Comparison · Kenya
WhatsApp API providers in Kenya compared: setup fees, monthly plans and how Meta's charges are billed
A side-by-side of the WhatsApp Business API options a Kenyan business or reseller is likely to shortlist: setup fees, monthly plans in KES or USD, how message charges are billed, and who each provider suits.
By Broadchat teamPublished 7 min read
In short
Kenyan WhatsApp API providers mostly charge a one-off setup fee per number plus a monthly plan, with message charges on top at the provider's own prices. Celcom Africa lists KES 15,000 setup and plans from KES 15,000 a month; MSpace lists KES 8,000 plus VAT setup and plans from KES 5,000 a month; Africa's Talking lists US$85 setup and US$50 a month; HelloDuty lists US$199 a month on its pricing page and 'from KES 9,500' in a Kenya article. Broadchat is sold through partners who set their own prices, so it suits companies that want to resell WhatsApp under their own brand.
Key takeaways
- Celcom Africa's pricing page lists a KES 15,000 setup fee per number and plans of KES 15,000, 30,000 and 60,000 a month, with template messages charged separately.
- MSpace lists a KES 8,000 plus VAT (KES 9,280) one-off setup and plans of KES 5,000 and KES 10,000 a month, with prepaid message credits that do not expire.
- Africa's Talking lists a US$85 setup fee and US$50 monthly maintenance, with its own per-message prices for the Rest of Africa.
- HelloDuty's pricing page lists Starter at US$199 a month; a Kenya article on its site says its fee for SMBs starts at KES 9,500 a month.
- Broadchat publishes no end-customer price: partners set plan prices and messaging rates, and partner costs are quoted on request.
Information about other providers comes from their own public websites, checked on . Products and prices change; check the linked sources before you decide. Product names are trademarks of their owners, used only to identify them.
How we compared
We read each provider's own website on 1 November 2026 and quote only what it publishes there; where a site did not say something, the table says 'Not stated'. We do not quote providers' per-message prices, which change often and are easy to misread; compare them yourself against Meta's rates for Kenyan numbers. Some sites show different prices by visitor location, and we checked from outside Kenya, so open the linked page before you decide.
The shortlist
| Celcom Africa | MSpace | Africa's Talking | HelloDuty | Broadchat | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Setup fee | KES 15,000 per number, one-off | KES 8,000 + VAT (KES 9,280), one-off | US$85 | Not stated | Set by the partner |
| Monthly plans | KES 15,000 (Basic), 30,000 (Pro), 60,000 (Enterprise) | KES 5,000 (Basic), KES 10,000 (Premium), Enterprise custom | US$50 monthly maintenance | US$199 (Starter), US$599 (Pro), from US$1,999 (Enterprise); 'from KES 9,500' for SMBs in a Kenya article | Set by the partner |
| Message charges | Template messages charged separately at Celcom's prices | Prepaid credits at MSpace's prices, no expiry; no separate Meta fee mentioned | Per message at its own prices by region | Not stated on the pricing page | Prepaid wallet at rates the partner sets over Meta's base rate |
| Plan limits | Campaigns and messages per month (for example 20 campaigns and 50,000 messages on Basic) | Features by plan | Not stated | Contacts, team members, storage and API requests by plan | Set by the partner's plans |
| Trial | Not stated | Test credits on sign-up | Not stated | Not stated | Partner's choice; built-in 3, 5 or 7-day free plan |
| Other channels | Bulk SMS, short codes, USSD | Bulk SMS, short codes, USSD | SMS, USSD, voice, airtime | USSD, SMS, IVR and WhatsApp flow designers | WhatsApp and website chat |
| White-label for resellers | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Yes: brand, domain, KES plans, own billing |
Celcom Africa
Celcom Africa is a Kenyan messaging company best known for bulk SMS, short codes and USSD across African markets. Its pricing page lists WhatsApp Business API starting rates for Kenya: a one-off setup of KES 15,000 per mobile number, then Basic at KES 15,000 a month (20 campaigns, 50,000 messages), Pro at KES 30,000 (30 campaigns, 500,000 messages) and Enterprise at KES 60,000 (unlimited campaigns, 1 million messages). Template messages are charged separately, at per-category prices it publishes.
Best for: a mid-sized or large Kenyan business that already buys SMS or USSD from Celcom and wants WhatsApp from the same supplier.
MSpace
MSpace's WhatsApp page lists a one-off setup fee of KES 8,000 plus VAT (KES 9,280 including VAT) covering account registration, verification with Meta, number provisioning and onboarding. Plans are Basic at KES 5,000 a month (templates, broadcasts, delivery receipts, API access and an account manager) and Premium at KES 10,000 (adding priority support, analytics, webhook events and custom branding), with Enterprise priced on request. Prices exclude VAT, message credits are prepaid and do not expire, and sign-up includes test credits.
Best for: a small Kenyan business that wants a local account manager and the lowest published monthly fee in this list.
