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Conversation-based pricing
Meta's earlier WhatsApp billing model, which charged for a 24-hour conversation window rather than per individual message. Meta has since moved to per-message pricing for template messages.
One term from the WhatsApp Business Platform glossary. Last updated 2026-07-25.
Under conversation-based pricing, the first template message opened a 24-hour conversation of a given category, and every message inside that window was covered by the single conversation charge. Categories — marketing, utility, authentication, service — each had their own rate.
Meta has transitioned template messaging to per-message pricing. The category distinction still matters for both cost and policy, but the billing unit for templates is now the message rather than the window. Service replies inside the customer service window remain uncharged.
Related terms
- Per-message pricing
- Meta's current WhatsApp billing model for template messages, where each delivered template message is charged individually at a rate set by its category and the recipient's country.
- Message category (Marketing, Utility, Authentication, Service)
- The four buckets Meta sorts WhatsApp conversations into. Marketing, Utility and Authentication are template messages and each carries its own rate; Service messages are free-form replies inside the 24-hour window, free until 1 October 2026 and charged per message after that.
- Customer service window
- The 24-hour window that opens when a customer messages your business. Replies you send inside it are free-form rather than templates — free until 1 October 2026, and charged per message after that.
See Conversation-based pricing in a real workspace
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