# Can AI answer WhatsApp calls? How it works in 2026 > How an AI voice agent answers WhatsApp Business calls: Meta's calling rules and prices, what the agent can do on a call, and what it can't. Canonical: https://heykiko.io/blog/ai-answering-whatsapp-calls Last updated: 2026-11-05 WhatsApp guides · by The HeyKiko team · published 5 November 2026 · 7 min read Yes. With Meta's WhatsApp Business Calling API, a business's WhatsApp number can take voice calls, and an AI voice agent can answer them: it listens, replies in a natural voice from your own knowledge, and can book an appointment while the customer is on the line. Calls customers make to you are free; your number needs to be on Meta's Cloud API with calling switched on. ## What Meta's calling allows - Customers can call your business from the call button in your WhatsApp chat, and your business can call customers who have agreed to it. - Your number has to be on the Cloud API, not the WhatsApp Business app, with calling switched on in its settings. - Meta asks for a daily messaging limit of at least 2,000 unique recipients, which comes with business verification. - Calls from customers work wherever the Cloud API does. Calls from a business aren't available in some countries, including the United States, Canada, Egypt, Vietnam and Nigeria. - Calls run over the internet, inside WhatsApp, at no cost to the customer. [Meta: WhatsApp Business Calling API](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/cloud-api/calling) ## What calls cost What Meta charges for WhatsApp Business calls | Call | What Meta charges | | --- | --- | | A customer calls you | Free | | You call a customer | Per 6 seconds, by the customer's country and your monthly volume | | Asking a customer's permission to call | Charged as a normal message | A customer's call also opens the 24-hour customer service window, whether or not you answer, so afterwards you can reply with ordinary messages, not just templates. Calls you make need a payment method on your WhatsApp account. [Meta: calling pricing](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/cloud-api/calling/pricing) An AI voice agent adds its own cost on top: in HeyKiko, each started minute of a call uses AI credits, and calls that are never answered are refunded. ## What an AI voice agent does on a call 1. **Picks up**: With your greeting, in the voice you chose. 2. **Listens and answers**: From the same knowledge as your chat, in short spoken sentences, and the caller can interrupt it like a person. 3. **Acts during the call**: Books an appointment from your open times, or sends the caller details by WhatsApp message while they're still on the line. 4. **Knows when to stop**: When a caller asks for a person, it flags the call for your team to follow up on WhatsApp, and it ends calls that go silent. Every spoken turn is saved in the caller's normal WhatsApp chat, so the call shows up in your inbox, leads and cases like any conversation. ## What to know before you switch it on - There's no live transfer to a person. A caller who asks for someone is flagged for a call-back or a WhatsApp reply. - Calls you make are started by a person on your team, not the AI. Meta revokes a customer's permission after repeated unanswered business calls, so automated dialling is a bad idea anyway. - Only so many calls run at once: your plan sets how many. When they're all busy, the caller hears one short line instead of ringing out. - A number shared with the WhatsApp Business app through coexistence can't take calls on the API: Meta lists voice and video calls among what coexistence doesn't support. See [WhatsApp Business app vs API](https://heykiko.io/blog/whatsapp-business-app-vs-api#both). ## Setting it up in HeyKiko 1. **Connect your WhatsApp number**: Through Meta's sign-up inside HeyKiko. See [how to add an AI agent to WhatsApp Business](https://heykiko.io/blog/how-to-add-an-ai-agent-to-whatsapp-business). 2. **Choose a voice**: Play samples from the voice library and pick one, then set the greeting and speaking pace. 3. **Set calling hours**: Outside them the call button is hidden, so customers message you instead. 4. **Set the limits**: The longest call, and how long a silent call lasts before it ends. 5. **Make a test call**: Call your agent from HeyKiko before customers do. > Calls are on plans with voice calls, which also set how many can run at once. Missed calls and callers who asked for a person appear as call-backs in Inbox › Calls. See [the WhatsApp AI voice agent](https://heykiko.io/channels/whatsapp-ai-voice-agent) for every setting, or start a free 14-day trial. ## Sources Checked on 5 November 2026. We make HeyKiko, which this guide uses as its example; Meta’s rules apply to every tool. - [Meta: WhatsApp Business Calling API](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/cloud-api/calling) - [Meta: calling pricing](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/cloud-api/calling/pricing) ## Questions people ask ### Can AI answer WhatsApp Business calls? Yes. A WhatsApp Business number on Meta's Cloud API can take voice calls, and an AI voice agent can answer them from your own knowledge, book appointments during the call and send details by WhatsApp message. ### Are WhatsApp Business calls free? Calls customers make to your business are free. Calls your business makes are charged by Meta per 6 seconds, by the customer's country. An AI voice agent may charge for its own time on top, as HeyKiko does per started minute. ### What do I need to take WhatsApp calls with AI? A number on the WhatsApp Cloud API with calling switched on, a messaging limit of at least 2,000 unique recipients a day, and an AI voice agent connected to it. ### Can the AI call customers? In HeyKiko, no: calls to customers are started by a person on your team, and only to customers who agreed to take calls from you. ### Can the AI transfer a call to a person? Not live. When a caller asks for a person, the agent flags the call for your team, who follow up by WhatsApp or call back. ### Does a WhatsApp call open the 24-hour window? Yes. According to Meta, a customer's call opens or refreshes the customer service window, whether or not you answer it. ### Does it work with the WhatsApp Business app? Calling with an AI agent needs your number on the Cloud API. A number that's only on the WhatsApp Business app can't use it. ## Related - [WhatsApp AI voice agent](https://heykiko.io/channels/whatsapp-ai-voice-agent) - [How to add an AI agent to WhatsApp Business](https://heykiko.io/blog/how-to-add-an-ai-agent-to-whatsapp-business) - [The WhatsApp 24-hour window, explained](https://heykiko.io/blog/whatsapp-24-hour-window) - [Appointment booking](https://heykiko.io/features/appointment-booking) - [All guides](https://heykiko.io/blog)