WhatsApp Business API pricing in India: marketing, utility and service rates

WhatsApp Business messaging moved to per-message pricing on 1 July 2025. Your cost now depends on the category of each template message, not on conversations, and replies inside the customer service window are free. Here is how it works in India, based on Meta's pricing documentation.

The four categories

Rates change and differ by country, so always check Meta's current calculator. Since 1 November 2024, service conversations have been free for every business with no monthly cap, so the old allowance of 1,000 free service conversations a month no longer applies. Since 1 July 2025, utility templates sent inside an open customer service window are free too.

The 24-hour window

When a customer messages you, a 24-hour customer service window opens. Inside it you can reply with free-form messages at no charge, and utility templates are free as well. Outside it, you must use pre-approved templates, which are charged by category. Some entry points, such as ads that open a chat, can open a longer free window under Meta's terms. Check the current rules.

What you pay on top

• Provider fee. Most businesses use a provider (a Business Solution Provider) that charges a monthly platform fee, often a few thousand rupees.
• GST. Generally 18% on Meta's charges and on the provider's fee. See GST on software.
• Setup or agent seats, depending on the provider.

Orvexa does not mark up WhatsApp messages: Meta's charges are passed through at cost.

Worked examples (illustrative)

Order updates. A brand with 1,000 orders a month sends confirmed, shipped and out-for-delivery messages, three per order. Most go out when the customer has not messaged recently, so they are charged as utility templates: 3,000 × ₹0.115 = ₹345 before GST at most. Any that fall inside an open service window cost nothing.

A promotion. Sending an offer to 5,000 opted-in customers at ₹0.8631 costs ₹4,315.50 before GST. If it brings 100 orders worth ₹1,200 each, that is ₹1,20,000 in sales for about ₹43 per order in message cost.

Support chats. When a customer writes first, your free-form replies inside the 24-hour window are free, so a 20-message support conversation costs nothing in Meta charges. Your provider's fees still apply.

How to keep costs down

• Use utility templates for order updates instead of marketing templates, and keep promotions out of them, because Meta may reclassify messages.
• Send promotions only to people who want them, which also protects quality.
• Segment, so that you pay only for relevant sends.
• Answer within the 24-hour window: replies there are free, and so are utility templates such as order updates.

Compare providers

Ask each provider: the monthly fee, whether they add a mark-up to Meta's rates, how many agent seats are included, whether automation and a chatbot are included, and what support they offer in India.

What to do next

Estimate your monthly messages by category, multiply by the rates above, add GST and the provider's fee, and compare that with the revenue messaging brings.