VOICE calls are one of WhatsApp’s best features – but are they free?
Here’s a quick guide to how WhatsApp voice calls work, and whether they’ll cost you.
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Are WhatsApp calls free?
Voice calls on Meta-owned WhatsApp work like regular phone calls – but over the internet.
That means you don’t have to pay, and they won’t use up your phone contract “minutes” allowance.
All they use up is data, so you need to be mindful of that.
It’s possible that you might incur charges if you go over your mobile data allowance.
But if you have WiFi or mobile data on an unlimited basis, you’ll be totally fine.
“WhatsApp uses your phone’s cellular connection or Wi-Fi network to send and receive messages and calls to your family and friends,” WhatsApp explained.
“As long as you haven’t exceeded your mobile data allowance or you’re connected to a free Wi-Fi network, your mobile provider shouldn’t charge you for messaging or calling over WhatsApp.
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“If your phone is roaming, data charges might apply.”
How much data does a WhatsApp call use?
Data usage on a WhatsApp voice call can vary.
And as such, online estimates for WhatsApp voice calls vary.
A common answer is that you’ll use somewhere between 500 kilobits and 740 kilobits per minute on a voice call.
If you assume an even greater 800 kilobits per minute, you’ll still use very little data overall.
Those 800 kilobits translate to 100 kilobytes, and there are 1,000 kilobytes in one megabyte.
So that means you can speak for about 10 minutes on one megabyte of data.
And there are 1,000 megabytes in a gigabyte.
That should help you work out how long you can make voice calls in the app for.
Voice calls use very little data, so you shouldn’t worry too much unless you have an extremely restrictive plan.
Are international calls free on WhatsApp?
A regular international phone call almost always incurs charges.
But a WhatsApp voice call works exactly the same, no matter where you’re calling.
So you’ll be able to voice call anyone else with a WhatsApp account without a fee.
As with normal WhatsApp voice calls on an iPhone or Android, you only need to be mindful of internet costs if you use too much data.
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This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk
