How WhatsApp message charges work
From 1 October 2026, the first 1,000 service messages a month on each number are free. After that Meta charges about 6 sen a message, billed to your own account.
In effect from 1 October 2026 · Page updated 7 October 2026 · Rates change, so check the official pages linked below
What changed on 1 October 2026
| Until 30 September | From 1 October | |
|---|---|---|
| Your replies inside the 24-hour window (service messages) | Free, no cap | First 1,000 per number each month free, then charged per message |
| Utility template delivered inside an open window | Free | Charged per message |
| When the free allowance resets | No allowance | Every calendar month, counted per phone number |
Meta announced per-message charging for service messages on 1 July 2026, added the 1,000 free messages a month per number on 1 September 2026, and starts both on 1 October 2026 at 00:00 in your WhatsApp Business account's time zone.
What is free and what is charged
| Situation | Charge |
|---|---|
| A customer messages you | Never charged |
| You reply inside the 24-hour window: an AI reply, a reply you type, a button reply | First 1,000 a month per number free, then about RM0.0564 each |
| A customer clicks a Facebook or Instagram ad that opens WhatsApp, and you message them in the next 72 hours | Not charged |
| The window has closed and you send a Utility template: appointment reminder, order update | About RM0.0564 each. The 1,000 free are for service messages only |
| The window has closed and you send a Marketing template: promotion, win-back | About RM0.3467 each. Not part of the 1,000 |
Rates are for Malaysia in MYR, from Meta's rate card effective 1 October 2026 (Malaysia: Service RM0.0564, Utility RM0.0564, Marketing RM0.3467). Official sources: Meta's billing documentation ↗ and the rate card, where you pick Malaysia and MYR ↗. On the 72-hour rule, Meta says: "When customers send you a message from an Ad that clicks to WhatsApp or Facebook Page call-to-action button, for the following 3 days (72 hours), all of your messages are not charged."
Add a payment method before you reach 1,000
Meta's deadline for this was 30 September 2026. An account without one risks messages not being delivered once the free 1,000 are used up, so check yours now. The account is in your name, so only you can add it. Lucco cannot do it for you.
How far do 1,000 messages go?
Count the messages you send, not the ones customers send. Our own estimate is about 4 replies from you per customer conversation. Your shop will differ, and Meta's dashboard shows the real count.
- 5 customer conversations a day → about 600 a month → inside the free 1,000, RM0
- 20 conversations a day → about 2,400 a month → 1,400 over × RM0.0564 ≈ RM79
- An appointment reminder to 200 customers a month (Utility) → 200 × RM0.0564 ≈ RM11
- One promotion to 500 people a month (Marketing) → 500 × RM0.3467 ≈ RM173
For a small shop, ordinary enquiries stay inside the free 1,000. A busy shop will go over, and that is worth knowing before the first bill arrives.
Past 1,000: what a month costs
| Messages you send in a month | Free | Charged | About |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | 1,000 | 0 | RM0 |
| 1,500 | 1,000 | 500 | RM28.20 |
| 2,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | RM56.40 |
| 3,000 | 1,000 | 2,000 | RM112.80 |
| 5,000 | 1,000 | 4,000 | RM225.60 |
| 10,000 | 1,000 | 9,000 | RM507.60 |
Service messages only, at RM0.0564 each after the first 1,000 per number per month. Service messages have no volume discount. Templates are extra, and so is any tax. Your real count is in Meta's dashboard.
What this means for Lucco products
CatchMe Starter
Customers scan, play and claim on a web page. Your number sends no WhatsApp messages in that flow, so there is no Meta message charge from it.
Free AI chatbot on WhatsApp
Every reply the AI sends counts as a service message and uses the 1,000 free. Lucco does not bill you for it, and does not mark up what Meta charges.
Who bills you
The money does not pass through a platform provider. No provider should add a margin on it. If someone says message fees are collected through them, ask why.
Worth thinking about before you send
A RM0.35 marketing message to promote a RM5 item does not pay for itself. Unwanted messages also push people to block or report you, which damages your account quality rating and eventually your ability to send anything. Send fewer, send better.
Common questions
Do customers pay anything to message me?
No. Charges apply to the business only, and messages a customer sends you are never charged.
Is the 1,000 per business or per number?
Per phone number, per calendar month. If you run two numbers, each has its own 1,000, and each resets at the start of the month.
What counts toward the 1,000?
Messages your number sends inside the 24-hour window that are not templates: AI replies, replies you type, button replies. Messages from customers do not count.
Are conversations from my Facebook or Instagram ads charged?
Not for the 72 hours after the customer clicks through to WhatsApp. Meta describes this as a Free Entry Point window.
What happens past 1,000 in a month?
Meta charges about RM0.0564 for each service message from the 1,001st onwards, to your own account. Lucco does not handle or mark up this charge.
How much does 2,000 or 3,000 messages a month cost?
At about RM0.0564 each after the first 1,000: 2,000 messages is about RM56.40 a month, and 3,000 is about RM112.80. Only service messages are counted here, and any tax is extra.
Where do I check the current rates?
On Meta's official pages, linked above. Rates change, so check them before relying on any figure, including the ones here.