Clients often ask us whether they should move to the WhatsApp API. The answer depends on two things: how many people reply to customers, and how many messages you want to send.
What the free app does
The WhatsApp Business app is free and it covers a lot. You get a business profile with your address, hours and website. You can add a catalogue of products or services. Quick replies save the answers you type every day. Labels let you mark chats as new, pending or paid. Greeting and away messages reply when you cannot.
You can also send a broadcast to a list of contacts. For a shop, a clinic or a tutor where the owner answers every chat, this is enough. If that is you, stay on the app.
Where the app stops
The app is built for one person, and the limits show up when the business grows.
- One phone. The account lives on one phone. You can link a few more devices, but everyone uses the same account.
- No shared inbox. You cannot assign a chat to a team member, and you cannot see who replied to whom. Two people answer the same customer, or nobody does.
- No approved bulk sends. A broadcast list is limited in size, and it reaches only the people who have saved your number. Sending the same offer to many people who do not know you is also how numbers get banned.
- Little automation. Beyond the greeting and away messages, every reply is typed by hand. The app cannot ask a set of questions, collect the answers or pass details to another system.
What the API adds
The WhatsApp Business API (Meta calls it the WhatsApp Business Platform) is the same WhatsApp, made for software and not for one phone. It has no app of its own. You use it through a provider, which gives you the inbox and the tools.
- A shared team inbox. Several people answer on one number, each with their own login. Chats can be assigned.
- Approved templates. You write a message, Meta approves it, and you can send it to customers who have agreed to hear from you. This is the proper way to send offers, reminders and order updates in bulk.
- Automation. Replies, questions and follow-ups can run without a person typing each one.
- Connections. Chats can be tied to payment links, sheets and other tools you already use.
The API also has rules. Templates need approval. After 24 hours of silence from the customer, you can message them only with a template. And you need the customer’s consent before you send marketing messages.
What it costs in India
There are two parts to the cost: what Meta charges and what your provider charges.
Meta charges for each template message delivered. In India it is about ₹0.86 for a marketing message and about ₹0.115 for a utility message, such as an order update or an appointment reminder. Replies you send inside the 24-hour window after a customer messages you are free from Meta. Meta revises these rates, so check its current rate card before you plan a budget.
The provider’s fee comes on top. Some charge a monthly plan. Some charge a fee per message. Some do both. Ask for both numbers and add them up for your own volume. As a rough sum, 1,000 marketing messages cost about ₹860 in Meta charges alone, before the provider’s fee.
You can keep the same number on the app
Many owners worry that moving to the API means giving up the app on their own phone. It does not have to.
Meta lets a business connect a number that is already on the WhatsApp Business app to the API and keep using the app. You reply from your phone as before, and the team inbox, templates and automation run on the same number. Not every provider offers this, so check before you sign up.
How to decide
Stay on the app if:
- one person answers all the chats,
- you rarely send the same message to more than a few dozen people,
- you are happy typing replies by hand.
Move to the API if:
- two or more people need to answer on the same number,
- you want to send offers or reminders to your customer list regularly,
- you run ads that open WhatsApp and the chats are more than one phone can handle,
- you want replies, payment links or follow-ups to go out on their own.
If you are unsure, count how many chats went unanswered last week. That number usually settles it.
If you choose the API
GetSetSales is DigiTurtle’s own product. It is on the official WhatsApp Business API. You connect the number you already use and keep the WhatsApp Business app. There is no monthly plan. It costs ₹0.15 per message or conversation on top of Meta’s own charge, with no monthly plan, and the first 100 are free. It includes a shared team inbox, campaigns with approved templates and no-code automations, and it connects to Razorpay, PayU and Google Sheets. The GetSetSales pricing page has the current rates.
For a longer comparison, read WhatsApp Business app vs API on the GetSetSales blog. Whichever provider you choose, compare on the same three things: the total cost for your volume, whether your number stays on the app, and whether your team can use the inbox without training.