Comparison · updated 7 October 2026
For most businesses: respond.io for a team inbox with AI agents and no markup on Meta's fees, WATI for a lower entry price, ManyChat if you already run Instagram and Messenger bots, and Chatfuel as the cheapest start at $20 a month. Developers who want full control build on Twilio or Gupshup and pay per message. Whatever you choose, Meta's own fees changed on 1 October 2026: replies now cost money after 1,000 free a month per number.
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Every WhatsApp chatbot pays Meta per message, on top of the platform. Since 1 October 2026, according to Meta's pricing page:
So the platform's markup on these fees matters as much as its monthly price. That is the second column below.
We build custom WhatsApp AI agents on the official API, so we are one of the options and marked as such. Everything else comes from each vendor's own pricing page on 7 October 2026; some show prices by country, so check from your own location.
| Platform | From (monthly) | Meta's fees | AI | Trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| respond.io | $99 ($79 yearly) | Passed through, no markup | AI Agents from the $199 Growth plan | 7 days |
| WATI | $49 ($39 yearly) | From WATI's own rate card; markup not stated | Astra AI agents, paid add-on | 7 days |
| ManyChat | $17 ($14 yearly), WhatsApp included | About 15% above Meta on marketing and utility; replies at Meta's rate | Manychat AI from Pro ($39) | 14 days and a free plan |
| Chatfuel | $20 ($18 yearly) | Meta's rate plus 10% | AI bots with $20 of AI credits | Yes |
| Tidio | $29 ($24.17 yearly) | Not published | Lyro AI agent from $39 | 7 days |
| Twilio | Pay per use | Meta's fee plus $0.005 a message | None built in; Studio builder | Free trial |
| Gupshup | Pay per use | Meta's fee plus $0.001 a message | Not published | Not published |
ManyChat's markup is our own calculation from its WhatsApp pricing guide (for example France marketing $0.0987 against Meta's $0.0859), not a figure ManyChat states. Interakt is left out: it mainly serves India.
We build a WhatsApp agent that answers from your own information, understands text, voice notes and images, qualifies and books, writes to your CRM and hands over to a person when it should, as we did for the HeroStoryBook store. Meta bills its message fees directly; there is no platform subscription.
WebsiteBest for a sales or support team sharing one WhatsApp number with other channels. It passes Meta's fees through with no usage markup, and AI agents that answer from your knowledge sources start on the Growth plan.
WebsiteA lower entry price for a business that lives on WhatsApp, with HubSpot on the Pro plan. Its AI agents are a paid add-on, and its message fees come from its own rate card, so compare them with Meta's before you commit.
WebsiteBest if you already run Instagram or Messenger automations and want WhatsApp in the same tool. Plans are priced by active contacts, and its WhatsApp marketing and utility fees sit above Meta's list price.
WebsiteUnlimited contacts and messages on fair use, AI bots with booking inside WhatsApp, and $20 of AI credits. Its WhatsApp messages cost Meta's rate plus 10% since 1 October 2026.
WebsiteBest when most conversations start on your website and WhatsApp is a second channel. Its Lyro AI agent answers from your knowledge base on a separate plan from $39.
WebsiteNo subscription: Meta's fee plus $0.005 per message, and a visual Studio builder with 1,000 free runs a month. You bring your own AI, so it suits teams that build their own agent.
WebsiteMeta's fee at cost plus $0.001 per message, the lowest platform fee here, for businesses sending large volumes. AI features and trial terms are not on its pricing page.
WebsiteFor a team inbox with AI agents and no markup on Meta's fees, respond.io. For a lower entry price, WATI. For a start under $20 a month, Chatfuel or ManyChat. For a custom AI agent on your own number, a build like ours.
Platforms start at $17 to $99 a month (7 October 2026), plus Meta's per-message fees. Since 1 October 2026 the first 1,000 replies a month per number are free, then about $0.0034 each in the US.
Not all of them. Since 1 October 2026 Meta charges for service messages after the first 1,000 a month on each business number. Chats that start from a click-to-WhatsApp ad get a free window of up to 7 days.
respond.io states no usage markup, and Twilio and Gupshup pass Meta's fee through plus a small per-message platform fee ($0.005 and $0.001). Chatfuel adds 10%, and ManyChat's marketing and utility rates sit about 15% above Meta's.
Not at the moment: Meta does not currently deliver marketing templates to WhatsApp users with US phone numbers. Service replies and utility messages, such as order updates, still go through.
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