# WhatsApp ad replies: the 72-hour bonus window after a click | Illia BizTech

> A fast reply to a WhatsApp ad opens a separate 72-hour window of free messages, per Meta. What happens when the first reply comes too late.

Source: https://illia-biztech.de/en/forum/fur-unseren-gluhwein-und-imbissstand-auf-dem-striezelmarkt-in-dresden-schalten-wir-klick-zu-whatsapp-anzeigen-welche-antworten-bleiben-dabei-kostenlos

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# For our mulled-wine and snack stall at the Striezelmarkt in Dresden we are running click-to-WhatsApp ads, which replies stay free

Replying within 24 hours to a WhatsApp ad opens a separate 72-hour window from Meta, in which otherwise billable template messages stay free too.

* ##### Asked by  
FaintFalcon848
* ##### Asked on  
October 30, 2026

Dresden's Striezelmarkt dates back to 1434 and is considered Germany's oldest Christmas market, and for our mulled-wine and snack stall there it is the single most important stretch of the year. This winter we are testing click-to-WhatsApp ads for the first time, for pre-orders of larger quantities.

We are unsure how long a reply to one of these enquiries stays free, and what the standard message pricing looks like once that window closes.

#### Answers

![Portrait of Alina Belichenko, content and social media specialist](/_ipx/f_webp,q_75/https://cms.illia-biztech.de/uploads/small_Alina_Belichenko_author_ae667ebec9.png)

##### Alina Belichenko · Content & Video Specialist

✓ Accepted answer October 30, 2026 

There is a separate, genuinely favourable rule here just for ads. Meta's own developer documentation for WhatsApp describes that replying within 24 hours to a conversation that started from a click-to-WhatsApp ad or a Page button opens a separate 72-hour window, called the Free Entry Point.

Inside that window, per the same documentation, every kind of message stays free, explicitly including otherwise billable template messages sent outside the normal service window. Those 72 hours come on top of the usual 24-hour service window and apply only to conversations with this specific ad origin.

If the first reply goes out only after the 24 hours have passed, that bonus window, per Meta, never opens at all, and standard per-message pricing applies from the start. For Striezelmarkt pre-orders, a fast first reply is therefore worth particular attention. Setting the ad up so that window does not go to waste is what [Illia BizTech](https://illia-biztech.de/en/services/advertising) handles for Dresden market stalls like this one.

##### 

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**Topics** 
* WhatsApp advertising
* Message costs

A mulled-wine and snack stall at Dresden's Striezelmarkt is testing click-to-WhatsApp ads for pre-orders and wants to know how long replies stay free. Meta describes a specific window for exactly this.

Replying within 24 hours to an ad-originated conversation opens an extra 72-hour window of free messages. If the first reply comes later, per Meta, that bonus window never opens.