What is WhatsApp commerce?

By the Sellly team · Published 1 Oct 2026 · 6 min read

WhatsApp commerce is doing business with customers inside WhatsApp chats. Instead of sending people to a website or an app, a business lets them find it, ask questions, choose what they want, pay and get updates in one conversation, on the app they already use every day. In India, where UPI makes paying from a phone simple, it’s how many small businesses already sell.

How it works

1. The customer finds you. From a post, a reel, a QR code on a counter, a link in a bio, or a friend who shares your number.
2. They start a chat. With your business number, the way they’d message anyone.
3. They choose. From a catalogue, a menu of services or a few questions, with your prices and options.
4. They pay. Usually by UPI, or cash on delivery or at the visit.
5. They’re kept informed. Confirmation, updates and a receipt, in the same chat.
6. They come back. The conversation is still there when they want the same again.

It isn’t only selling products

The same conversation works for very different businesses, because each needs a different set of steps:

• Orders for bakeries, boutiques and grocers: product, cart, payment, delivery.
• Bookings for salons, tutors and studios: service, person, free time, deposit.
• Quotes for custom cakes, tailors and repairs: requirements, photo, price, approval.
• Enquiries for estate agents and institutes: interest, budget, a time to call.
• Subscriptions for tiffin services and memberships: plan, start date, renewal.

The WhatsApp Business app and the WhatsApp Business Platform

There are two ways for a business to be on WhatsApp.

• The WhatsApp Business app is free and runs on your phone. It has a business profile, a catalogue, quick replies, labels and an away message. You answer every message yourself.
• The WhatsApp Business Platform is how software talks to customers on a business’s behalf: answering with your products and prices, taking an order step by step, sending updates. Small businesses use it through a provider rather than building on it themselves.

Meta now lets businesses connect their WhatsApp Business app number to a provider and keep using the app on the same number; some app features are limited while it’s connected. Whether that’s available depends on the provider and the number.

Payments

In India, most customers pay by UPI. A payment link or a QR code with the amount filled in opens the customer’s UPI app, and the money goes to the business’s own account. Whatever tool you use, check each payment arrived before you hand anything over: a screenshot is not a payment.

The rules that shape it

• The 24-hour window. On the Business Platform, a business can reply freely for 24 hours after a customer’s last message. After that, it can only send templates Meta has approved.
• Marketing needs permission. Offers and promotions need the customer’s agreement, and cost more than order updates.
• Your number is your identity. Customers see your business name and talk to your number, so it’s worth using one you’ll keep.

What it costs

The WhatsApp Business app is free. On the Business Platform, Meta charges the business directly for some messages. In India, from 1 Oct 2026, each business number gets 1,000 free service messages a month (your replies inside the 24-hour window); after that, Meta charges ₹0.115 plus GST a message. Templates sent outside the window are charged by category, with marketing the most expensive. Providers charge for their software on top.

What it’s good at, and what it isn’t

It’s good at the things a conversation is good at: answering questions, handling custom requests, and building a relationship with regulars, with nothing for the customer to install. It’s less good at browsing hundreds of products, which is why a simple store page that opens the chat helps. And chats alone are a poor record: past a few orders a day, a business needs one list of what’s been ordered, booked or paid.

Sellly is built for this: it runs orders, bookings, quotes, enquiries and plans on a business’s own WhatsApp number, and keeps every customer in one place. See how Sellly works.

Sources

• Sending messages and the customer service window (Meta for Developers)
• Pricing on the WhatsApp Business Platform (Meta for Developers)
• Onboarding WhatsApp Business app users (using the app and the platform on one number) (Meta for Developers)
• Payments in India through UPI on WhatsApp (Meta for Developers)

Related

• WhatsApp orderingCustomers pick from your products, fill a cart and pay by UPI or cash on delivery. The order reaches you complete.
• Appointment bookingCustomers choose a service, who they’d like and a time that’s free. A deposit can hold the slot, and a reminder goes out before.
• Enquiries and leadsCustomers say what they’re looking for, their budget and when to call. You get a lead to follow up, and nobody is asked to pay.
• How to take orders on WhatsAppThree ways a small business can take orders on WhatsApp, what to set up before the first one, how to take UPI payments without mix-ups, and when to move from chats to a system.
• How appointment booking on WhatsApp worksWhat a good booking conversation on WhatsApp looks like, what to decide before taking bookings, how deposits and reminders work, and when to move from booking by hand to a booking system.