WhatsApp session messaging
What is WhatsApp session messaging?
WhatsApp session messaging is the 24-hour window that opens each time a customer sends a message to a business, during which the business can reply with any free-form message — no pre-approved template required. Once 24 hours pass since the customer's last message with no new inbound message, the session closes and the business must switch back to a template message to reach that customer again, which is why timely replies matter for keeping a conversation in the cheaper, more flexible session state.
More detail
Any new inbound message from the customer resets the 24-hour clock, so an active back-and-forth conversation can stay in session mode indefinitely without needing a template.
Session (service) conversations are typically priced differently from template-initiated (marketing, utility, authentication) conversations, so keeping a reply inside the session window is usually the lower-cost path.
Frequently asked
- How is the 24-hour session window reset?
- Every new inbound message from the customer restarts the 24-hour clock, so an ongoing conversation with regular replies can remain in free-form session mode without ever needing a template.
- What happens the moment a WhatsApp session expires?
- The business can no longer send a free-form message to that customer — any further outreach must use a pre-approved template message, until the customer sends a new inbound message to reopen a session.
See also
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