WhatsApp Billing & Pricing Guide

A comprehensive overview of WhatsApp pricing, billing, and rebilling for agencies and sub-accounts in HighLevel.

Table of Contents

Overview of WhatsApp Billing

WhatsApp in HighLevel now uses a per-message pricing model, charging businesses for each delivered message rather than a flat fee per 24-hour conversation window. This shift offers greater transparency and control over messaging costs, enabling more precise budgeting and strategy.

Messages are categorized into Marketing, Utility, Authentication, and Service types — each with its own pricing logic and strategic use cases.

By aligning your outreach with these categories, you can take full advantage of cost-saving opportunities (like free utility messages within an open customer service window) while maintaining high-quality engagement.

Key Benefits of WhatsApp's Pricing Structure

WhatsApp Messaging Rates by Market/Country [Effective 1 April 2026]

Understanding conversation rates by market or country helps businesses plan communication costs effectively. Rates vary depending on the type of conversation (Marketing, Utility, or Service) and the region where the message is sent.

WhatsApp pricing rate sheet — click to zoom

WhatsApp Subscription Charges for Agencies

Understanding subscription charges is essential for agencies and locations to plan their WhatsApp usage and billing effectively.

WhatsApp Messaging Rates

Understanding WhatsApp's messaging rates is critical for managing costs effectively. Rates vary based on the template category (Marketing, Utility, Service) and the country/region where the message is sent.

• Payment Processing Fees: A 5% Stripe fee is added to these rates, which should be considered when setting up rebilling.
• Regional Variations: Rates differ significantly by region, so plan campaigns with regional costs in mind.

Rate Application Example
Assume a Marketing message is sent to the U.S.

• Base rate: $0.0263
• Multiplier: 1.5X
• Final cost to the client: $0.0263 × 1.5 = $0.0395

WhatsApp Message-Based Pricing [Effective 1 July 2025]

Starting July 1, 2025, WhatsApp adopts a message-based pricing model that charges businesses for each delivered message, rather than per conversation. Below are the primary message categories:

IMPORTANT: Each category has specific initiation methods.

• Marketing, utility, and authentication conversations can ONLY be opened with template messages.
• Service conversations can ONLY be opened with free-form messages.

To learn how to choose an appropriate category when creating your WhatsApp templates, see Template Categorization Guidelines.

Template Messages vs. Non-Template Messages

* CSW = Customer Service Window    ** FEP = Free Entry Point

Service Conversations [Effective 1 November 2024]

This 24-hour timer begins when a customer messages you. During this window, free-form messages can be sent without opening additional conversations.

• Used to resolve customer inquiries and issues.
• Service conversations are initiated when a free-form message is delivered to a customer, provided no other conversation of any type is open.
• These conversations rely on an active customer service window between you and the customer.

The customer service window is a 24-hour timer that starts with a user message and resets with each message. As long as the customer service window is open, businesses can respond to users via free-form messages or utility messages at no charge.

Free-form messages are any message type that is not a template.

Examples:

Example 1: Per Message Based Pricing We charge for each template message a business sends to a user. For example, if a business sends 1 marketing message and 1 utility message, that incurs 1 charge for each category. (Click the phone image to zoom into the conversation)
Example 2: Free-Form and Utility Messages Businesses can respond to users at no charge with free-form messages and utility template messages. When the customer service window is open, businesses can also send utility messages, at no charge. (Click the phone image to zoom into the conversation)

Free Entry Point Conversations [Effective 1 June 2023]

Free entry point conversations provide cost-saving opportunities for businesses by allowing free communication for a limited duration.

Example of Free Entry Point Conversation

If a customer messages you via a Click to WhatsApp Ad at 10 am and you respond at 10 pm the same day:

• The free entry point conversation starts at 10 pm and lasts for 72 hours.

WhatsApp Calling Pricing

WhatsApp Calling rates are charged per minute and vary by market. Rates listed below are in USD and apply to business-initiated calls. User-initiated (inbound) calls are free of charge.

How Calls Are Billed

Businesses are charged for calls based on:

Example: A 56-second call = 9.33 pulses → rounded up to 10 pulses.
Fractional pulses are always counted as one full pulse.

Call Rates by Market (USD per minute)

 User-Initiated Calling
Available in every location where Cloud API is available. No country restrictions apply.

 Business-Initiated Calling

Your business can call customers in most countries. However, calling is not available if your business phone number is registered in any of these countries:

Rebilling WhatsApp Messages

Rebilling offers agencies flexibility in setting WhatsApp messaging pricing for clients, creating additional revenue opportunities.

Your Client's WhatsApp Subscription

When your client purchases WhatsApp services from you, two subscriptions are created:

1. Between the client's card and your Stripe account for client payments.
2. Between HighLevel and your Stripe account to pay HighLevel the $10/month/location subscription fee.

How to Set Up WhatsApp Rebilling

1. Access Billing Settings: Navigate to the Settings tab in HighLevel.
2. Select WhatsApp Billing: Click on the Billing section and locate the WhatsApp billing option.
3. Enter Payment Details: Provide the necessary payment information to enable billing.
4. Choose Subscription Plan: Select the subscription plan that best fits your agency or client location needs.
5. Enable Rebilling: Configure rebilling options to charge your clients with your preferred pricing.
6. Verify Setup: Review the billing setup to ensure accuracy and completeness.

Click here for a more in-depth setup guide for WhatsApp messaging and rebilling!

Frequently Asked Questions

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