Africa's Talking
Africa's Talking is a developer platform for SMS, USSD, voice and other channels across Africa. Its WhatsApp page lists a US$85 setup fee and US$50 monthly maintenance, plus its own per-message prices for marketing, utility, authentication and service messages, with separate rows for Rest of Africa, Nigeria, South Africa and Egypt. It is an API, so you build or buy the inbox and chatbot on top.
Best for: developers and software companies in Nairobi that already use Africa's Talking for SMS or USSD and want WhatsApp through the same API account.
HelloDuty
HelloDuty sells a conversation platform with flow designers for USSD, SMS, IVR and WhatsApp. Its pricing page lists Starter at US$199 a month (one country, 10,000 contacts, 10 team members), Pro at US$599 (five countries, unlimited contacts, 20 team members) and Enterprise from US$1,999. A Kenya article on its site says its fee for SMBs starts at KES 9,500 a month and includes the inbox, CRM connectors, analytics and Kenyan support. The two figures may reflect different packages or regions; ask HelloDuty which applies to you.
Best for: organisations that want WhatsApp, USSD, SMS and IVR designed in one tool.
Broadchat
Broadchat is a white-label platform on the official Cloud API, sold through partners such as bulk-SMS companies, hosting providers and agencies, who set their own plan prices and messaging rates. A business gets campaigns, a shared inbox, a visual chatbot builder, CRM and Shopify or WooCommerce connections; a partner gets branding, its own domain, KES plans, its own client billing and weekly messaging margin settlement. Partner costs are per client account and quoted on request, so there is no public KES price to show here.
Where Broadchat is weaker: no public end-customer price list; no built-in M-Pesa, so partners collect by M-Pesa outside the panel and businesses send payment links from their own provider; no Kiswahili panel translation yet; no SMS or USSD, so a business that needs those keeps its SMS provider; and support comes from your partner, not a Kenyan office of Broadchat. If one of those matters most, a provider above may suit you better.
Best for: Kenyan companies that want to sell WhatsApp under their own brand, and the businesses they serve. See the white-label WhatsApp API for Kenya.
How to choose
- Price a real month. Count your utility, marketing and service messages, price them at Meta's Kenyan rates, then add each provider's setup, monthly fee and markup. Ask each one for its per-category price next to Meta's.
- Spread the setup fee. A KES 15,000 setup on a one-year plan adds KES 1,250 a month; on a three-month pilot it adds KES 5,000.
- Check plan caps. Monthly campaign and message caps, contact limits and seat limits decide which plan you really need.
- Ask whose Meta account it is. Your WhatsApp account should sit in your own Meta business portfolio, so you can move provider later without losing your number or templates.
- Ask how you pay. M-Pesa, card or bank transfer; KES or USD; VAT included or added.
Whatever you pick, it should connect your number through Meta's Embedded Signup on the Cloud API. A service that asks you to scan a WhatsApp Web QR code is not the official API. The basics are on WhatsApp Business API in Kenya.
Other editions of this page
Sources
- Celcom Africa pricing (WhatsApp Business API starting rates for Kenya) — Celcom Africa, checked 1 November 2026
- MSpace WhatsApp Business API — MSpace, checked 1 November 2026
- Africa's Talking WhatsApp API (pricing) — Africa's Talking, checked 1 November 2026
- HelloDuty pricing — HelloDuty, checked 1 November 2026
- How WhatsApp is transforming business communication in Kenya (HelloDuty fee for SMBs) — HelloDuty, checked 1 November 2026
- Pricing on the WhatsApp Business Platform — Meta for Developers, checked 1 November 2026
Broadchat team · Product and partner success team
The people who build and support Broadchat, the white-label WhatsApp Business API platform. We write from what we see while onboarding partners and their clients on the official WhatsApp Cloud API, and we check every article against Meta's current documentation.
Last updated:
Frequently asked questions
Which WhatsApp API provider in Kenya is cheapest?
It depends on your volume. Of the published fees we found on 1 Nov 2026, MSpace had the lowest monthly plan (KES 5,000 plus VAT) and Africa's Talking the lowest setup and monthly maintenance in USD. Per-message prices differ by provider, so price your own month at Meta's rates plus each provider's fees before you decide.
Do I have to pay a setup fee?
Several Kenyan providers charge one: Celcom Africa lists KES 15,000 per number, MSpace KES 8,000 plus VAT and Africa's Talking US$85 on their sites as of 1 Nov 2026. Meta itself charges nothing to connect a number; it charges per delivered template.
Can I switch providers without losing my number?
Usually yes, if the WhatsApp account sits in your own Meta business portfolio: the new provider is given access to it, and approved templates and the display name stay with the account. If a provider created the account in its own portfolio, ask how it hands it over before you sign.
Are these providers all on the official WhatsApp API?
All five describe a WhatsApp Business API service connected to Meta's platform on their own sites. A tool that works by scanning a WhatsApp Web QR code is not the official API and risks a ban.