> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.connectly.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# WhatsApp Cost Management

> Best practices for managing WhatsApp service message costs under Meta's per-message pricing model 💵

Meta's move to per-message pricing for service messages changes the economics of WhatsApp. Most cost increases are avoidable with the right setup. Here's how to stay in control.

<Info>
  Questions about your setup? Reach out to your Connectly Account Manager.
</Info>

***

## 01 — Use WhatsApp Flows for multi-step interactions

**Impact: High · Effort: Medium**

Every extra message in a multi-step interaction adds up. WhatsApp Flows let you collect input — forms, selections, booking details — inside a single structured experience, instead of a chain of back-and-forth messages.

<Tip>
  **With Connectly:** Create your flow in Meta Business Manager and call it from any Connectly campaign. Coming soon: build and host flows without leaving Connectly.
</Tip>

***

## 02 — Cap your auto-reply frequency

**Impact: High · Effort: Low**

Customers often send several messages at once, or check back multiple times a day. Without a cap, your bot fires a reply to every single one — and each reply is a billable service message. A simple limit ensures you respond once per window, not once per ping.

<Tip>
  **With Connectly:** Set a frequency cap in your settings (e.g. max one auto-reply per customer per day) regardless of how many messages they send.
</Tip>

***

## 03 — Filter out incoming bots and auto-replies

**Impact: High · Effort: Low**

Out-of-office replies, delivery bots, and automated notifications can trigger your auto-replies and open agent sessions — just like a real customer conversation would. Those interactions count against your bill.

<Tip>
  **With Connectly:** A detection algorithm identifies and suppresses incoming bot and auto-reply messages before they trigger any action or cost on your side.
</Tip>

***

## 04 — Consolidate messages

**Impact: Medium · Effort: Low**

Sending three short messages costs three times as much as one. Combine information into a single well-structured message using buttons, quick replies, or lists — and you'll likely get better engagement too.

> **Rule of thumb:** if two messages could be sent within seconds of each other, they should be one message.

***

## 05 — Resolve within the conversation window

**Impact: Medium · Effort: Low**

When a customer messages you, a conversation window opens. Responding and resolving within that window is more cost-effective than letting it lapse and reopening it with a new outbound message later.

<Tip>
  **With Connectly:** Use conversation status indicators to see which windows are about to close and prioritise accordingly.
</Tip>

***

## 06 — Keep your contact lists clean

**Impact: Medium · Effort: Low**

Sending to inactive, unresponsive, or opted-out contacts wastes budget with zero return. Regular list hygiene is one of the simplest cost levers available — and requires no product changes to implement.

<Tip>
  **With Connectly:** Use engagement data to flag contacts who haven't responded in 60–90 days. Re-engage them with a targeted campaign or remove them from regular sends.
</Tip>

***

## 07 — Build a dedicated AI agent for your most important flows <Badge>Coming soon</Badge>

**Impact: High · Effort: Medium**

Design an AI agent that manages entire conversations end-to-end — understanding intent, gathering details, and handing off to a human only when genuinely needed. Where the other practices optimise individual messages, an agent replaces an entire flow.

<Note>
  **Coming to Connectly:** A no-code Agent Builder to design, test, and deploy specialised agents for any flow.
</Note>