Meta is set to introduce new WhatsApp Business charges that could raise operating costs for Kenyan businesses using the platform for customer support, sales, banking notifications, and order updates.
According to the company, the new charges will take effect on October 1 across categories including customer support, sales, banking notifications, and order updates.
The changes form part of Meta’s broader effort to monetize business messaging and expand the use of artificial intelligence-powered customer service tools on WhatsApp.
Under the revised pricing structure, businesses will begin paying for some customer service interactions that were previously free.
WhatsApp Business New Pricing Categories
Meta transitioned from a conversation-based model to a per-message pricing system on July 1, 2025.
Under the current pricing structure, businesses are charged for three categories of template messages.
The new charges affect marketing messages used for promotions and advertising campaigns.
Users will also be charged for sending utility messages that provide transactional updates such as order confirmations and delivery notifications.
Under the new structure, authentication messages that deliver one-time passwords and account verification codes will also be charged.
Ordinary customer service replies within the 24-hour support window have remained free until the upcoming October changes.
Utility messages sent in response to customers during the same support window will also be charged under the new pricing model.
Following the changes, Meta will charge for service messages sent by human agents, customer support teams, and third-party AI systems within WhatsApp’s 24-hour customer service window.
Free WhatsApp Features
Despite the new charges, several activities will remain free. Meta will not charge businesses for messages customers initiate.
Businesses will also continue to benefit from WhatsApp’s 72-hour Free Entry Point window, which activates when a customer starts a conversation through a Click-to-WhatsApp advertisement or Facebook call-to-action button and the business responds within 24 hours.
According to Meta, once the WhatsApp’s 72-hour Free Entry Point window is activated, all messages exchanged during the 72 hours will not incur any charges to the user.
“Utility, service, or Meta Business Agent messages will be charged as of October 1. Only during the 72-hour free entry point window will marketing, authentication, utility, and service messages remain free,” WhatsApp Business’s new pricing model notes.
AI-Powered Business Agent Charges
On August 1, 2026, Meta introduced a new category known as Meta Business Agent.
The Meta Business Agent is an AI-powered customer service assistant that offers product recommendations, shopping support, and customer inquiries without human intervention.
Unlike other WhatsApp Business charges, which are billed per message, interactions with the Meta Business Agent are billed per token.
Meta estimates the cost at approximately KSh5 to KSh6.50 per message equivalent, depending on the interaction.
Impact on Kenyan Businesses
Kenyan WhatsApp Business operators under Meta’s Rest of Africa pricing region are subject to regional pricing rates applicable across African markets.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) could experience higher operational costs as service conversations become billable.
E-commerce businesses may also face increased expenses due to the high volume of customer inquiries, order confirmations, and delivery updates handled through the platform.
Banks and financial institutions that use WhatsApp Business for customer support and account notifications could see their messaging costs rise as support interactions increase.
Companies experimenting with AI-powered customer service tools may also need to face charges once the pricing takes effect on October 1.
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