marketing conversation.
The third category is Service Conversations – all user-initiated conversations will be categorised as service conversations, which help customers resolve enquiries.
How conversation charges will be initiated
Conversation charges will be based on template category. When a template is delivered, it opens a new conversation of that category and incurs the charge of that conversation category, unless the template is delivered during an open conversation of that category. For example, if a utility conversation is open and a marketing template is delivered within that open conversation, a new, separate marketing conversation is opened and marketing conversation charge is initiated.
However, sending multiple templates of the same category within an open conversation will not incur additional charges. For example, a business can send multiple utility templates in an open utility conversation with no additional charges.
Service conversations will still only be initiated when no other conversation window is open and a business responds to a user with a free form message within the 24-hour customer service window. If a business replies to a user with a template message or sends a template message in an open service conversation, this opens a new conversation based on the template category.
The exception to this is free entry point conversations. During the free window, businesses can send multiple templates of different categories, and no new conversation will be opened.
Charges for conversations are based on the user’s country code. A user here is defined as the customer that your business is communicating with. Rates for business-initiated and user-initiated conversations vary by country or region.
Additional changes to conversation-based pricing in 2023
Changes to free entry point conversations: Effective March 1, 2023
Conversations are not charged when users message businesses using call-to-actions buttons on Ads that Click to WhatsApp or Facebook Page call-to-action buttons. Starting March 1, we are providing more free conversations when users message businesses through these entry points by extending the free conversation window from 24h to 72h.
When a free entry point conversation is open, no other conversation category can be opened, even if a business sends a template within the three-day (72h) free entry point conversation window.
Standard pricing applies for Ads that Click to WhatsApp. The conversation that initiates from the ad is free, but not the ad itself.
Changes to Free Tier Conversations: Effective June 1, 2023
Businesses will continue to be able to trial the WhatsApp Business Platform with 1,000 free user-initiated conversations each month. Business-initiated conversations will no longer be included in the free tier.
Each WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) will receive 1,000 free user-initiated conversations per month (independent of the number of phone numbers attached to the WABA). The free tier is refreshed monthly based on the timezone associated with the WABA.
FAQs
1. How are business-initiated conversations categorized?
Business-initiated conversations are split into two categories:
Utility Conversations
Marketing Conversations
These require customer opt-in and are determined by the template message used.
2) How are conversation charges determined?
Charges are based on the conversation category. When a business sends a template message, it initiates a new conversation and incurs charges for that category. If the template is sent during an open conversation of the same category, no new charges apply.
3) Can a business initiate a new conversation during a free entry point conversation window?
No, businesses cannot initiate a new conversation, even if they send a template of a different category, during the 72-hour free entry point conversation window.
For further assistance or to raise feature requests related to Updates in WhatsApp Pricing, please contact [email protected]