WhatsApp Cloud API: what it is, what it costs and its limits in 2026
The WhatsApp Cloud API is the version of the WhatsApp Business API that Meta hosts on its own servers: there is no hosting fee, only a charge per delivered message at the rate of the receiving number's country. Since October 23, 2025 it is the only version of the API, because Meta shut down On-Premises. Each number starts at 80 messages per second, and a new account can message 250 distinct people a day with templates, a limit that rises to 2,000 once your business is verified.
Updated: November 13, 2026
What is the WhatsApp Cloud API?
It is the Meta-hosted version of the WhatsApp Business API. Your system, or the platform you use, sends and receives messages by calling Meta's servers, with no servers of your own to install or maintain. Meta stopped accepting new On-Premises registrations on July 1, 2024 and shut it down completely on October 23, 2025, so every official WhatsApp connection today runs on the Cloud API.
Is the WhatsApp Cloud API free?
There is no hosting fee, but Meta charges for every delivered message, by message type and by the country of the receiving number. On the rate card effective October 1, 2026, a marketing message costs US$0.0250 in the US and Canada, and from US$0.0125 (Colombia) to US$0.0889 (Chile) in Latin America. Replies to customers are free (1,000 a month per number since October 1, 2026). The platform your team uses is paid separately.
Are the WhatsApp Business Platform and the Cloud API the same thing?
Not quite. WhatsApp Business Platform is Meta's name for the whole business toolkit; the Cloud API is the part that sends and receives messages. The toolkit also includes webhooks, the Business Management API, the Marketing Messages API and Embedded Signup, which platforms use to connect your number.
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What the WhatsApp Business Platform includes
Meta groups its business tools under the name WhatsApp Business Platform. Here is what each part does, and whether you or your platform handles it:
| Part | What it does | With a platform | Direct with Meta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud API | Send and receive messages, media and templates. | Uses it for you. | You code against it. |
| Webhooks | Tell your system when a message arrives or its status changes (delivered, read). | Included. | You need an HTTPS server to receive them. |
| Business Management API | Manage the WhatsApp account, phone numbers and templates. | Done from its dashboard. | You code it or use Meta's dashboard. |
| Marketing Messages API | Send marketing messages with delivery optimized by Meta. | Depends on the platform. | Optional. |
| Embedded Signup | Meta's window for connecting your number to a platform. | How you connect. | Not used. |
If a provider still offers you the "On-Premises" API, their information is out of date: Meta says it can no longer be used to send messages.
Cloud API limits in 2026
| Limit | Starting value | How it rises |
|---|---|---|
| Messages per second, per number | 80 | Upgrades automatically to 1,000, at no cost, if your messaging limit is unlimited, you messaged 100,000+ people outside an open conversation in 24 hours, and your quality is medium or high. |
| Messages per second with coexistence | 20, fixed | Does not increase: it is the cap for numbers that stay on the WhatsApp Business app. |
| To the same customer | 1 message every 6 seconds | A per business–customer pair limit; it does not change. |
| Messaging limit: distinct people you can message with a template in 24 hours, outside an open conversation | 250 for a new portfolio | Rises to 2,000 when you verify your business with Meta (or your platform does), or after you deliver 2,000 messages to distinct people in 30 days with high-quality templates. Then 10,000, 100,000 and unlimited. |
Since October 7, 2025 the messaging limit belongs to the business portfolio, not to each number: three numbers share one limit. For it to rise automatically, Meta requires high quality and using at least half of your limit in the last 7 days; the increase lands within about 6 hours.
What the Cloud API costs in each country
Meta charges per delivered message, by template category and by the country of the receiving number, not your business's country. These are its rates from October 1, 2026:
| Country of the receiving number | Marketing | Utility | Authentication | Service (from the 1,001st) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US and Canada | US$0.0250 | US$0.0034 | US$0.0034 | US$0.0034 |
| Mexico | US$0.0397 | US$0.0085 | US$0.0085 | US$0.0085 |
| Colombia | US$0.0125 | US$0.0008 | US$0.0008 | US$0.0008 |
| Brazil | US$0.0625 | US$0.0068 | US$0.0068 | US$0.0068 |
| Argentina | US$0.0618 | US$0.0260 | US$0.0260 | US$0.0260 |
| Peru | US$0.0703 | US$0.0300 | US$0.0300 | US$0.0300 |
| Chile | US$0.0889 | US$0.0200 | US$0.0200 | US$0.0200 |
| Rest of Latin America | US$0.0740 | US$0.0113 | US$0.0113 | US$0.0113 |
| Spain | US$0.0707 | US$0.0200 | US$0.0200 | US$0.0200 |
| United Kingdom | US$0.0635 | US$0.0220 | US$0.0220 | US$0.0220 |
US dollars per delivered message, Meta rate card "effective October 1, 2026", downloaded from Meta's pricing page on November 13, 2026. Before tax. "Rest of Latin America" includes, for example, Ecuador, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic.
