> ## 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 message categories > How WhatsApp's per-message pricing works, what changes on 1 October 2026, how it lines up with your Flowella allowance, and why the two are billed separately. Flowella counts one unit for each message WhatsApp marks billable. WhatsApp has charged per message since 1 July 2025, and its fees are on your Meta invoice, not ours. 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). **From 1 October 2026 WhatsApp charges for replies inside the 24-hour customer service window**, and for utility templates sent inside it. Until 30 September 2026 these were free and Flowella did not count them. From 1 October each one is a billable message and counts as one Flowella unit. **Meta free tier:** Meta provides **1,000 free service messages per phone number per month**. Those free-tier deliveries are not Meta-billable, so they do **not** count as Flowella units (Flowella only counts messages WhatsApp marks billable). Delivery can continue on that free tier **without a Meta payment card** until the allowance is exhausted; after that, Meta requires a valid Default card on the WABA to keep delivering chargeable service messages. The allowance resets monthly per phone number and does not roll over. See [Meta payment method](/meta/payment-method). ## 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 allowance of billable messages. | | **Meta WhatsApp fees** | Meta directly, via your own WhatsApp Business / Meta Business account | Delivery of every billable WhatsApp message, 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 WhatsApp marks a message you send as billable, that message **also counts as one unit of your Flowella monthly usage**. Inside your Flowella allowance, the Flowella side is covered by your subscription. Over your allowance, you pay Flowella overage **in addition to** the Meta fee. Messages WhatsApp marks not billable are not counted by Flowella. ## Message categories Meta prices every billable message by its **category** and the recipient's country. | Category | When it applies | Meta charge | Notes | | - | - | - | - | | **Marketing** | You send a Marketing-category template: promos, offers, re-engagement | Charged per message | Requires explicit opt-in; subject to per-user limits by Meta. | | **Utility** | You send a Utility-category template: order updates, alerts, reminders tied to a transaction | Charged per message. Free inside the 24-hour window until 30 September 2026; charged from 1 October 2026 | Must relate to an existing transaction or request from the user. | | **Authentication** | You send an Authentication template: OTPs and verification codes | Charged per message | Strict content rules; no marketing language allowed. | | **Service** | You reply inside the 24-hour customer service window | Free until 30 September 2026. From 1 October 2026 charged per message at the market's utility rate | Replies to inbound messages within 24 hours of the user's last message. | Meta updates rates on the first day of each quarter. The latest official rates per country are on the [Meta WhatsApp pricing page](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/pricing). ### Why category matters * **Cost per message** 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 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 customer service window**. Inside that window: * You can reply with non-template messages (no template needed). * Until 30 September 2026 those replies were free and not counted. From 1 October 2026 WhatsApp charges for each reply, and each one counts as one Flowella unit. Outside the 24-hour window, you must send a **template**, and the template's category sets the price. See [Inbox](/app/inbox) for how Flowella surfaces the service window in the UI. ### The 72-hour free entry point window If someone messages you from a Click-to-WhatsApp ad or a Facebook Page call-to-action button on the WhatsApp mobile app, and you reply within 24 hours, every message you send for the next 72 hours is free. WhatsApp marks those messages not billable, so Flowella does not count them. See [Click-to-WhatsApp ads](/campaigns/click-to-whatsapp-ads). ## How Meta charges and Flowella usage line up An illustrative example on a **Starter plan** (1,000 billable messages a month, then \$0.05 per message). The Pro plan includes 2,500, then \$0.04 per message. | Scenario | Meta charges | Flowella counter | Flowella charge | | - | - | - | - | | A contact messages you first; you reply within 24 hours (from 1 October 2026) | Service rate × country | +1 message | Covered by subscription | | You send a Utility template (order shipped) | Utility rate × country | +1 message | Covered by subscription | | You send a Marketing campaign template | Marketing rate × country | +1 message | Covered by subscription | | You reply inside a 72-hour free entry point window | \$0, not billable | Not counted | None | | You send billable message 1,001 in the month | Same Meta rate as above | +1 message (over allowance) | \$0.05 overage on Flowella | **Worked example.** You send a Flow template, the customer completes it, you send a confirmation and answer two questions. Until 30 September 2026 that was 1 Flowella unit. From 1 October 2026 it is 4. **Key points:** * Each message WhatsApp marks billable is one Flowella unit. A 24-hour window is not a unit, and a Flow counts once however many screens it has. * Messages your customers send to you are never counted. * Flowella overage is charged **in addition to** the Meta fee, not instead of it. ## Monthly usage does not roll over Your Flowella plan includes a fixed number of billable messages per month. **Unused allowance expires at the end of the cycle and does not carry forward.** * A Starter plan that uses 600 of 1,000 messages in May does **not** start June with 1,400. June starts at 1,000. * 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 cycle**. Going over by 500 messages in May does not carry into June; 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 usage**: visible in Settings → Usage, broken down by channel and by month. Updated in near real time. * **Flowella invoice**: visible in Settings → Billing. Includes subscription and any overage from the previous cycle. ## Common questions No. Messages your contacts send to you are never counted. Your replies are counted when WhatsApp marks them billable, which it does inside the 24-hour window from 1 October 2026. Yes. Go to [Analytics](/app/analytics) and group by category. This shows your message 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. Yes. If you reply within 24 hours to someone who messaged you from a Click-to-WhatsApp ad or Facebook Page button, every message for the next 72 hours is free. WhatsApp marks those messages not billable, so Flowella does not count them. See [Click-to-WhatsApp ads](/campaigns/click-to-whatsapp-ads). Cross-check current Meta rates on the [official pricing page](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/pricing) before launching a high-volume campaign. ## Related Flowella's monthly allowances and overage rates. Manage subscription, payment method, and Stripe meter health. Track your current-cycle billable message count in real time. How the category you submit drives both review and pricing. Meta's per-day send caps for business-initiated templates. Add the card Meta uses for WhatsApp delivery fees. This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.