ManyChat pricing explained: what each plan costs per month, how active contacts add up, and what WhatsApp adds in the UK and India
ManyChat's sticker prices are low, and for Instagram comment-to-DM automation they are hard to beat. The bill grows in two places people miss: active contacts above your plan's allowance, and per-message WhatsApp charges paid from a wallet. This guide prices both, with worked examples for a UK salon and an Indian course creator.
Quick answer
ManyChat has a free plan for 25 active contacts, then Essential at $17 a month, Pro at $39, Business at $99 and Advanced at $199 on monthly billing (from $14, $29, $69 and $139 billed annually). Each includes a contact allowance with per-contact overage. WhatsApp messages are charged on top through the ManyChat Wallet at per-country rates.
ManyChat plans and prices
ManyChat has five plans, all priced by how many active contacts you talk to each month. Annual billing saves 18% to 30% depending on the plan.
| Plan | Monthly billing | Billed annually | Active contacts included | Each extra contact (monthly / annual) | Users | Channels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | 25 | Not available | 1 | Any 2, up to 4 active automations, ManyChat branding |
| Essential | $17 | $14 a month ($168 a year) | 250 | $0.10 / $0.082 | 2 | Any 2, unlimited automations |
| Pro | $39 | $29 a month ($348 a year) | 2,500 | $0.05 / $0.038 | 3 | Any 3, broadcasts, ManyChat AI |
| Business | $99 | $69 a month ($828 a year) | 7,500 | $0.025 / $0.018 | 5 | Unlimited, shared team inbox, priority support |
| Advanced | $199 | $139 a month ($1,668 a year) | 25,000 | $0.004 / $0.0028 | 10 | Unlimited, shared team inbox, priority support |
Checked October 2026 on ManyChat's pricing page. Channels include Instagram, Facebook Messenger, TikTok, Telegram, WhatsApp, SMS and email. Essential and Pro have a 14-day free trial; the free plan needs no card. ManyChat says you can cancel and get a refund within 30 days of buying a plan.
AI is part of Pro, Business and Advanced, labelled ManyChat AI and described as "AI-powered convos", rather than a separate add-on on these plans. If you read an older guide that prices AI as an extra, check the current page.
How active contacts grow a ManyChat bill
An active contact is a real person you interact with during a monthly billing period, through automations, AI, broadcasts or the inbox. One person is one active contact for the month no matter how many messages you exchange.
Two details shape the bill:
- Broadcast recipients count. ManyChat says a contact becomes active when messages are sent or received, including through broadcasts. A promotion to 4,000 followers makes all 4,000 active that month.
- Overages are billed, not blocked. If you exceed your allowance, automations keep running and you pay the per-contact rate in the table, billed monthly even on annual plans. You can set an overage cap, and if you upgrade within the same cycle, ManyChat forgives the overage so far.
The overage rate falls sharply on higher plans, so once you regularly exceed an allowance, upgrading is almost always cheaper. Going 3,500 contacts over on Pro costs $175 on monthly billing; Business at $99 would include them.
To estimate your own number before choosing a plan, add three groups for a typical month: the unique people who message you first, everyone your comment or story automations reply to, and everyone on your broadcast lists. Count each person once. If the total sits near a plan's limit, price the plan above it too, because a single campaign month can tip you over.
ManyChat WhatsApp pricing per message
WhatsApp on ManyChat costs the plan plus per-message charges taken from your ManyChat Wallet. Funds are deducted right after each billable message is delivered.
ManyChat's WhatsApp pricing guide, updated 7 October 2026, explains the rules that follow Meta's change on 1 October 2026: every marketing and utility template is charged on delivery, service messages inside the 24-hour window are charged after 1,000 free per WhatsApp number per month, messages from customers are free, and marketing, utility and service messages in an open free entry point window are free.
| Market | ManyChat marketing | ManyChat utility | ManyChat service | Meta list marketing | Meta list utility or service |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | $0.0730 | $0.0253 | $0.0220 | $0.0635 | $0.022 |
| India | $0.0136 | $0.0016 | $0.0014 | $0.0118 | $0.0014 |
| North America | $0.0287 | $0.0039 | $0.0034 | $0.025 | $0.0034 |
Meta list rates from Meta's pricing page and its US dollar rate card effective 1 October 2026. ManyChat's marketing and utility rates run about 15% above Meta's list; service messages are charged at Meta's rate. ManyChat also notes that Meta paused marketing templates to US numbers from 1 April 2025.
