Utility template
A template about a transaction the customer already initiated — the cheap category, and free inside an open service window.
Order updates, appointment reminders, payment receipts, delivery alerts. The test is simple: remove any promotional sentence, and ask whether the message still needs to exist. If yes, it is utility.
Two pricing facts make this the category to understand. It is far cheaper than marketing. And a utility template sent while the 24-hour customer service window is still open is not billed at all — so an order update to somebody who messaged you an hour ago is free, and the same message two days later is not.
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Related terms
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Template category
Marketing, utility or authentication — the label Meta assigns each template, which decides what it costs.
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Marketing template
A promotional template — offers, launches, re-engagement, and every festive greeting. The expensive category.
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24-hour window
The 24 hours after a customer messages you, during which you can reply freely, at no cost, with no template.