The best Chatfuel alternative in India for a WhatsApp-first business is usually one that bills in rupees and charges per message instead of selling AI credits in dollars. Chatfuel plans start at $18 a month billed yearly (about ₹1,584) and add 10% on top of Meta's rate for template messages, while RichAutomate starts at ₹499 a month with GST included, charges a flat ₹0.10 per message and lets Meta bill you directly.
All Chatfuel figures below come from Chatfuel's public pricing page, checked on 11 Nov 2026. Plans change, so confirm on their site before you buy. RichAutomate figures come from our own WhatsApp Business API pricing page. USD is converted at ₹88 per dollar for comparison only.
Chatfuel pricing in 2026: AI credits, bots and the 10% template markup
Chatfuel sells plans as a monthly balance of AI credits. Each plan tops up a wallet on renewal, and that wallet pays for AI replies, media handling, lead events and Meta's template charges. Chatfuel's own page answers the rollover question plainly: what you don't spend does not carry over to the next period.
| Chatfuel plan | Price per month, billed yearly | In INR at ₹88 | AI credits per month | Estimated AI chats | Bots |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Business S | $18 | ₹1,584 | $20 | about 330 | 1 |
| Business M | $40.50 | ₹3,564 | $50 | about 826 | 1 |
| Business L | $81 | ₹7,128 | $100 | about 1,652 | 1 |
| Business XL | $153 | ₹13,464 | $200 | about 3,304 | 1 |
| Business XXL | $366.67 | ₹32,267 | $500 | about 8,260 | 1 |
| Agency S | $90 | ₹7,920 | $100 | about 1,652 | 3 |
| Agency M | $202.50 | ₹17,820 | $250 | about 4,130 | Unlimited |
| Agency L | $396 | ₹34,848 | $500 | about 8,260 | Unlimited |
Chatfuel also lists Agency XL at $765 and Agency XXL at $1,845 a month for very large accounts. The chat counts are Chatfuel's own estimates, and the real number depends on how long your conversations run and which AI quality setting you pick.
Three metered prices matter most when you read that table:
- AI replies: about $0.0093 per reply on the recommended quality setting with a medium knowledge base.
- Template messages: billed at Meta's rate plus 10%, paid from the same wallet as your AI credits.
- Extras: photos at $0.0041, voice messages at $0.0030, lead events sent to Meta at $0.020, and a one-time $10 setup per bot for their Coworker feature.
Also looking at live chat tools? Read our Tidio alternative comparison for conversation-based pricing.
If an AI reply allowance is on your shortlist, read the Hyperleap AI vs RichAutomate pricing comparison in rupees.
RichAutomate pricing: INR, GST included, pay per message
RichAutomate uses a different model. You pay a small plan fee in rupees, that fee is returned to you as wallet credit, and the platform charges a flat ₹0.10 per message. Meta bills its message charges to you directly on your own payment method, which is how Client Pay billing works. Replies inside the 24-hour customer service window carry no Meta charge.
Get the India 2026 WhatsApp BSP price comparison
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| RichAutomate | What you pay |
|---|---|
| Starter plan | ₹499 per month, GST included |
| Pro plan | ₹899 per month, GST included |
| White-label plan | ₹1,199 per month, GST included |
| Platform fee | ₹0.10 per message |
| Meta charges | Billed by Meta to you directly, no markup |
| Plan fee | Returned as wallet credit |
| Extra seat | ₹199 per month |
| Extra number | ₹399 per month |
| Setup | ₹0, 7-day trial with 100 free credits, no card |
Not sure what your own month would cost? Plug your numbers into the WhatsApp API cost calculator before you compare plans.
Chatfuel vs RichAutomate: what a month really costs
These two products price different things, so a straight plan-for-plan table would mislead you. Chatfuel charges for AI work. RichAutomate charges for messages. The fair way to compare is to look at the two costs every WhatsApp business pays: the platform fee and the markup on Meta's charges.
| Cost line | Chatfuel | RichAutomate |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest paid plan | $18 a month billed yearly, about ₹1,584 | ₹499 a month, GST included |
| Billing currency | USD | INR |
| Meta template charges | Meta's rate plus 10% | Meta's rate, billed to you by Meta |
| Platform fee per message | Paid through AI credits | Flat ₹0.10 |
| Unused balance | Does not roll over | Plan fee becomes wallet credit |
| Bots on entry plan | 1 | Flows built in the visual builder |
The template markup is where the gap shows up at scale. If your marketing sends cost ₹20,000 a month at Meta's rate, a 10% markup adds ₹2,000 on top. On RichAutomate the same month adds ₹0.10 for each message you send. A simple rule: when Meta's charge per template is above ₹1, a 10% markup costs more than a flat ₹0.10, and below ₹1 it costs less. Check Meta's current rate for your message category before you decide.
Ready to see your real number? Start a free 7-day RichAutomate trial with 100 credits and no card.
Where Chatfuel is the better choice
Chatfuel is a good product and the honest answer is that it wins for some teams:
- AI-first support. If most of your replies come from an AI agent trained on your knowledge base, Chatfuel's credit model is built for exactly that job.
- Instagram and Facebook Messenger. Chatfuel started as a Messenger bot builder, so teams that live in Meta's other inboxes get a familiar tool.
- Agencies with many bots. Agency M and above include unlimited bots, which suits agencies running chatbots for many small clients.
- USD budgets. If your company already pays for software in dollars, the currency gap does not matter to you.
Where RichAutomate is the better choice
- WhatsApp-first Indian businesses. Broadcasts, template campaigns, chatbot flows and a shared team inbox in one place, priced in rupees with GST included.
- High template volume. No 10% markup on Meta's charges. Meta bills you at its own rate and the platform adds only ₹0.10 per message.
- Nothing expires. Your plan fee comes back as wallet credit instead of a balance that resets each period.
- Growing teams. Extra seats cost ₹199 a month and extra numbers ₹399 a month, see the shared team inbox guide.
- Resellers. The White-label plan at ₹1,199 a month lets agencies sell WhatsApp under their own brand.
If AI replies are the deciding feature, read our breakdown of WhatsApp AI agent and chatbot pricing in India and the guide to connecting ChatGPT or Claude to WhatsApp.
How to switch from Chatfuel to RichAutomate
- List your live templates, flows and tags in Chatfuel and export your contacts.
- Disconnect your WhatsApp number from Chatfuel in Meta Business settings. The number stays yours.
- Create a RichAutomate account and connect the number through Meta's embedded signup.
- Rebuild your main flows in the visual flow builder and import contacts with opt-in status.
- Send a test broadcast to your own team before going live.
Want help moving? Book a free demo and we will walk through your setup with you.
Which one should you pick?
AI replies are the other line to watch on Chatfuel. At about $0.0093 per reply, 1,000 AI replies use roughly $9.30 of credits, so a Business S plan's $20 balance covers around 2,150 replies before photos, voice notes and template charges draw from the same wallet. Unused credits do not roll over to the next month.
Pick Chatfuel if your main job is an AI agent answering questions across Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp, you run many bots as an agency, or you budget in dollars. Pick RichAutomate if WhatsApp is your main channel, you send template campaigns at volume, and you want rupee billing with Meta's charges passed through at Meta's own rate. Still comparing? See our list of the best WhatsApp chatbot builders in India, the ManyChat vs RichAutomate pricing breakdown and the wider roundup of WhatsApp Business API alternatives.