WhatsApp to charge businesses per message from October 1

Starting from October 1, 2026, Nigerian businesses using WhatsApp's Business Platform will begin paying for certain message types sent to customers. Meta, WhatsApp's parent company, announced the new per-message pricing structure. This will affect businesses utilizing the official WhatsApp Business Platform for customer support, transactional communication, and other frequent interactions with a large customer base.

The charges will apply to both service messages and qualifying utility messages sent within the 24-hour customer service window, which have been free since November 1, 2024. Previously, businesses could send such messages without incurring fees. However, starting October 1, Meta will charge approximately $0.0101 per message for service messages and about $0.062 per message for marketing messages.

In Nigerian naira, at an exchange rate of around ₦1,340 to the dollar, the cost for service messages would be roughly ₦14, and marketing messages would be about ₦84 per message.

The new charges will not apply to individual WhatsApp users, nor to small businesses using the standard WhatsApp Business app on their mobile phones. Businesses with a valid payment method registered by September 30, 2026, will be able to continue sending chargeable messages. Those without a payment method on file will have their service messages blocked starting October 1.