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Elily vs Meta Business Agent

Meta launched its Business Agent globally on 3 June 2026. It is built into WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger, needs no third-party software, and answers customer questions, qualifies enquiries and routes conversations to a person.

If you want your WhatsApp answered and you are not running a diary, Meta's own agent is the obvious starting point, and we would rather say that than pretend a first-party feature does not exist.

Elily is narrower on purpose. She is built for businesses whose revenue is a calendar: per-service durations, specific staff, notice periods, reschedules, reminders and no-show follow-ups. That is the difference between answering a client and filling a chair.

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SIDE BY SIDE

Elily vs Meta Business Agent, dimension by dimension

What you are comparing	Meta Business Agent	Elily
What it is built for	Answering customers, recommending products and qualifying enquiries across WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger.	One job: appointment businesses. Answering the questions clients repeat, then booking the right slot with the right person.
Setup	Native to WhatsApp. Nothing to install — see Meta's documentation for how to enable it.	Runs on your own number through the WhatsApp Business Platform. Send your website link and she reads your services, prices and hours.
Booking rules	Meta describes appointment booking and calendar access; the depth of rules it supports is not documented publicly. Check Meta for current capability.	Per-service durations, processing and finishing time, per-person availability, buffers, breaks, split shifts and notice periods. No double bookings, even when two clients message at the same second.
Reminders and no-shows	See Meta's documentation for what outbound messaging the agent supports.	Appointment reminders and no-show follow-ups are available on Pro, with Meta's message fees passed through at zero markup.
Owner control	Escalation to a human at a threshold you configure — see Meta for the detail.	She stops and hands the conversation to a human with a one-line summary. You reply from your own WhatsApp. Your team can also require approval for selected answer categories before an answer goes out.
Language fit	See Meta for the languages the agent supports in your market.	She replies in your client's language. Bookings and your own controls stay in English.
Price	Meta has said pricing moves to usage-based billing, and published guides disagree on the current position for smaller businesses. Check Meta's own terms.	Plans start at $0, with a known monthly allowance and no per-conversation billing; $49/month on Pro, the plan this comparison assumes. Compare Free, Lite and Pro

Meta Business Agent is described here from Meta's own announcements and public guides, checked 9 August 2026. Meta has moved quickly on this product and published sources disagree on its calendar support and on pricing for smaller businesses — check Meta's own pages for current capabilities and terms before deciding. Visit Meta Business Agent

AN HONEST SPLIT

Which one should you actually pick?

Choose Meta's agent if

You want your messages answered without adding software.

You sell products or take enquiries rather than running a diary.
You want one agent across WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger.
Basic question-answering and routing to a person is the outcome you need.
You would rather use a first-party feature than trust a third party with your channel.

Choose Elily if

Your revenue is a calendar, not a catalogue.

Bookings depend on which staff member, how long the service takes and how much notice you need.
No-shows cost you money and you want reminders and follow-ups that reduce them.
You want to approve what gets said about clinical, pricing or policy questions before it is sent.
You want a plan price you can predict, including a free tier that does not expire.

BEFORE YOU DECIDE

Questions we actually get asked

Do I need Elily if WhatsApp already has Meta's AI?

If you want questions answered and conversations routed to a person, Meta's agent may be enough on its own. Elily is worth it when the booking itself is the hard part — specific staff, service durations, notice periods, reschedules, reminders and no-show follow-ups.

Can Meta's Business Agent book into my calendar?

Meta describes appointment booking and calendar access as part of the agent. Published guides disagree on how complete this is and which calendar providers are supported, so check Meta's own documentation for the current position in your market.

What does Meta's Business Agent cost?

Meta has said pricing moves to usage-based billing, and public sources give conflicting accounts of where that stands for smaller businesses. We will not quote a price we cannot verify — check Meta's own terms. Elily's plans are flat monthly prices with a free tier that does not expire.

Can I use both?

They both answer on WhatsApp, so running both on the same number means deciding which one replies. In practice you pick one for the number that takes your bookings.

Does Elily work on my own WhatsApp number?

Yes. Elily runs on your business's own number through the official WhatsApp Business Platform. Your number, your Meta account, your data — leave at any time and everything stays yours.

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