- Replies: the first 1,000 each month are free (per number, since October 1, 2026); after that, each costs the country's service rate. Without a payment method, Meta does not deliver replies past the free tier.
- Updates inside an open conversation: since October 1, 2026, utility messages are charged even when the conversation is open.
- Click-to-WhatsApp ads: if the customer arrives from the ad and you reply within 24 hours, Meta does not charge that conversation for up to 7 days.
- Changes: Meta only changes pricing on the first day of a quarter (January, April, July or October 1).
Example in the US: a marketing broadcast to 1,000 customers costs US$25.00; 1,000 shipping updates, US$3.40. Run your own numbers with the WhatsApp API pricing calculator, or see the details for the US and Canada.
Direct with Meta or through a platform: what you have to do
Direct with Meta you need: a business portfolio, an app at developers.facebook.com with the WhatsApp use case, a permanent access token, an HTTPS server for webhooks, a phone number with an approved display name, and a payment method on file with Meta. Then you build what your team uses every day: a shared inbox for several agents, history and contacts, template and media sending, and reports. It makes sense if you already have developers and want WhatsApp inside your own system.
With a platform you connect the number through Meta's Embedded Signup, in a Facebook window, and get the inbox, CRM, templates and broadcasts ready to use.
Who bills you for messages: Tech Provider or Solution Partner
Meta recognizes two kinds of partner. Tech Providers have no credit line with Meta: each client adds its own payment method and Meta bills the client directly. Solution Partners have credit lines and can invoice you for messages themselves, at their own price. Ask your provider who bills your messages and whether they add a markup.
With ChatSales you add your card in Meta Business Manager and Meta bills you, with no markup. ChatSales charges only its plan: Mini at US$29 a month (1 channel, 3 users) or Basic at US$49 (3 channels, 5 users), with AI included up to a usage limit.
Which phone number you can connect
- A number you own, with country and area code (short codes are not allowed), that can receive the code by SMS or voice call. A landline works with the voice call.
- If the number is already on WhatsApp, it must be deleted from WhatsApp before you register it on the API…
- …unless you use coexistence: you keep the WhatsApp Business app (version 2.24.17 or later) and connect the same number to the API. That number is capped at 20 messages per second, group chats are not synced, and what you send from the app stays free; what you send through the API is billed at Cloud API rates.
The blue check and verification
Meta gives the blue check (Official Business Account) to numbers registered for at least 30 days, belonging to a business verified with Meta, with two-step verification on and an approved display name. Meta does not grant it to WhatsApp Business app numbers. Verifying your business also lifts your limit to 2,000 people a day: see how to verify your business with Meta.
Where Meta stores your messages
The Cloud API offers local storage: you can ask for messages at rest to be kept in certain countries. In North America Meta's list includes only Canada; in Latin America, only Brazil (not Mexico). While being processed, messages can spend up to 60 minutes outside that country. If your industry has data rules (health, finance), check the current list before you connect.
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Sources
Meta developer documentation, read on November 13, 2026: about the platform, On-Premises sunset, throughput, messaging limits, pricing, Tech Providers / Solution Partners, coexistence, phone numbers, Official Business Accounts, local storage. Rates: "USD list rates" file, "effective October 1, 2026". Spotted something out of date? Email info@chatsales.app.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to code to use the Cloud API?
If you go direct with Meta, yes: you create an app, manage access tokens and run a server that receives webhooks. With a platform, no: you connect your number through Meta's Embedded Signup and work from its inbox.
How many messages can I send a day with the Cloud API?
Replies to people who wrote to you have no daily cap. What is limited is messaging first with a template: a new portfolio can reach 250 distinct people in 24 hours, 2,000 once your business is verified, then 10,000, 100,000 and unlimited while quality stays high.
Can I try the Cloud API for free?
Yes. When you create a WhatsApp app, Meta gives you a test number with lower limits that sends templates without a payment method. You can also start ChatSales free, with no card.
Does ChatSales use the Cloud API?
Yes. You connect your number with Meta's Embedded Signup (the "Connect with Facebook" button) and ChatSales sends and receives through the official API. You add your card in Meta Business Manager and Meta bills you for messages directly, with no markup; ChatSales charges only its plan, from US$29 a month.
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