Use the free WhatsApp Business app for greetings, away messages and quick replies while volume is low. Move to the WhatsApp Business API when you need several agents, automation, templates or a shared inbox. A WhatsApp assistant from us costs AED 1,450, and an AI assistant that takes actions AED 14,500, excluding 5% VAT.
A salon owner replies to bookings from her own phone at 11pm. By Friday three customers have been double-booked, one has been ignored for two days, and the number she gave out is the same one her family uses.
Two products with one name
"WhatsApp for business" covers two different things. The WhatsApp Business app is a free phone app for a single owner or a small team. The WhatsApp Business Platform (the API) is a service you reach through an approved provider, with no app interface of its own: you connect it to a shared inbox, a CRM or an assistant.
| WhatsApp Business app | WhatsApp Business API | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to start | Free | Provider fee plus Meta's per-message charges |
| Users | A phone, plus a small number of linked devices | Many agents in a shared inbox |
| Auto-replies | Greeting, away message, quick replies | Any logic you build: routing, menus, AI, order status |
| Catalogue | Built-in catalogue | Catalogue and product messages, depending on setup |
| Marketing messages | Limited broadcast lists | Approved templates sent to opted-in contacts |
| Integrations | Almost none | CRM, Shopify, booking, ERP |
✓ Device limits, pricing, message categories and feature availability for both products change. Last checked October 2026. Confirm with Meta's WhatsApp Business documentation and your provider before relying on it.
What you can do free in the Business app
- A greeting message sent to first-time customers or after 14 days of silence.
- An away message outside the working hours you set.
- Quick replies: type a short code such as /hours to insert a saved answer.
- Labels to mark new customers, pending payment and completed orders.
- A catalogue of products with prices and photos.
For a small shop that is enough, and you should use all of it before paying for anything.
Writing an away message that helps
Most away messages say "we will get back to you". A useful one answers the likely question and sets an honest expectation.
- Say when you open ("We reply from 9am to 7pm, Saturday to Thursday").
- Answer the top question (hours, location, delivery times) in one line.
- Give a way to continue without waiting, such as a booking or order link.
- Write it in Arabic and English in the same message, or detect the customer's language if you are on the API.
When to move to the API
Move when the phone becomes the bottleneck:
- More than one person needs to answer from the same number.
- Customers keep asking the same five questions and a person types the same answers.
- You want to send order updates, appointment reminders or abandoned-cart nudges.
- You need messages to appear in your CRM, store or ERP, not just on a phone.
- You want an assistant to answer from your catalogue or take a booking.
A WhatsApp assistant for the first five questions costs from AED 1,450 with us. An AI assistant that reads your catalogue or booking system and takes actions starts at AED 14,500. Prices exclude 5% VAT.
Templates and opt-in rules
On the API, you can reply freely inside a time window after the customer writes to you. Outside that window, or when you start the conversation, you must use a pre-approved template. Marketing templates need the customer's consent.
✓ Template categories, the length of the customer-service window, opt-in requirements and per-message pricing are set by Meta and change. Last checked October 2026. Confirm with Meta's WhatsApp Business Policy before relying on it.
- Collect opt-in clearly: a checkbox at checkout or a form, not an assumption.
- Make stopping easy and honour it at once.
- Keep utility messages (order, delivery, appointment) factual and separate from promotions.
- Check UAE telecom and data-protection rules for marketing consent with a legal adviser.
Human hand-off is the feature that matters
An automated reply should resolve the easy questions and pass the rest to a person with the context attached. Design it before you build the bot.
- Offer a person in every menu, in one tap or one word.
- Hand off automatically on keywords such as complaint, refund, urgent, or when the assistant is unsure.
- Show the agent the conversation so far, the customer's name and their order or booking.
- Show the customer when a person has taken over, and a realistic wait time.
- After hours, say so and queue the request for the morning.
Arabic and English in the same chat
UAE customers switch language mid-conversation. Write the Arabic by hand rather than by machine, use the same tone in both languages, and test right-to-left text with numbers, links and emojis customers will send. An assistant should answer in the language of the last message and offer to switch.
A sensible rollout
- Week 1: greeting, away message, quick replies and catalogue in the Business app.
- Week 2: log the questions you answer most often.
- Weeks 3 to 4: move to the API with those questions automated and a shared inbox.
- Later: connect it to bookings, your store or your ERP, and add an assistant for the long tail.
Questions
A number is generally either on the Business app or on the API, not both at once, though Meta's rules for this evolve. Your provider will confirm the current options during setup.
Replying to a message a customer sent you is different from starting a conversation. Proactive and marketing messages need opt-in and an approved template. Confirm the current rules with Meta and a legal adviser.
Our WhatsApp assistant starts at AED 1,450. An AI assistant that takes actions, such as bookings or order lookups, starts at AED 14,500. Both exclude 5% VAT and Meta's message fees.
They should. We label automated replies and always provide a route to a person.