ManyChat pricing in India and the UK
ManyChat's page says the price is determined by your billing country, is shown before tax, and appears in final form on the purchase page before you pay. We could verify only the US dollar list, so treat the table above as the reference and expect UK VAT or Indian GST on top.
What clearly differs by country is the WhatsApp cost. For a UK business, a marketing template costs about five times what it costs to an Indian number, and service replies past the free 1,000 cost about 16 times more. A UK salon can ignore message fees on Instagram but not on WhatsApp; an Indian creator can broadcast on WhatsApp cheaply but may pay more in active contact overages than in messages. Our country guides for the UK and India cover local habits and rules.
Two worked ManyChat bills
Both businesses are hypothetical. WhatsApp figures use ManyChat's published rates; tax is excluded.
Is ManyChat worth paying for?
For Instagram-led businesses, yes. Comment-to-DM, story replies, keyword triggers and growth tools are ManyChat's core, it is an official Meta Business Partner, and Pro at $29 to $39 a month with AI included is good value for creators and shops whose leads start on Instagram.
For a WhatsApp-first service business, the fit is weaker. ManyChat is built around flows you design; WhatsApp is one channel among seven, paid per message on top of the plan, and every broadcast inflates your active contact count.
Alternatives for WhatsApp-first businesses
We make ReplyKit, so weigh our view accordingly.
- Tidio if your main channel is website live chat and you want an AI agent priced per conversation.
- respond.io if you need a full team inbox across WhatsApp, Instagram and email with AI included.
- ReplyKit if WhatsApp and your website are where enquiries arrive. It is $29, $49 or $99 a month with 1,000, 5,000 or 20,000 AI replies that answer from your own content, book appointments and hand over to you, with no per-message or per-contact fees. It connects through Quick Connect, an unofficial QR pairing method that is not the WhatsApp Business API and is not sanctioned by Meta, so a number can be restricted; read will WhatsApp ban my number and use a dedicated number. Before connecting you see one plain notice, and pressing Connect accepts section 3 of our Terms. ReplyKit does not do Instagram, Messenger or broadcasts, so the Bengaluru creator should stay on ManyChat.
Our ReplyKit vs ManyChat comparison and ManyChat alternatives for WhatsApp go deeper. To compare costs directly, see ReplyKit's pricing or start a 7-day free trial.
Frequently asked questions
How much is ManyChat per month?
When we checked in October 2026, ManyChat was free for up to 25 active contacts, then $17 a month for Essential, $39 for Pro, $99 for Business and $199 for Advanced on monthly billing. Billed annually they are $14, $29, $69 and $139 a month. Prices exclude tax.
Is ManyChat free for WhatsApp?
ManyChat's free plan lets you connect any two channels, which can include WhatsApp, for up to 25 active contacts and 4 active automations. WhatsApp message charges still apply after the free allowances and are paid from your ManyChat Wallet.
How much does ManyChat charge per WhatsApp message?
It depends on the recipient's country. For UK numbers ManyChat lists $0.0730 per marketing template, $0.0253 per utility template and $0.0220 per service message after 1,000 free a month. For Indian numbers the rates are $0.0136, $0.0016 and $0.0014.
What is ManyChat's price in India and the UK?
ManyChat sets the final price by billing country and shows it before payment, with tax such as GST or VAT added. We could verify only the US dollar list, so check the checkout page for your local amount.
Does ManyChat charge extra for AI?
On the current pricing page, ManyChat AI is included in Pro, Business and Advanced, which are described as including AI-powered conversations. Essential and Free do not include it.
What happens if I go over my ManyChat contact limit?
Your automations keep running and ManyChat charges a per-contact overage: $0.10 on Essential, $0.05 on Pro, $0.025 on Business and $0.004 on Advanced on monthly billing. You can set an overage cap, and upgrading within the same cycle forgives the overage so far.
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Sources and further reading
- ManyChat, Pricing · plan prices on monthly and annual billing, active contacts, overage rates, users, channels, trial and refund terms
- ManyChat Help, WhatsApp pricing guide · per-message WhatsApp rates by market from 1 October 2026, the Wallet, free messages
- Meta, WhatsApp Business Platform pricing · Meta list rates, the service message change and free entry point windows
ReplyKit is an independent product and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Meta or WhatsApp. Prices for other vendors are taken from their public pricing pages as checked in October 2026 and may change. This article is general guidance, not financial advice.