Compare · WhatsApp
Meta Business Agent or a custom WhatsApp agent, for a UAE business.
Meta Business Agent is Meta’s own AI agent for WhatsApp, launched on 1 July 2026 and billed per token. It suits a business in a supported sector that needs answers from its own information inside the customer service window. A custom agent fits when you are in a sector Meta excludes, such as health, or need tested Arabic, calls as well as chats, or your own systems.
| Question | Meta Business Agent | A custom agent |
|---|---|---|
| Sectors | Meta says all verticals are supported except finance, government and health, and lists alcohol, gambling, over the counter drugs and matrimony services as excluded too. | Any lawful sector, including clinics, with the disclosure and escalation rules your sector needs written into the scope. |
| Where it runs | On a number managed through the WhatsApp Business Platform, for businesses in a country Meta authorises. Meta publishes an eligibility check rather than a list. | On your WhatsApp Business Platform number, and on the phone line and Instagram if you want the same agent there. |
| Who starts the chat | It replies inside the open 24 hour customer service window, so the customer writes first. | Replies the same way, and can send approved templates such as reminders when the rules allow. |
| What it knows and does | Business information, FAQs, websites and files; actions such as booking or confirming a payment through your own APIs and webhooks. | The same, connected to your calendar, CRM and booking software by us, and tested on your real questions before it goes live. |
| Arabic | Meta says it answers in customers’ local languages but lists none, and one Meta partner notes it does not always reply in the customer’s language. | Tested with Gulf Arabic and mixed Arabic and English before launch. |
| Handing over | Control can pass between the agent and your app for set events. A Meta partner notes the agent stops answering a chat once a person takes over. | Hand over and hand back rules you define, with the conversation attached for your team. |
| How you pay | Per token, at one global rate on Meta’s pricing page, billed from 1 August 2026. | A build in a written proposal and a monthly fee for running it, plus Meta’s own message charges. |
Sources
- Meta for Developers. Build an AI agent for your business: knowledge, actions, handover, supported verticals and eligibility. Read on .
- Meta for Developers. Pricing updates for Meta Business Agent, service and utility messages: launch, per token billing, the customer service window. Read on .
- Meta Newsroom. Be there for every customer with Meta Business Agent: what it does and the global expansion. Read on .
- 360dialog documentation. Meta Business Agent known limitations, from a Meta business solution provider: language and handover notes. Read on .
01 · The verdict
Start with Meta’s agent when your case is simple
If you are in a supported sector, your customers write first, and most questions are answered by your website and FAQs, try Meta Business Agent before you pay anyone to build. Meta says getting started is free, with paid subscriptions to come, and the per token charge is on its pricing page.
Choose a custom agent when Meta’s limits are your daily work: a clinic, which Meta excludes; Arabic callers you need answered well; the same agent on the phone; or bookings that must land in your own software.
02 · Test it first
Ask it your ten hardest questions
Whichever you choose, test it with the ten questions your team answers most, in Arabic and in English, and with one angry customer. Check what happens when it does not know, and when a person takes over. That hour tells you more than any comparison table, including this one.
Questions, answered.
Is Meta Business Agent available in the UAE?
Meta says the business must be based in a country authorised for Meta Business Agent and points to an eligibility check instead of publishing a list. Run that check on your own number before you plan around it.
Can a clinic in Dubai use Meta Business Agent?
Not according to Meta’s current documentation, which lists health among the verticals it does not support. A clinic that wants an AI agent on WhatsApp needs a custom build within its own medical advertising and privacy rules.
Does Meta Business Agent speak Arabic?
Meta says it answers in customers’ local languages but does not list them, and one Meta partner notes it does not always reply in the customer’s language. Test it in Arabic with your own questions.
Do I still pay Meta’s message charges with a custom agent?
Yes. A custom agent runs on the WhatsApp Business Platform, so Meta’s per message charges apply as they do to any business. Our WhatsApp pricing guide explains them and estimates your monthly bill.
Start with a brief.
Tell us what you want to build or fix. We reply within one working day.