DM templates · Facebook
Set up a Messenger auto reply for your Page
To auto-reply on Messenger, open Meta Business Suite, go to Inbox and then Automations, and switch on an instant reply or an away message for your Facebook Page. Below are 11 templates for those and for the questions Pages answer every day, plus what Meta lets a Page send, and when.
Updated 6 October 2026 · 11 templates
11 messages to copy
Tap a card to copy the message. Swap anything in braces, like {name}, for your own words before you send it.
Instant reply
Hello, and thanks for contacting us on Messenger. You're getting an automatic reply while we read your message. Someone from the team will be with you within {time}.
It goes out as soon as someone writes, so promise a time you can keep. “Within 2 hours” that you meet beats “right away” that you don't.
Instant reply for a café or restaurant
Thanks for your message, this is our automatic reply! Booking a table? Tell us the day, the time and how many of you there are. For this week's menu, just send the word MENU.
Only mention a keyword like MENU once a reply for it is set up, or people will send it and hear nothing.
Messenger greeting
Hi! Ask us about orders, bookings or opening hours. We answer every message here.
People see the greeting before they write, so use it to tell them what they can ask. It can't answer anything yet.
Away message for evenings and weekends
Thanks for getting in touch! You've reached us outside opening hours, so this answer is automatic. We open again at {time}, and your message will be waiting for us.
Set your business hours first, so it only goes out while you're really closed and not in the middle of a busy afternoon.
Away message for a holiday
This automatic reply is to let you know we're on a short break until {time}. Orders placed in the meantime will go out when we return. Thank you for your patience!
Messages from the first day will be days old when you're back. A person can still reply to them manually within 7 days using Meta's human agent tag; automated replies stop after 24 hours.
FAQ answer: hours and location
We're open {time}. Here's the map with directions: {link}. See you soon!
Keep the hours in the text itself, so they can be read without opening the map.
FAQ answer: delivery
Yes, we deliver! Most orders arrive within {time}. You can check whether we cover your area, and what it costs, here: {link}.
Put the yes or no in the first words. That's the part they asked about.
First message after a Page comment
Hi, thanks for commenting on our post! This is an automatic message from our Page. Would you like the details here in Messenger? Answer YES and they'll be with you in a moment.
A Page gets one private reply per comment, and the chat only continues once the person answers, so end on a question that's easy to say yes to.
Booking request
We'd love to see you! Which day works best for you? Tell us and we'll send the free times for that day.
Asking for the day first keeps the next message short. A list of 20 slots is hard to read in a chat bubble.
Where is my order?
Sorry you're still waiting! Send us the name or email address the order was placed under and we'll check where it is right now.
A name or an email is usually enough to find an order. Answer in this same thread, so the whole story stays in one place.
Passing it to a person
Good question, and one a person should answer properly. I've passed your message to the team, and someone will reply here by {time}.
Use it when an automatic answer would only be a guess, such as refunds, complaints or custom orders.
Set it up in DMFast
Message HOURS, get times and directions
A message to your Page opens the 24-hour window straight away, so the answer and the card go out together, with no YES step. Keywords match whole words, so “what are your hours?” works as well as a bare HOURS.
Pick direct messages
Connect your Facebook Page and add an auto-reply for Messenger. It answers messages, not comments.
Set the word: HOURS
Any message with the word HOURS in it gets this answer, in capitals or not.
Paste the message
Add the message shown here and the link card that goes with it.
Free plan, no card. Instagram professional accounts and Facebook Pages.
Rules to know
- A Page has 24 hours after someone's last message to reply through the Messenger Platform, and messages inside that window may include promotions.
- Past the 24 hours, Meta's human agent tag allows manual replies from a real person until 7 days have passed. It doesn't cover automated messages.
- A comment on a Page post, a reply to a comment or a post a visitor leaves on the Page can get one private reply in Messenger, sent within 7 days of when it was made.
- Once that private reply is sent, the conversation can only carry on if the person answers, and then inside the 24-hour window.
- Automated chat experiences must tell people they are dealing with an automated service.
- No official tool can message all the people who like or follow a Page. Replies are only for people who wrote to it or commented.
Sources
What's built into Facebook, and what needs an app
Meta's own Messenger tools for Pages are in Meta Business Suite: open Inbox, then Automations. They're free and need no app. These are the four most Pages use.
| Tool | When people see it | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Greeting | In a new chat, before they've sent anything | Saying what people can ask you |
| Instant reply | Right after they send a message | Thanks, plus when a person will answer |
| Away message | When they write while the Page is set to away, or outside the hours you've set | Saying when you'll be back |
| FAQs | As questions they can tap, each with a saved answer | The questions you answer every day |
Apps built on Meta's official API add flows on top of these. In DMFast, for example, a comment on a Page post can start a Messenger conversation, a message containing HOURS can get an answer with a map card, an email address can be collected before a freebie goes out, and open questions can get AI answers written only from the business info you provide.
How to write an instant reply people read
- Say it's automatic in the first line. Meta requires automated chats to disclose it, and people are more patient with a bot that's honest about being one.
- Give a reply time you can keep. If the team answers within two hours on weekdays, say exactly that.
- End with a question about what they need, so their next message gives you something to work with.
- Don't say hello twice. If they've just seen your greeting, the instant reply should move things on rather than repeat it.
- Keep it to two or three short sentences. Long replies turn into a wall of text on a phone screen.
Replying to comments on your Page in Messenger
When someone comments on a post, Meta lets your Page send them one private message in Messenger, up to 7 days after the comment. The same goes for replies to comments and for posts visitors leave on your Page. The thread only carries on if they answer, so the first message should ask for that answer.
In DMFast this is a comment trigger. Someone comments a word such as MENU, a short public reply appears under their comment, and a plain-text message asks whether they want the details. Once they answer, the window is open and DMFast sends the card with your link. DMFast's follower check works only on Instagram, so “follow to unlock” flows aren't available for Pages.
When the 24 hours run out
Say someone writes on Friday evening and your team is back on Monday morning. That's outside the 24-hour window, so no automated reply or promotion can go out through the Messenger Platform. Meta's human agent tag still gives a person on your team 7 days to reply manually, which covers a weekend or a short closure.
Tip: If evening messages are common, an away message with a real reopening time stops people from sending the same question three times.
Questions people ask
Where do I turn on auto replies for my Facebook Page?
In Meta Business Suite. Open Inbox, then Automations, and pick the one you want: instant reply, away message or FAQs. Write the message, choose when it should run and save it. No extra app is needed for these.
What's the difference between an instant reply and an away message?
An instant reply answers people as soon as they message your Page. An away message only goes out when the Page is set to away or someone writes outside the hours you've set, so it should always say when you'll be back.
Can my Page message people who never messaged it?
No. A Page can answer people who wrote to it and send one private reply to someone who commented. Liking or following the Page isn't enough to open a conversation.
Does an automatic reply have to say it's automatic?
Yes. Meta's Messenger Platform and IG Messaging API policy says automated chat experiences must disclose that the person is interacting with an automated service. A short line like “This is an automatic reply” covers it.
Do these templates work on Instagram too?
The wording does, and the 24-hour rule is the same on both apps. In DMFast, Story reply triggers and the follower check are Instagram-only, so Facebook Page flows start from a comment or a message.
Related templates
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