WhatsApp will charge businesses about N14 for certain customer service messages sent to Nigerian numbers through its Business Platform from Oct. 1, 2026.
The new pricing will apply to businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform, formerly known as the WhatsApp Business API, and not ordinary WhatsApp users or businesses using the standard WhatsApp Business application.
Under the new system, businesses will pay for delivered utility or service messages that were previously free within the 24-hour customer service window.
For Nigerian businesses, a utility message sent to a Nigerian number will cost about $0.0101, or approximately N14, while marketing messages will cost about $0.062, or N84, according to a report.
The development could increase communication costs for banks, fintechs, airlines, retailers, telecommunications companies and other businesses that rely heavily on WhatsApp for customer communication.
For instance, a business sending 500,000 chargeable messages at $0.0101 per message could incur about $5,050 in Meta messaging fees, excluding charges from business solution providers or software platforms.
Meta introduced per-message pricing for business-initiated template messages in July 2025, replacing its previous conversation-based pricing system, while service messages remained free within the 24-hour customer service window.
The new charges will vary according to the recipient’s country and message category, meaning businesses operating in different markets will face different rates.
The change is expected to push businesses, particularly startups and small and medium-sized enterprises, to review their use of WhatsApp and limit messages to essential customer interactions.
However, the new pricing will not affect ordinary WhatsApp users or introduce a general fee for the standard WhatsApp Business application.
