> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://knowledge.flowella.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Pricing and WhatsApp conversation categories
> How Meta's conversation-based pricing works, how it interacts with your Flowella subscription, and why Meta charges and Flowella usage are billed separately.
WhatsApp is billed per **conversation**, not per message — and the price depends on the conversation's **category**. This page explains how Meta's pricing works, how it lines up with your Flowella plan, and why you see two separate bills.
For plan sizes and Flowella overage rates, see [Plans & limits](/account/plans-and-limits). For invoice mechanics on the Flowella side, see [Billing](/account/billing).
## Two separate bills
Using Flowella with WhatsApp always involves **two costs**:
| Bill | Who charges you | What it covers |
| ------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Flowella subscription** | Discover Digital (via Stripe) | The Flowella platform, HubSpot integration, dashboards, and your monthly conversation allowance. |
| **Meta WhatsApp fees** | Meta directly, via your own WhatsApp Business / Meta Business account | Network delivery of every WhatsApp conversation, priced by category and country. |
Flowella does not resell or mark up Meta charges. Meta bills you directly through the payment method on your WhatsApp Business Account. Flowella never sees or processes those funds.
**One trigger, two charges.** Every time Meta opens a billable conversation, that same conversation **also counts toward your Flowella monthly usage**. If you're inside your Flowella allowance, the Flowella side is "free" for that conversation (it's covered by your subscription). If you're over your allowance, you'll see a Flowella overage charge **in addition to** the Meta fee.
## Conversation categories
Meta groups every conversation into one of four categories. The category is decided by the **template you send first** (for business-initiated conversations) or by **who started the conversation** (for user-initiated ones).
| Category | When it applies | Typical cost | Notes |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Marketing** | You send a Marketing-category template — promos, offers, re-engagement | Highest tier | Requires explicit opt-in; subject to frequency capping by Meta. |
| **Utility** | You send a Utility-category template — order updates, alerts, reminders tied to a specific transaction | Mid tier | Must relate to an existing transaction or request from the user. |
| **Authentication** | You send an Authentication template — OTPs and verification codes | Lowest tier | Strict content rules; no marketing language allowed. |
| **Service** | The user messaged you first, inside the 24-hour customer service window | Free in most markets (as of 2025 Meta pricing changes) | Replies to inbound messages within 24 hours of the user's last message. |
Meta updates these rates and rules periodically. The latest official rates per country are on the [Meta WhatsApp pricing page](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/pricing). The categories themselves can change too — Meta has been phasing the **Service** category in and out of "free" status by market.
### Why category matters
* **Cost per conversation** is set entirely by Meta's category-and-country matrix. The same template sent to the UK, Brazil, and India will have three different unit costs.
* **Approval rules** differ. A Utility template containing Marketing-style content will be rejected — or worse, approved and then **re-categorised** mid-campaign, which silently changes your unit cost.
* **Opt-in requirements** differ. Marketing requires explicit, recent opt-in. Utility and Authentication are more permissive but only for genuine transactional content.
### The 24-hour customer service window
When a contact messages you, Meta opens a **24-hour service window**. Inside that window:
* You can reply with **free-form messages** (no template needed).
* The conversation is categorised as **Service** and is often free.
Outside the 24-hour window, you must send a **template** to re-open the conversation, and the template's category sets the new conversation's category and price.
See [Inbox](/app/inbox) for how Flowella surfaces the service window in the UI.
## How Meta charges and Flowella usage line up
A single illustrative example on a **Starter plan** (2,000 conversations/month):
| Scenario | Meta charges | Flowella counter | Flowella charge |
| ------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------- | -------------------------------- | ---------------------------- |
| A contact messages you first; you reply within 24 hours | Service conversation (often \$0) | +1 conversation | Covered by subscription |
| You send a Utility template (order shipped) | Utility rate × country | +1 conversation | Covered by subscription |
| You send a Marketing campaign template | Marketing rate × country | +1 conversation | Covered by subscription |
| You send conversation 2,001 in the month | Same Meta rate as above | +1 conversation (over allowance) | \~\$0.04 overage on Flowella |
**Key points:**
* Every billable Meta conversation creates exactly one Flowella usage tick. There is no "Meta-only" path that bypasses Flowella metering.
* Flowella overage is charged **in addition to** the Meta fee, not instead of it.
* Free Meta conversations (Service-window replies, where Meta's rate is \$0) still count as one Flowella conversation. They use your monthly allowance even though Meta charges nothing.
## Monthly usage does not roll over
Your Flowella plan includes a fixed number of conversations per calendar month. **Unused conversations expire at the end of the month and do not carry forward.**
* A Starter plan that uses 1,200 of 2,000 conversations in May does **not** start June with 2,800. June starts at 2,000.
* The reset happens on your **billing anniversary**, not strictly on the 1st of the month. The Settings → Usage page shows your exact cycle dates.
* Overage charges are calculated **per month**. Going over by 500 conversations in May does not let you "save" the next month — June starts at 2,000 again, and overage is recalculated from zero.
If you regularly use 80% or more of your allowance, upgrading to the next plan is usually cheaper than paying overage on the current one. The [Plans & limits](/account/plans-and-limits) page has the comparison.
## Checking what you've spent
* **Meta charges** — visible in your Meta Business Manager → Billing. Flowella does not display Meta's invoiced amount.
* **Flowella conversation count** — visible in Settings → Usage, broken down by channel and by month. Updated in near real time.
* **Flowella invoice** — visible in Settings → Billing. Includes subscription + any overage from the previous cycle.
## Common questions
Flowella counts that as one conversation against your monthly allowance, the same way every other conversation counts. Meta usually charges \$0 for that Service conversation, but Flowella's metering is conversation-based, not Meta-spend-based.
Yes — go to [Analytics](/app/analytics) and group by category. This shows your conversation mix (Marketing / Utility / Authentication / Service), which is what drives the Meta side of your bill.
Meta sometimes re-categorises a template after it's been live for a while if the content drifts from the approved category. Re-categorisation changes the unit cost on the Meta side. The Flowella usage count is unaffected. See [Template rejected](/troubleshooting/template-rejected) for prevention tips.
Yes, but only from Meta's side — set spending limits on your WhatsApp Business Account in Meta Business Manager. Flowella does not have a separate Meta-spend cap.
Meta currently treats conversations that start from a **free entry point** (some ad formats, some referrals) as free for 72 hours. Flowella still counts these as one conversation against your allowance. See [Click-to-WhatsApp ads](/campaigns/click-to-whatsapp-ads).
Always cross-check current Meta rates on the [official pricing page](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/pricing) before launching a high-volume campaign. Meta has changed pricing and category rules several times in the last 18 months.
## Related
Flowella's monthly conversation allowances and overage rates.
Manage subscription, payment method, and Stripe meter health.
Track your current-cycle conversation count in real time.
How the category you submit drives both review and pricing.
Meta's per-day send caps that interact with conversation pricing.
Add the card Meta uses for WhatsApp delivery fees.