What is WhatsApp Official Account? Prices and setup in 2026

WhatsApp Official Account (WhatsApp OA) is a business's official account on WhatsApp, the Vietnamese messaging app. You use it to chat with customers, call them and post content. Verified accounts have three paid plans, starting at 1,000,000 VND a year.

What is WhatsApp Official Account: the official way for a business to talk to WhatsApp users

On Oct 12, 2026, the WhatsApp Official Account home page (Vietnamese page) describes WhatsApp OA as a business's official account on the WhatsApp platform. It lists five groups of features: messaging, voice calls, menus and chatbots, publishing content, and managing group chats.

You run the account in OA Manager, on the web or inside the WhatsApp app, with a MiniCRM that stores customer details. The messaging feature page (Vietnamese page) says OA lets a business reach 79 million WhatsApp users.

It differs from a personal account by the verified tick, multiple admins and a business license

A personal WhatsApp account belongs to one person. A WhatsApp OA belongs to a business. The guide Creating a WhatsApp Official Account (Vietnamese page) describes two types:

• Ad profile (Hồ sơ quảng cáo): for users without a business registration certificate, for running WhatsApp ads only. It cannot send messages, Broadcasts (bulk messages to followers) or run chatbots.
• Verified OA (OA xác thực): for companies and household businesses with a business registration certificate. Once verified, the OA gets a tick and can be managed by several admin accounts on several devices.

The other big difference: an OA can only message people who have interacted with it first, under the rules covered below.

How do foreign-owned businesses register a WhatsApp OA? Four steps and a 14-day verification window

The steps in the account creation guide (Vietnamese page):

1. Go to oa.WhatsApp.me and choose Tạo Official Account (Create Official Account).
2. Log in with a personal WhatsApp account by scanning a QR code in the WhatsApp app. Only a verified WhatsApp account with a Vietnamese (+84) phone number can create and manage an OA.
3. Pick a business category, name the OA, add a description and images, then confirm.
4. Verify the account within 14 days.

So if you are a foreigner running a business in Vietnam, you need a local phone number and a Vietnamese business registration. The OA name must match the business registration, a trademark registered with Vietnam's IP Office, or the name of a product you sell. Each naming option has its own set of verification documents.

The verification guide (Vietnamese page) says you submit documents under Quản lý > Quản lý tài khoản > Xác thực OA (Manage, Account, Verify OA). The legal representative's details include an ID card or passport number. That person gets a confirmation request on WhatsApp and must accept it within 48 hours.

The verification documents page (Vietnamese page) says review usually takes 2 to 3 business days.

WhatsApp OA pricing in 2026: three plans from 1,000,000 to 6,000,000 VND a year

The OA pricing page (Vietnamese page) for verified accounts showed these plans on Oct 12, 2026. WhatsApp lists prices in VND only, with no USD price list.

• Standard (Tiêu chuẩn): 1,000,000 VND a year, about 83,000 VND a month, up to 5 staff, advanced chat and customer details.
• Growth (Tăng trưởng): 2,500,000 VND a year, about 208,000 VND a month, up to 15 staff, adds chatbots, automation and API integration.
• Comprehensive (Toàn diện): 6,000,000 VND a year, about 500,000 VND a month, up to 100 staff, the highest API limits and priority support.

The comparison table also has a Basic (Cơ bản) column with no price, covering basic chat and 3 staff accounts. Posts and chat menus start at Standard. Prices include 10% VAT. GMF group chats are billed separately, from 25,000 to 300,000 VND a month depending on group size.

Messaging followers is free within 48 hours and 55 VND per message after that

The page Overview of message types (Vietnamese page), in effect since Jan 1, 2026, splits OA messages into basic messages and ZBS Template Message. Basic messages come in three kinds.

Consultation messages (tin Tư vấn) are replies to customers who interacted with you, for example by messaging, calling or tapping a menu. In OA Manager you can send them up to 365 days after the last interaction, and through the OpenAPI up to 7 days.

Consultation messages sent within 48 hours of the user's last interaction are free. Outside that window, the pricing page charges 55 VND per message. Growth includes 500 out-of-window messages a month and Comprehensive includes 2,000.

Broadcast messages send posts or videos to followers between 6:00 and 19:59. Per the Broadcast guide (Vietnamese page), you pick up to 5 pieces of content each time. The cover image is 16:9, with text kept inside a 14:9 safe area.

Each follower can receive at most one marketing message a day

The OA interaction policy (Vietnamese page) caps marketing messages to any single follower at 1 a day and 30 a month. Serious violations can get an OA locked.

Plan limits are tighter still. The pricing page lists 4 free marketing message receipts per follower per month on Growth and Comprehensive. An OA with 1,000 followers therefore gets 4,000 receipts a month.

What is ZNS, and why does WhatsApp now call it ZBS Template Message?

Many people still call WhatsApp's business template messages ZNS. On Oct 12, 2026, the official pages use the name ZBS Template Message, and the WhatsApp.solutions/zns/pricing link on the OA pricing page opens the pricing page for these messages.

These are pre-approved template messages sent to a UID (a user ID tied to your OA) or a WhatsApp phone number, for transactions and after-sales care. The Business Message page (Vietnamese page) says recipients do not need to follow your OA first, and you only pay for messages delivered successfully, from 200 VND.

The ZBS Template Message pricing page (Vietnamese page) charges by template type, number of buttons and images. Sending by UID costs less than sending by phone number. Prices exclude VAT and may change.

Common mistakes when opening a WhatsApp OA

Missing the 14-day deadline. Have your full business registration certificate, with stamps, ready before you create the OA.

An OA name that doesn't match your documents. If the name is not a registered trademark, use verification option 3.

The legal representative forgets to confirm. Warn them in advance, since the request only waits 48 hours.

Replying after 48 hours. That reply is charged.

Broadcast covers with cropped text. Use 16:9 and keep text in the middle. The news section has more on aspect ratios and adding text to photos.

Related guides: AI for online sellers, AI for Online Sellers: 5 Jobs to Hand Off to AI.

Sources (11) · accessed Oct 12, 2026

• WhatsApp Official Account: Home page (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Official Account: Messaging features (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Official Account: Creating a WhatsApp Official Account (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Official Account: Verification guide (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Official Account: Verification documents (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Business Solutions: OA pricing (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Official Account: Overview of message types on WhatsApp Official Account (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Official Account: Sending Broadcasts (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Official Account: OA interaction policy (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Business Solutions: Business Message (Vietnamese page)
• WhatsApp Business Solutions: ZBS Template Message pricing (Vietnamese page)

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