WhatsApp ordering for restaurants in the USA
Updated October 20, 2026
If your customers already text you on WhatsApp, Menuthere turns those chats into complete orders on your own number. A customer sends "Hi" (or "Hola"), taps Order Now, and orders from your menu in dollars, with your sales tax and an optional tip, paying by card into your own Stripe account or in cash on delivery. Meta bills each order update to a US number at about US$0.0034 (rate card effective October 1, 2026). One US rule shapes everything: Meta does not deliver marketing templates to US phone numbers, so in the US WhatsApp sends order updates, not promotions. Use email for offers.
In short
- Your own number on the official WhatsApp Business Platform; you can keep the WhatsApp Business app on it. Meta bills your account directly, with no Menuthere markup.
- Cards through your own Stripe account (Lite and up) at Stripe's standard 2.9% + 30¢. No commission from Menuthere.
- "Sales tax" on the bill and optional tips at checkout, set up for US stores.
- WhatsApp ordering is part of Pro, US$39 a month, along with your own riders and live tracking.
- No SMS, and no WhatsApp promotions to US numbers.
Who uses WhatsApp in the US?
| Group | Use WhatsApp (2026) |
|---|---|
| All US adults | 33% |
| Hispanic adults | 56% |
| Asian adults (English speakers) | 51% |
| Black adults | 40% |
| Urban adults | 44% |
| Rural adults | 22% |
Pew Research Center, social media fact sheet, published October 19, 2026 (survey of 5,511 adults, January 30 to June 18, 2026).
Two in three Americans don't use WhatsApp, so it is not a channel for every US restaurant. It is a strong one where your customers already live on it: Mexican and Central American restaurants and taquerías, Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi restaurants, Brazilian bakeries and churrascarias, and Middle Eastern and halal spots, especially in cities. Pew doesn't measure restaurant customers; your own chats tell you how many of yours are on WhatsApp.
What Meta charges for messages to US numbers
The United States is in Meta's North America pricing region, with Canada.
| Category | Example | Price per message (USD) | Delivered to US numbers? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing | Weekend special, broadcast, "we miss you" | US$0.025 | No. Meta does not currently deliver marketing templates to US phone numbers |
| Utility | "Your order is on the way", with Track Order | US$0.0034 | Yes |
| Service | Your reply when the customer wrote first | US$0.0034 after the first 1,000 a month per number, which are free | Yes |
Meta's USD rate card effective October 1, 2026, read October 20, 2026.
What this rules out in the US: WhatsApp broadcasts, comeback messages to lapsed customers and abandoned-cart reminders, because Meta classes them as marketing. What still works: the "Hi" → Order Now reply, order updates, the Track Order button and the Reorder button. See can I send WhatsApp offers to US numbers.
Sales tax, tips and payment at checkout
Sales tax. On a US store, the tax line on the checkout and bill reads Sales tax. You set your rate (state plus local, for your address), and you can give a dish its own rate, for example 0% for an item your state doesn't tax. You can also rename the line, up to 20 characters. Rates and rules by state: sales tax on restaurant food.
Tips. Switch on Let customers add a tip and the customer sees No tip, your percentages (10, 15 and 20 to start, up to four) and Custom. No tip is selected until they choose: nothing is added by default. A percentage tip is worked out on the food after discounts, tips are never taxed, and the tip shows as its own line on the bill and in the WhatsApp order message. Tips appear on the standard checkout. See tipping on takeout orders.
Paying.
| Method | Through | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Credit and debit cards | Your own Stripe account (Lite and up) | Stripe's standard 2.9% + 30¢ per domestic card |
| Apple Pay, Google Pay | Stripe, when switched on in your Stripe account | Card pricing; may not show inside WhatsApp's in-app browser |
| Cash on delivery or at pickup | Your rider or counter | No fee; on every plan |
Menuthere doesn't use payments inside the WhatsApp chat; Meta's in-chat payments aren't offered in the US. Thinking of a card surcharge? Check surcharge laws by state first.
DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub
From our commission pages, read October 20, 2026:
| App | Commission on delivery orders | Pickup |
|---|---|---|
| DoorDash | 15% Basic, 25% Plus, 30% Premier | 6% |
| Uber Eats | 20% Lite, 25% Plus, 30% Premium | 7% |
| Grubhub | Tiered by plan; see the page | Marketing commission only |
| Your WhatsApp with Menuthere | 0% | 0% |
The apps bring you new customers. WhatsApp ordering is for the regulars who already have your number.
