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WhatsApp’s pricing rules are set by Meta, not Ciarem, but they shape when your agent can message someone and what it costs. Here is the short version.

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The 24-hour window

When a customer messages you, a 24-hour window opens. Inside that window, you and your agent can reply freely, and every new customer message resets the clock. Most of your agent’s work (answering questions, following up an active conversation) happens inside this window. Under Meta’s per-message pricing, messages inside this window count as service messages. The templates you send outside it are marketing, utility, or authentication (below).

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Outside the window: templates

Once 24 hours pass with no customer message, reaching out requires a message template: a pre-approved message format reviewed by Meta. Templates are how re-engagement and proactive follow-up work on WhatsApp, and Meta charges for them by category (marketing, utility, authentication) at rates that vary by country. Ciarem uses approved templates when reaching someone outside the window (for example when sending a template to a contact or segment). Those Meta charges are drawn from your WhatsApp wallet at Meta’s cost, with no markup.

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What this means in practice

  • Replies inside an active conversation: no Meta charge today (this changes on October 1, 2026, see below)
  • A follow-up the day after a customer went quiet: template, Meta charge applies
  • Instagram DMs, Messenger chats, and website chat: no Meta charges at all

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Meta’s October 2026 change

On October 1, 2026, Meta’s per-message pricing reaches service messages. From that date, replies inside the 24-hour window also carry a small per-message Meta cost (comparable to the utility rate), and utility templates are billed even when sent inside the window. As with everything else, those charges pass through your WhatsApp wallet at Meta’s cost, with no markup. Until then, in-window replies remain free.

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Voice calls

Calls customers make to your WhatsApp line are free. Calls your team places are billed by Meta per second, in six-second steps, at a per-minute rate that depends on the customer’s country, and are drawn from the same wallet. See WhatsApp voice calls.

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Passthrough, not markup

Ciarem does not profit on WhatsApp fees. Meta’s charges pass through at cost, drawn from the prepaid WhatsApp wallet in Settings, where you can see the current cycle’s spend by category and every transaction. Your plan’s message allowance and overage are Ciarem platform fees and are independent of Meta’s rates. See Plans and billing for how the full bill is built. Because Meta’s rates change by country and category, treat the exact per-message cost as Meta’s number, not ours. The wallet shows actual consumption so you see real costs rather than estimates.