Question

How does Vonage's WhatsApp conversation pricing model work?

Applies To

• WhatsApp
• Conversation Pricing Model

Answer

Due to changes in WhatsApp’s pricing, as of 1 February 2022 Vonage is implementing a new conversational pricing model option for all joint Vonage/WhatsApp customers globally. There are a total of two fees when using the WhatsApp business solution: the WhatsApp fee and the Vonage platform fee.

WhatsApp Fee

For up to date information on WhatsApp fee changes, visit the WhatsApp Conversation-Based Pricing site. This new pricing will be applied to all WhatsApp customers from 1 February 2022 (for both existing and new customers).

Vonage Platform Fee

Vonage will now offer an updated pricing model with usage based on the same metric—the conversation. Existing customers will remain on the current pricing model by default at the current per message pricing with the option to move to the new conversation based pricing model.

We have added simplicity and value to our pricing model by moving to conversation based pricing as well as providing enhanced value with options for tiered pricing, lowering costs as conversation volumes grow. Vonage customers may choose the “pay-as-you-go” option or purchase a package of conversations for a monthly fee.

What are WhatsApp conversations?

All WhatsApp conversations are measured in 24-hour increments, or "sessions", that start whenever the first message from a business is delivered. The first message can be initiated by the business (business-initiated) or a business reply within 24 hours of a user message (user-initiated). A user is defined as the person or entity with whom the business is messaging.

For the WhatsApp portion, WhatsApp Business API conversations fall into two categories that are priced differently:

• User-initiated, like customer care and general support inquiries.
• Business-initiated, like post purchase notifications.

For the WhatsApp portion, charges for conversations are based on the user’s phone number. Rates for business-initiated conversations and user-initiated conversations vary by market (country or region).

How does this new pricing impact my current business?

From 1st of Feb 2022, all WABAs (new and existing) will be charged on the new Conversation Based Pricing for the WhatsApp portion.

For the Vonage platform fee though, existing customers will, by default, remain on their previous pricing model. The default price per message for these existing customers is €0.0058 / $0.0071 per outbound message.

What are the benefits of the new Vonage platform fees pricing model?

Aligning the Vonage pricing model with the new WhatsApp pricing model means that Vonage customers only have to worry about one usage metric—the conversation. We are also offering discounted tiered conversation packages with higher discounts for higher volumes.

In addition, charging per conversation brings more predictability as we will charge the same price no matter how many messages are exchanged during the 24 hrs session.