Worked example: a Houston taquería, 400 WhatsApp orders a month
Assume 400 delivery orders a month, US$32 of food each (US$12,800), Houston's 8.25% combined sales tax, all paid by card, three WhatsApp updates per order (accepted, dispatched with tracking, completed), and your own riders.
| Item | Working | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| "Hola" / "Hi" replies (service) | 400, inside the 1,000 free | US$0 |
| Order updates (utility) | 400 × 3 = 1,200 × US$0.0034 | US$4.08 |
| Stripe card fees | Each order US$34.64 with tax: 2.9% + 30¢ = US$1.30 × 400 | US$521.82 |
| Menuthere Pro | Flat | US$39 |
| Total | US$564.90 |
The same US$12,800 on DoorDash Plus costs US$3,200 in commission (25%; DoorDash says processing is included). Your riders' pay isn't in either line: on WhatsApp you deliver and charge your own delivery fee. Sales tax isn't a cost; you collect it for the state either way.
What a US customer sees, start to finish
- Sends "Hola" to your number and gets Order Now, signed in with their WhatsApp number (the link lasts 23 hours).
- Orders on your store: dishes, address, Sales tax line, optional tip, card or cash.
- Gets "Order Received!" with the bill, then "Order Accepted!".
- Gets "Order Dispatched!" with the rider's name and Track Order, which opens a live map with a Call button. No app.
- Gets "Order Completed!" with Reorder.
Every message is editable, in Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Hindi or any other language. Full detail: WhatsApp order tracking and from "Hi" to delivered.
Set it up in the US
- Create your free ordering page, set US dollars and add your menu from a photo or PDF. Give dishes a Secondary Name in Spanish or another language (every plan); the menu language button that translates the whole menu starts on Lite.
- Turn on tax, enter your combined rate, and switch on tips if you want them.
- Connect Stripe.
- Start Pro (7-day trial; a card is needed to start, nothing is charged until it ends) and connect your number with Facebook sign-in.
- Add a First message or keyword trigger so "Hola" gets Order Now as well as "Hi", and switch on only the order updates you want.
- Put a "Hi, I'd like to order" link from the WhatsApp link generator on your Google profile, bags and flyers.
If most of your customers don't use WhatsApp, read WhatsApp vs SMS for restaurants first: Menuthere doesn't send SMS. For ordering without WhatsApp, see online ordering in the USA; for delivery with your own drivers, see the rider app and in-house delivery.
FAQs
Can US restaurants take orders on WhatsApp?
Yes. On Menuthere Pro (US$39 a month) your own WhatsApp number answers Hi with an Order Now link, the customer orders on your store, and WhatsApp sends the order updates. Meta bills each update to a US number at about US$0.0034.
Can I send WhatsApp promotions to customers in the US?
No. Meta does not currently deliver marketing template messages to US phone numbers. In the US, WhatsApp sends order updates, not promotions; use email for offers.
How much does a WhatsApp order update cost in the US?
About US$0.0034 per utility message on Meta's USD rate card effective October 1, 2026. Three updates per order cost about one cent. Replies to customers who wrote first are service messages, and the first 1,000 a month per number are free.
Does Menuthere add sales tax and tips for US orders?
Yes. A US store's tax line reads Sales tax, at the rate you set, and a dish can have its own rate. Tips are optional: the customer picks No tip, one of your percentages or a custom amount, and tips are never taxed.
How do US customers pay for WhatsApp orders?
By card, Apple Pay or Google Pay through your own Stripe account at Stripe's standard 2.9% + 30¢, or in cash on delivery or at pickup. Menuthere takes no commission and doesn't use in-chat payments.
Does Menuthere send SMS order updates in the US?
No. Menuthere sends order updates on WhatsApp only. Every customer also gets a free live order page they can open from the order confirmation, whether or not they use WhatsApp.
Sources (6)
- Pew Research Center, Social Media Fact Sheet (published Oct 19, 2026; survey Jan 30–Jun 18, 2026, n = 5,511): https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/social-media/ (accessed 20 Oct 2026)
- Meta for Developers, Pricing on the WhatsApp Business Platform (North America region incl. US; USD rate card effective October 1, 2026; 1,000 free service messages per number per month): https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/pricing (accessed 20 Oct 2026)
- Meta for Developers, Marketing template per-user limits (US numbers not delivered): https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/templates/marketing-templates/per-user-limits (accessed 20 Oct 2026)
- Meta for Developers, Supported template languages (Spanish
es,es_MX; noes_US;pt_BR,ar,hi,ur,bn,pa): https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/templates/supported-languages (accessed 20 Oct 2026) - Stripe, pricing (US standard 2.9% + 30¢ per successful domestic card charge): https://stripe.com/pricing (accessed 20 Oct 2026)
- Texas Comptroller, Sales and Use Tax (6.25% state + up to 2% local, 8.25% maximum combined): https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/sales/ (accessed 20 Oct 2026)