WhatsApp Business API pricing in the UAE
What Meta charges a UAE business for each WhatsApp message since 1 October 2026, in dirhams and dollars, what changed this year, and what it costs when an AI agent answers your customers.
How much does the WhatsApp Business API cost in the UAE?
Meta charges per delivered message. In the UAE, from 1 October 2026, a marketing message costs AED 0.2115 and a utility, authentication or service message costs AED 0.0576. Each WhatsApp number gets its first 1,000 service messages a month free, and nothing is charged inside a free entry point window, which a click-to-WhatsApp ad opens for up to 7 days. The platform you use, such as Aivastark, charges its own fee on top.
Meta's rates in the UAE, per message
Meta charges for each delivered message by its category, at the rate for the country of the customer's phone number. These are the rates for the United Arab Emirates, checked on 28 October 2026. The first 1,000 service messages a month on each WhatsApp number are free.
| Category | What it is | Dirhams | US dollars |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing | Templates you start to promote something: offers, launches, abandoned-cart reminders. | AED 0.2115 | $0.0576 |
| Utility | Templates tied to something the customer did: order, delivery and booking updates. | AED 0.0576 | $0.0157 |
| Authentication | One-time passcodes for sign-in and verification. | AED 0.0576 | $0.0157 |
| Service | Free-form replies inside the 24-hour window after the customer's last message. Every reply an AI agent sends is one. | AED 0.0576 | $0.0157 |
What changed in 2025 and 2026
Meta moved to per-message pricing in July 2025, let UAE businesses pay in dirhams from April 2026, and started charging for replies in October 2026.
1 July 2025
Per-message pricing
Meta stopped charging per conversation and started charging per delivered template message.
1 April 2026
Billing in dirhams
AED became one of the currencies Meta bills in. An account's currency can't be changed once it is chosen.
1 October 2026
Replies are charged
Every service message is charged at the utility rate after 1,000 free a month per number, with no volume discounts. Utility templates sent inside an open window are charged again too.
1 October 2026
UAE marketing rate up
Meta's change log lists an increase for marketing messages in the UAE, to AED 0.2115.
Free messages, windows and limits
The 24-hour window
When a customer messages you, a 24-hour customer service window opens. Inside it you can reply freely with service messages; outside it you can only send approved templates.
1,000 free replies a month
Each WhatsApp number gets 1,000 free service messages a month. Unused ones don't roll over, and number 1,001 is charged.
Free entry points
A chat that starts from a click-to-WhatsApp ad opens a window of up to 7 days in which Meta charges nothing for marketing, utility, authentication or service messages.
Volume tiers
Utility and authentication messages get cheaper past 100,000 and 300,000 a month. Service messages have no volume tiers.
Price changes
Meta changes rates only on the first day of a quarter, with at least a month's notice.
Templates you start
A new business portfolio can message 250 customers in 24 hours outside an open window. Verifying your business can raise that to 2,000, once Meta has reviewed your message quality. Replies inside a customer service window don't count.
What an AI agent costs on WhatsApp
An AI agent answers customers who message you, so everything it sends is a service message inside the 24-hour window: no templates, no marketing fees. Your Meta bill for the agent is the replies beyond the first 1,000 a month, at the UAE service rate. Aivastark's plan is separate, billed in US dollars, and includes WhatsApp from Starter; Aivastark doesn't resell or mark up Meta's fees.
| One WhatsApp number, one month | Messages | Meta's fee, dirhams | US dollars |
|---|---|---|---|
| A boutique answering 600 questionsEvery reply inside the 24-hour window, all within the free 1,000. | 600 service | AED 0.00 | $0.00 |
| A store sending 3,000 repliesAn AI agent answering stock, delivery and order questions. | 3,000 service | AED 115.20 | $31.40 |
| A busy shop sending 10,000 repliesSeveral thousand conversations a month across the day. | 10,000 service | AED 518.40 | $141.30 |
| One promotion to 2,000 customersA marketing template you send yourself, through a broadcast tool. | 2,000 marketing | AED 423.00 | $115.20 |
Service messages past the free 1,000 at AED 0.0576 each, marketing templates at AED 0.2115, outside any free entry point window. Meta's fee only; the platform you use charges separately. On Aivastark, WhatsApp is included from Starter at $39 a month.
The WhatsApp AI agent for UAE businessesQuestions about WhatsApp pricing in the UAE
How much does a WhatsApp Business API message cost in the UAE in 2026?
From 1 October 2026 Meta charges, per delivered message in the UAE: AED 0.2115 for marketing, and AED 0.0576 each for utility, authentication and service messages. Service messages are free for the first 1,000 a month per WhatsApp number.
Are WhatsApp replies to customers free in the UAE?
Only the first 1,000 a month per number. Since 1 October 2026 Meta charges every service message, the free-form replies inside the 24-hour window, at the utility rate, which is AED 0.0576 in the UAE. Replies inside a free entry point window, opened by a click-to-WhatsApp ad, aren't charged.
Can Meta bill a UAE business in dirhams?
Yes. Meta added AED as a billing currency on 1 April 2026. You choose it for your WhatsApp Business account, and it can't be changed afterwards.
What is a free entry point conversation?
When a customer starts a chat from a click-to-WhatsApp ad, Meta opens a free entry point window that can stay open for up to 7 days. While it is open, Meta charges nothing for marketing, utility, authentication or service messages to that customer.
Does Aivastark charge for WhatsApp messages?
No. Meta bills its message fees to your own WhatsApp Business account; Aivastark doesn't resell or mark them up. Aivastark's plan covers the AI agent, is billed in US dollars, and includes WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger from Starter.
Is VAT added to WhatsApp fees in the UAE?
UAE VAT is 5%. Under the Federal Tax Authority's e-commerce guidance, when a VAT-registered UAE business buys a service from a supplier with no residence in the UAE, the reverse-charge mechanism applies. Check your Meta invoice and ask your accountant; this isn't tax advice.
Do the rates change?
Meta can change rates only on the first day of a quarter and gives at least a month's notice. The figures here were checked on 28 October 2026 against Meta's rate tool for the United Arab Emirates.
What is Aivastark?
Aivastark is an AI customer-support agent that answers your customers on your website, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, Telegram and email from your own content, in 80+ languages, and hands the chat to your team when a customer asks for a person.
Checked on 28 October 2026
Rates come from Meta's own rate tool for the United Arab Emirates and its developer documentation. If Meta's pages disagree with this guide, Meta's pages win.
Keep exploring
- WhatsApp AI agent for UAE businessesArabic and English answers from your own store and policies.
- Arabic AI chatbotArabic script, Arabizi and voice notes.
- WhatsApp integrationConnecting your number and keeping the Business app.
- Aivastark vs WATIMessage fees resold vs billed by Meta directly.
Let an AI agent answer the replies you're paying for.
- Free plan, no card
- WhatsApp from Starter
- Meta's fees billed by Meta, not resold