Meta has announced the implementation of a new fee system for certain messages sent via the WhatsApp Business Platform starting from October 1. This change primarily affects companies and organizations that use the platform to manage large volumes of customer
conversations and automated support services. Under the new system, service messages sent by businesses to customers will incur charges once the monthly free quota of 1,000 messages per business number is exceeded. It is important to note that this update does
not apply to the regular WhatsApp Business app used on mobile phones, nor does it charge customers for messages they send to companies. The fees vary depending on the recipient customer's country rather than the company's location. In Iraq, the cost
per service message after the free quota is approximately $0.0079. Prices differ across the region, with Egypt at $0.0036, Algeria at $0.004, Jordan at $0.0091, Saudi Arabia at $0.0107, the UAE at $0.0157, and Morocco at $0.023. Syria currently does
not have a similar pricing structure as it is not eligible to receive messages via this platform. For 10,000 chargeable messages, the estimated basic cost reaches about $79 in Iraq, $36 in Egypt, $40 in Algeria, $91 in Jordan, $107 in
Saudi Arabia, $157 in the UAE, and $230 in Morocco, excluding any additional fees imposed by external service providers. Marketing messages are subject to a different, generally higher tariff across most markets, for example, approximately $0.0644 per message in Egypt, $0.0576
in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, $0.0392 in Jordan, $0.0414 in Morocco, and $0.0225 in Algeria. This update reflects Meta’s gradual shift to a model that charges for business messages based on their type, volume, and recipient country, replacing the previous
system that exempted some service messages from fees. The decision does not imply that WhatsApp will become broadly paid for companies; rather, fees target businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform/API, while the traditional WhatsApp Business app continues to operate without
message charges.
