On this page
Running WhatsApp on the API involves two separate bills from two separate companies. VGraple CRM charges a flat platform fee for the software. Meta charges per delivered template message, by category and country, and bills your Business Portfolio directly. Keeping the two apart is the key to estimating cost and to comparing vendors honestly.
The two bills side by side
| Platform fee (VGraple CRM) | Message charges (Meta) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it pays for | Inbox, flows, broadcasts, CRM, integrations, support, hosting | Delivery of template messages |
| Who bills | VGraple CRM, from Settings, Billing | Meta, to your Business Portfolio's payment method |
| Amount | Rs 0, Rs 1,499, Rs 3,499 or Rs 7,999 a month (annual lower) | Per delivered message by category and country |
| Varies with | Seats, contacts, conversations (plan tiers) | Number and category of messages delivered |
| Markup | None | None; Meta's published rates |
Meta's rates in India (April 2026)
| Category | Per delivered message | Free when |
|---|---|---|
| Marketing | Rs 0.8631 | Never |
| Utility | Rs 0.115 | Delivered inside an open 24-hour customer service window |
| Authentication | Rs 0.115 | Never |
| Service (free-form replies) | Rs 0 | Always, inside the window |
Meta changes rates by country and occasionally by category; the WhatsApp API pricing pages track the current numbers per country and VGraple CRM's cost previews use the live rates.
What each bill responds to
The platform fee responds to how your team works: how many people need seats, how many contacts you keep, how many people you talk to in a month. It does not change with message volume within the plan. Meta's bill responds to what you send: every marketing message costs the same whether it is your first or your ten-thousandth, and every utility message outside a window costs Rs 0.115 regardless of plan. Designing around that split is the whole game: get customers to message first so replies are free, keep operations on utility templates, and spend marketing money only on people who consented and engage.
How the pricing model changed
Until June 2025 Meta charged per 24-hour conversation, and older articles still talk about free conversation allowances and per-conversation rates. Since 1 July 2025 the charge is per delivered template message by category. Utility templates delivered inside an open customer service window became free at the same time, which rewards sending order updates and reminders while the customer is engaged. Since October 2025 the marketing messaging limit is pooled at Business Portfolio level, which affects how many people you can reach in a day but not the price per message.
Reading Meta's invoice
Meta invoices the Business Portfolio, not the phone number, so several numbers appear on one invoice with line items by country and category. Delivered counts on VGraple CRM's broadcast reports reconcile to those line items; held, failed and suppressed recipients never appear on Meta's bill. Tax on Meta's invoice follows Meta's own registration and is separate from GST on the VGraple CRM platform fee.
Estimating a month
- Count conversations that customers start (QR codes, ads, links, replies): free at Meta.
- Count utility messages you initiate outside a window (reminders, order updates to quiet customers): multiply by Rs 0.115.
- Count marketing messages to consenting contacts: multiply by Rs 0.8631.
- Add your plan's platform fee.
Example: a clinic on Starter sending 3,600 utility reminders and no marketing pays Rs 1,499 to VGraple CRM and about Rs 414 to Meta. A retailer on Growth sending 10,000 marketing messages and 5,000 utility updates pays Rs 3,499 to VGraple CRM and about Rs 9,206 to Meta.
Where to see Meta's charges
- Before a broadcast: the Estimated cost in the wizard, which counts recipients with open windows at zero for utility templates.
- After: the broadcast report's delivered count times the rate, and the channel's usage view.
- On Meta's side: Business Manager, Billing, where the invoice for the WABA appears and the payment method is set.
Why there is no markup
VGraple CRM is a Meta Tech Provider: the WhatsApp Business Account is yours and Meta bills you. BSPs that own the account pay Meta and re-bill customers, which is where markups of 5 to 20 percent and prepaid credits come from. The Tech Provider vs BSP guide has the full comparison.
Comparing vendors fairly
Put the two bills in separate columns for each vendor: the platform fee for your seat and contact counts, and the message charges at the vendor's quoted per-message rate multiplied by your monthly volume. If a vendor quotes a single blended number, ask for Meta's rate and their rate side by side; the difference is the markup, and at volume it dwarfs the platform fee.
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Meta charges look higher than the estimate | Templates recategorised to marketing, or utility sends outside windows | Check the template category history; send utility updates while windows are open where possible |
| No Meta invoice appears | No payment method on the Business Portfolio | Add one under Business Manager, Billing; sends can stop without it |
| Charged for messages that failed | They were delivered and then reported as failed later | Delivered means billed; check the report's delivered column |
| Platform fee changed | Plan or cycle change | See the Billing page and Payment History |