WhatsApp Business API pricing in India from 1 October 2026
Meta charges per delivered message, priced by the customer’s country. For India numbers the list rate is $0.0118 (₹0.8631) per Marketing message and $0.0014 (₹0.115) per Utility, Authentication or chargeable Service message. Below: how Go4whatsup bills, what changed on 1 October 2026, and three real monthly bills.
The 30-second answer
A Marketing message to an India number costs $0.0118 at Meta’s list rate. Utility, Authentication and chargeable Service messages cost $0.0014. On Go4whatsup you pay Meta’s rate plus our platform margin, shown live in the app’s rate card. The first 1,000 Service replies per number each month are free. The Go4whatsup platform fee is ₹1,499/month on Standard.
Per-message rates for India numbers
Meta charges only for delivered messages, and only for messages your business sends. Messages customers send you are free. All figures in US dollars per message.
| Category | What it is | Meta list rate (USD) | Meta INR card |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing | Offers, launches, abandoned-cart nudges, re-engagement | $0.0118 | ₹0.8631 |
| Utility | Order, shipping, booking and payment updates the customer expects | $0.0014 | ₹0.1150 |
| Authentication | One-time passwords and login codes | $0.0014 | ₹0.1150 |
| Service | Your replies inside a customer-opened 24-hour window | First 1,000 free, then $0.0014 | First 1,000 free, then ₹0.1150 |
What Go4whatsup charges. You pay Meta’s rate plus our platform margin per message; the exact rate for every country is shown live in the Go4whatsup rate card. Marketing messages sent through the Cloud API also carry a 7% surcharge; Utility, Authentication and Service messages do not. Meta’s volume tiers can lower Utility and Authentication rates at high volume.
What changed on 1 October 2026
Meta did not change Indian rates on 1 October 2026. The change that matters is the Service rule: 1,000 free replies per number per month, then each reply is charged at the Utility rate (₹0.115), and Utility templates sent inside an open 24-hour window are now charged too.
Service replies
Free until 30 September 2026. Now 1,000 free per number per month, then charged at the Utility rate.
Utility inside the 24-hour window
Free until 30 September 2026. Now charged at the Utility rate, wherever it is sent.
Click-to-WhatsApp ads
Unchanged: reply within 24 hours to a chat that started from an ad or a Facebook Page button and all messages are free for 72 hours.
Three real monthly messaging bills in India
What Meta charges for India numbers at list rates in rupees (Meta INR card) (no volume-tier discounts, no ad-window savings), next to the Go4whatsup plan fee. Your Go4whatsup invoice adds our per-message margin, and 7% on Marketing sent through the Cloud API.
Support-led team
A clinic, service centre or property team that mostly answers inbound chats and sends reminders.
- Utility — 600 × ₹0.115₹69.00
- Service — 3,000 replies, first 1,000 free, 2,000 × ₹0.115₹230.00
- Meta messaging charges per month₹299.00
- Go4whatsup Standard₹1,499
Online store
An e-commerce brand sending order and shipping updates, one promotion a week and answering customer questions.
- Marketing — 2,000 × ₹0.8631₹1,726.20
- Utility — 4,000 × ₹0.115₹460.00
- Service — 1,500 replies, first 1,000 free, 500 × ₹0.115₹57.50
- Meta messaging charges per month₹2,243.70
- Go4whatsup Standard₹1,499
Campaign-heavy brand
A retailer or education brand with large opt-in lists, weekly campaigns, OTP logins and a busy support desk.
- Marketing — 20,000 × ₹0.8631₹17,262.00
- Utility — 10,000 × ₹0.115₹1,150.00
- Authentication — 2,000 × ₹0.115₹230.00
- Service — 5,000 replies, first 1,000 free, 4,000 × ₹0.115₹460.00
- Meta messaging charges per month₹19,102.00
- Go4whatsup Standard₹1,499
What’s specific to India
India has one of the lowest rates on Meta's card
At ₹0.115 per Utility message, an order update or COD confirmation costs a fraction of an SMS. Marketing, at ₹0.8631, costs about 7.5 times Utility, so keep order and delivery updates in Utility templates.
₹1,499 plan, GST invoice
Go4whatsup Standard is ₹1,499/month. 18% GST applies to the platform fee and to Meta's message charges; GST-registered businesses can claim input tax credit.
Data protection
India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDP Act) applies: collect clear consent, honour withdrawals and keep a record of where each opt-in came from.
