Conversations
Charged per 24-hour window, by country and category. A conversation started by the guest costs less than a marketing one you start.
WhatsApp Business API, explained.
The WhatsApp Business API is the version of WhatsApp built for organisations rather than individuals. There is no app to open: your number connects to software, so a whole team can answer from one number, and messages can be triggered by another system. This page covers what it costs, how the 24-hour window works, and what setting it up actually involves.
The three versions
API vs app vs Business app
WhatsApp comes in three forms and the names do not help. The practical difference is how many people can answer, and whether another system can send on your behalf.
| WhatsApp Business app | WhatsApp Business API | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | One person | A small business | A team or an organisation |
| Where you answer | Phone app | Phone app, up to a few linked devices | Any software connected to the API |
| People answering at once | One | A handful | No practical limit |
| Automated sending | No | Away messages and quick replies only | Yes, triggered by another system |
| Verified business profile | No | Limited | Yes |
| Cost | Free | Free | Per conversation, charged by Meta |
Costs
What does the WhatsApp Business API cost?
There is no licence fee for the API itself. You pay Meta for conversations, and you pay whoever provides your software. Meta prices per 24-hour conversation window rather than per message, and the rate depends on the country and on the category: service, marketing, utility or authentication.
Service charge
15% on top of the Meta usage, which covers running the connection.
Messages inside an open window
Once a window is open, interactive messages and journey steps add no further message cost.
The platform
Charged separately from usage and unaffected by how many messages you send.
The practical consequence: replying quickly is cheap, and reopening a conversation later with a template is where the cost sits. That is worth designing around.
Setup
Setting it up, step by step
You do not apply to Meta directly. A Business Solution Provider handles the connection; chatlyn works with 360dialog, an official Meta partner, and the sign-up runs embedded rather than as a separate account you manage.
- 1
Choose the number
A new number, or an existing one that is not currently active in the WhatsApp Business app. Reception desk lines are often already in use, so this is worth checking first.
- 2
Verify the business
Meta checks the business through your Facebook Business Manager. Have the company registration and a matching website ready; mismatches are the usual cause of delay.
- 3
Connect through the BSP
Embedded sign-up with 360dialog links the number to the API. Migration from the Business app happens here, and the number stops working in that app from this point.
- 4
Set up the profile and templates
Business name, logo, description and opening hours, then the message templates you will need. Templates go to Meta for approval, usually within a day.
Providers
What is a BSP?
A Business Solution Provider is a company Meta has authorised to give others access to the API. You cannot connect to Meta on your own: the BSP holds the relationship, provides the technical connection and usually bills the conversations. Some vendors are their own BSP; others, chatlyn included, work with one. chatlyn connects through 360dialog, which means the messaging infrastructure is run by a specialist while the software you work in is ours.
In practice
The API in a hotel
For a property, the API is what makes WhatsApp usable as a real channel rather than a phone behind the desk. One verified number for the house, the whole team answering from it, and messages that fire from what the PMS already knows: the booking confirmation, the pre-arrival note, the review request after checkout. The 24-hour window stops being something anyone tracks manually, because the software shows it.
See WhatsApp for hotels
Hotel Imperial ✓ FAQ
WhatsApp Business API questions
The version of WhatsApp intended for organisations. It has no interface of its own: your number connects to software, which is what lets a team share one number and lets another system trigger messages.
There is no fee for access, but conversations are charged by Meta per 24-hour window, priced by country and category. Your software provider charges separately; at chatlyn that is a 15% service charge on the Meta usage.
When a guest messages you, you can reply freely for 24 hours. After it closes you reopen the conversation with a template Meta has approved in advance. Inside an open window, extra messages and interactive steps cost nothing more.
Not with the same number. Once a number moves to the API it stops working in the WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business apps. That is the trade for letting a whole team answer from it.
Business verification usually takes a few days when the registration details match the website; mismatches are the common cause of delay. Message templates are typically approved within a day.
No, if you use software that already connects to the API. The embedded sign-up through the BSP handles the technical side, and the connection is configured rather than built.
Usually yes, as long as it is not tied to another provider. The migration runs during the BSP sign-up and keeps the number; the chat history in the app does not come with it.
A message pre-approved by Meta that you can send outside the 24-hour window. Templates carry a category, and submitting a marketing message under a utility category is the most common reason for rejection.
One platform
Part of one platform.
WhatsApp for hotels
The API in use: journeys triggered from the PMS, campaigns at 95% open rates, the window always visible.
ExploreWhatsApp integration
The technical side of connecting: 360dialog onboarding, number migration, verified profile.
ExploreHotel chatbot
What answers inside an open window, around the clock and in the language the guest wrote in.
Explore Case studySpa Resort Geinberg
Over 10,000 guests a year reached on WhatsApp at a 95% open rate.
Read the storyWant this running on your property?
We handle the BSP sign-up, the verification and the templates, and you get one verified number your whole team answers from.
Dedicated onboarding team Live in weeks, not months GDPR compliant