What is the difference between new messaging contacts and conversations started?
New messaging contacts counts only accounts messaging your business for the very first time. Messaging conversations started also counts accounts that message again after at least 7 days of inactivity, and Meta attributes it to your ads. For WhatsApp, Meta says both include only conversations that started from clicks on your ad.
Ads Manager has several messaging columns that sound alike but count different people. The split that matters is new versus returning. One family of metrics only counts people who have never messaged you before; another also counts existing contacts who come back after a quiet spell. Pick the wrong one and you can mistake repeat customers for growth, or the other way round.
What does each messaging metric count?
| Metric | Who it counts | Notes from Meta |
|---|---|---|
| Messaging conversations started | Accounts messaging you for the first time, or after at least 7 days of inactivity | Attributed to your ads; in development; excludes ads delivered to and from Europe and Japan |
| New messaging contacts | Accounts messaging you for the first time only | Excludes accounts that messaged you in any previous time period |
| Unique new messaging connections | Accounts messaging you for the first time only | Same definition as new messaging contacts on Meta’s page |
| New messaging connections | New two-way messaging connections that began in Messenger | Estimated and in development; for ads, only new connections inside the attribution window |
For WhatsApp, Meta says conversations started, new messaging contacts and unique new messaging connections only include conversations started from clicks on your ad.
How do the two treat a returning customer?
A customer who bought from you a month ago and messages again after tapping your ad counts as a conversation started, since more than 7 days have passed. The same person does not count as a new messaging contact, because they have messaged you before.
What does new messaging connections include?
Meta’s definition is Messenger-specific. It counts new two-way connections when people:
- clicked your ad in Messenger,
- clicked a button in your ad on Facebook to send your business a message,
- clicked Send message on your Page, or
- used Messenger to send your business a message.
For connections from ads, Meta counts only new connections added within the attribution window and leaves out anyone who messaged your business in the past.
Which one should you watch?
- Reaching new customers: new messaging contacts, because it ignores everyone already in your inbox.
- Total chat volume from ads: messaging conversations started, which includes people coming back after a week or more.
- Results by app: the Messaging outcome destination breakdown (Breakdown, then Action, then Messaging outcome destination), which Meta says shows your campaign’s metrics for each messaging destination when your ad uses several chat apps.
FAQ
Can new messaging contacts be higher than conversations started?
Meta’s pages do not say. Its conversations started definition counts messages attributed to your ads, while its new messaging contacts page does not use that wording, so the two columns may not cover the same chats. Check that both use the same date range and ads, and note that Meta marks conversations started as in development.
Why do my WhatsApp chats look lower in Ads Manager than in my app?
Meta counts WhatsApp chats in these metrics only when they started from a click on your ad. People who message your WhatsApp number from your website, a QR code or an old conversation are in your inbox but are not attributed to your ads in these columns.
Are these metrics available everywhere?
No. Meta says messaging conversations started does not include conversations from ads delivered to and from Europe and Japan, and its click-to-message help pages say certain messaging-related metrics are unavailable for those regions, and for WhatsApp also South Korea.
Sources
- New messaging contacts (Meta, checked 2 Oct 2026)
- Unique new messaging connections (Meta, checked 2 Oct 2026)
- New messaging connections (Meta, checked 2 Oct 2026)
- Messaging conversations started (Meta, checked 2 Oct 2026)
- Create an ad that clicks to multiple message destinations (Meta, checked 2 Oct 2026)
- Create ads that click to WhatsApp in Ads Manager (Meta, checked 2 Oct 2026)
Drafted with AI and checked claim by claim against the pages linked under Sources. Found a mistake? Tell us via the corrections policy.