India next to the markets Indian teams sell into
The rate depends on the customer’s number, so a team selling across borders pays each country’s rate. US dollars per message.
| Customer’s country | Marketing | Utility | Authentication |
|---|---|---|---|
| India | $0.0118 | $0.0014 | $0.0014 |
| United Arab Emirates | $0.0576 | $0.0157 | $0.0157 |
| Saudi Arabia | $0.0576 | $0.0107 | $0.0107 |
| United Kingdom | $0.0635 | $0.0220 | $0.0220 |
Which plan fits your team in India
The platform fee depends on how many people answer WhatsApp, not on how many messages you send. Meta’s per-message charges come on top, at Meta’s rate plus a platform margin.
- Solo owner, under 30 chats a day: the free WhatsApp Business app is usually enough. Move to the API when a second person needs to reply or you need automation.
- Small team, up to 5 agents: Go4whatsup Standard at ₹1,499 a month with a GST invoice.
- Growing team, up to 10 agents, or you need Zoho, HubSpot or Shopify: Premium at ₹2,499 a month for 10 users.
- 15 agents, or you need Odoo, Instagram and Messenger, or the Developer API: PRO, ₹5,999 a month for 15 users. Extra users can be added as add-ons on any paid plan.
- More than 15 agents: add users to PRO, or ask for an Enterprise quote.
Costs to check on any India WhatsApp bill
- Margin on Meta’s rate. Ask your provider for its per-message rate for Indian numbers next to Meta’s list rate, in writing.
- Per-template or per-broadcast fees. Meta already charges per Marketing message; an extra fee per send is charging twice.
- AI priced separately. On Go4whatsup the AI chatbot is an add-on on Standard and included in Pro and Enterprise. Ask any provider for the price at your monthly chat volume.
- Setup fees. Meta charges no setup fee, and Go4whatsup includes free onboarding on every paid plan.
Comparing providers? See WATI vs Go4whatsup, AiSensy vs Go4whatsup and Interakt vs Go4whatsup.
Five ways to keep the bill down
- Send transactional messages as Utility, not Marketing. In India a Utility message costs $0.0014 against $0.0118 for Marketing at Meta’s list rate. Meta re-categorises promotional content, so keep Utility templates genuinely transactional.
- Send the update before the customer asks. One proactive Utility message usually replaces two or three Service replies once the 1,000 free ones are used up.
- Run Click-to-WhatsApp ads. Reply within 24 hours and everything you send that customer for 72 hours is free.
- Segment Marketing sends. Send to customers who engaged recently instead of the whole list; it lowers cost and protects your quality rating.
- Let AI answer the repeat questions. AI replies are still Service messages, but they stop an agent sending three messages where one would do. AI chatbot: add-on on Standard, included in Pro and Enterprise.
Get your monthly bill costed
Tell us your volumes and we’ll cost them at India rates in a 20-minute demo on your own number.
Go4whatsup in India
Standard ₹1,499/month · two-way translation in 100+ languages · live in about 24 hours once Meta verification is done. Support Monday to Friday.
India office
Floor 6, Airen Heights, A.B. Road, Indore
Phone / WhatsApp: +91-9667584436
India WhatsApp pricing — questions
How much does a WhatsApp Business API message cost in India?
From 1 October 2026 Meta's list rate for India numbers is $0.0118 per Marketing message and $0.0014 per Utility, Authentication or chargeable Service message. On Go4whatsup you pay Meta's rate plus our platform margin; the exact per-message rate for each country is shown live in the app's rate card. Marketing messages sent through the Cloud API also carry a 7% surcharge.
Are customer-service replies still free?
Partly. Since 1 October 2026 every WhatsApp Business number gets 1,000 free Service messages a month. After that, each reply is charged at the Utility rate ($0.0014 at Meta's list rate). Utility templates sent inside an open 24-hour window are charged too.
Which number decides the rate: mine or my customer's?
Your customer's. Meta prices each message by the recipient's country calling code, so a message from a Indian business to a customer abroad is charged at that customer's country rate.
Is there any way to send messages for free?
Yes. When a customer messages you from a Click-to-WhatsApp ad or a Facebook Page button and you reply within 24 hours, every message you send them for the next 72 hours is free. The first 1,000 Service replies per number each month are also free.
What does Go4whatsup cost in India on top of Meta's charges?
Go4whatsup Standard is ₹1,499/month, a shared inbox and two-way translation in 100+ languages. The AI chatbot is an add-on on Standard and included in Pro and Enterprise. There is a free plan for 2 agents, valid for 1 year.
Do utility and authentication rates get cheaper at volume?
Yes. Meta's volume tiers lower the Utility and Authentication rate once your business portfolio sends enough of them in a month in a given market. Marketing and Service rates have no volume tiers.
Related
Rates from Meta’s WhatsApp Business Platform rate card effective 1 October 2026 (Meta pricing documentation). Meta can change rates on the first day of each quarter. Page updated 12 November 2026.