Skip to main content
  • Sending a WhatsApp template doesn’t just deliver a message — it opens a conversation, a 24-hour billing window between your business and that customer.
  • Which type of conversation opens (and what it costs) is decided entirely by the Template Category you picked when you built the template.
Full billing rules: Conversation Categories & Pricing. This page focuses on the practical side of that choice inside ChatSyncs.

​
Why the Template Category field matters beyond approval

When you fill in Template Category in the Message Template builder, you’re not just satisfying Meta’s review — you’re choosing what kind of conversation opens (and how much it costs your business) every single time that template is sent:

​
When you get charged twice

A common surprise: sending templates from two different categories to the same customer close together opens two separate paid conversations, even though it feels like one interaction. Example: You send an order confirmation as a Utility template (Utility conversation opens). Two hours later you send a discount offer as a Marketing template to the same customer. That’s a second, separately billed Marketing conversation — even though the Utility conversation from two hours ago is technically still open. Sending another template from the same category as an already-open conversation does not open a new one or add a new charge — only switching categories does.

​
Practical tips for ChatSyncs users

  • Encourage customers to message you first. A customer-initiated Service conversation is free. Use a Chat Widget link, a QR code, or a click-to-WhatsApp ad to get them talking to you rather than the other way around.
  • Don’t mix categories unnecessarily on the same day. If you need to send both a shipping update and a promotional offer to the same customer, consider whether the promo can wait until the next day instead of opening two billed conversations at once.
  • Reply within the 24-hour window when a customer messages first. Once that Service window closes, you need an approved template (and a charge) to re-engage — see Templates to Restart Conversations After Non-Working Hours for ready-to-use templates for exactly this situation.
  • Default to Utility over Marketing when the message genuinely qualifies. It’s cheaper and gets approved more easily — see Utility vs. Marketing templates for how to tell which one your message actually is.
If a customer reaches you through a click-to-WhatsApp ad or a Facebook Page CTA button, the first conversation that follows is free for up to 72 hours, regardless of category. See Conversation Categories & Pricing for details on this Free Entry Point window.

​
Frequently asked

You likely sent two templates from different categories — for example a Utility order update, then a Marketing offer. Each category opens its own billed conversation, even to the same customer on the same day. Sending more templates from the same category doesn’t add another charge.
Yes. Utility conversations cost less than Marketing, and Authentication (OTP) conversations cost less still. Only pick Marketing when the message is genuinely promotional — see Utility vs. Marketing templates.
Yes — that opens a free Service conversation, and any free-form reply within 24 hours is free. You only need a paid template again once that window closes without a reply.
Push customers toward messaging you first (free Service conversations), default to Utility for anything genuinely transactional, and avoid sending a Marketing template on top of an already-open Utility conversation unless the offer is worth the extra charge.