How to Charge Stars for Messages (Paid Messages for Private Chats and Groups)

Telegram lets you charge Telegram Stars for messages sent to you, so people outside your contacts pay a small fee per message before it reaches you. For private chats you need Telegram Premium and turn it on in your privacy settings for messages. For groups, an admin with the right permissions turns it on in the group's permissions and sets a price, with admins exempt.

This guide covers both setups step by step, what the sender sees, how the money reaches you, how to choose a price, and when paid messages are the wrong tool. Telegram changes this feature's menus and rules from time to time, so if a menu looks different, use the descriptions here to find the closest match and check Telegram's own help pages for current terms.

What paid messages are

Paid messages put a price on reaching you. When the feature is on, anyone it applies to has to spend a set number of Stars for each message they send. The Stars move from their balance to yours, and Telegram keeps a share.

It solves two different problems, and it helps to know which one you have:

• Too many messages from strangers. A price, even a tiny one, stops most spam and casual "hi" messages, because sending in bulk suddenly costs something.
• Valuable time with no way to charge for it. Creators, consultants and experts get questions that are really requests for free work. A price turns a DM into a paid service.

Where it applies

There are two main places, and they work slightly differently:

• Your private chats. You set one price for messages from people who are not your contacts. Contacts always message you for free.
• A group you own or administer. You set one price for messages from members. Admins and other people you exempt post for free.

Telegram has also introduced direct messages for channels, which let readers write to a channel's admins, and these can carry a Stars price too where the feature is available. If you run a channel, see our guide to turning on direct messages for your channel for that setup.

What paid messages are not

• Not a paywall on content. Readers still see your channel or group for free. If you want to sell content, look at paid media posts or paid channels.
• Not a subscription. Each message is paid separately. Nothing renews.
• Not a guarantee of an answer. Telegram does not oblige you to reply. That is between you and the sender, which is exactly why clear expectations matter later in this guide.

How the money works

Paid messages run on Telegram Stars, Telegram's in-app currency. If you are new to Stars, our guide to Telegram Stars explains what they are and how people buy them.

Your share

Telegram's terms of service for Stars state that users who set a messaging fee receive 85 percent of the Stars paid for each message, at the time of writing. Telegram can change this, so check the Stars terms inside the app or on Telegram's site before you plan around it.

Here is illustrative arithmetic, not a forecast. If you set a price of 10 Stars and 100 messages arrive in a month, senders spend 1,000 Stars and, at an 85 percent share, 850 reach your balance.

When you can withdraw

Telegram's announcement of the feature said Stars earned from paid messages could be withdrawn 21 days after they are earned. Withdrawal rules, minimums and methods change, so read our guide on how to withdraw Telegram Stars and check the current rules in the app.

What a Star is worth

There is no fixed exchange rate you can quote to senders. What people pay for Stars depends on their platform, country and the bundle they buy, and what you receive on withdrawal is set separately. Our guide on what Telegram Stars are worth explains how to find the current figures yourself.

Taxes

Stars you earn are income in many countries. This is general information, not tax advice: keep a record of what you earn and check your local rules or ask a professional. Our guide to taxes for Telegram creators covers the questions to ask.

Before you start

Run through this list before turning anything on:

1. For private chats, check you have Telegram Premium. Telegram's announcement tied charging for private messages to Premium. If you do not have it, the paid option will be missing or locked. Our guide on whether Premium is worth it for channel owners helps you decide.
2. For groups, check your admin rights. You need to be the owner or an admin allowed to change the group's permissions.
3. Update the app. Paid messages are relatively new, and old versions may not show the setting.
4. Clean up your contacts. Contacts message you free. If your address book is full of old numbers, those people bypass the price. If it is missing people you want to hear from, add them first.
5. Decide what senders get for their Stars. A reply within a time frame? Only that you will read it? Write it down before you price anything.
6. Think about who you will lose. Friends of friends, potential clients and journalists may not pay to say hello. Plan another route for them, such as an email address or a free contact form.

How to charge Stars for private messages

Telegram placed this setting in the privacy section, under who can send you messages. Exact labels vary between Android, iPhone and Desktop and change between versions.

Step by step on a phone

1. Open Telegram and go to Settings.
2. Open Privacy and Security.
3. Find the Messages entry, which controls who can message you.
4. Choose the option to charge for messages. Telegram may present it as a paid option beside choices like everybody, or contacts and Premium users.
5. Set the price per message in Stars with the slider or field shown.
6. Read the summary of what senders will see and what share you will receive.
7. Save or go back to apply the change.

On Telegram Desktop

The same setting lives in Telegram Desktop's privacy and security settings, under messages. If you cannot find it on Desktop, set it on your phone; the setting belongs to your account and applies everywhere.

Who still messages you for free

• Your contacts, always.
• People you have exempted. Telegram lets you remove the fee for individual people, for example someone you met at an event who is not in your contacts. Look for an option to remove the fee in the chat with that person or in the setting itself.
• People you already chat with. Do not assume an earlier conversation keeps someone free. If you have ongoing chats with people who are not contacts, add them as contacts or remove the fee for them before you switch the price on, so a working conversation is not suddenly priced.

Testing it

1. Ask a friend who is not in your contacts to open a chat with you.
2. They should see a notice that messaging you costs Stars, with the price.
3. Have them send one message, paying the fee, and confirm it reaches you.
4. Check your Stars balance or transaction history for the incoming payment.

If they can send for free, check whether they are in your contacts, whether you exempted them, and whether your change saved.

How to charge Stars for messages in a group

In groups, the setting sits with the group's permissions. Telegram's announcement described it as an option to charge Stars for messages in the permissions section.

Step by step

1. Open the group and tap its name to open the group info.
2. Open the edit menu, usually the pencil icon or Edit.
3. Go to Permissions.
4. Turn on the option to charge Stars for messages.
5. Set the price per message.
6. Save.

Who posts free in a group

Admins post for free. Telegram also lets you exempt specific members, which is useful for moderators who are not admins, regular expert contributors, or a partner brand. Review this list whenever your team changes.

Tell members before you switch it on

Members who are used to chatting freely will be surprised by a payment prompt. A surprise price feels like a trap even when it is fair. Before enabling it:

1. Post an announcement explaining why the group is moving to paid messages, the price, and the date.
2. Pin it. Our pinned message examples show how to keep such notices short.
3. Update the group description and rules. If you have a rules post, add a line about the fee. See how to write Telegram group rules.
4. Switch it on at the date you announced.

Combining it with other controls

Paid messages work alongside the controls you already have. Slow mode still limits how often someone can post, and anti-spam bots still remove junk. A paid message that breaks your rules can still be deleted. Decide in advance whether you refund in that case and write it into the rules, so moderators act consistently.

What the sender sees

Understanding the other side of the screen helps you set expectations.

1. When they open a chat with you, or open your priced group, Telegram shows that messages cost Stars and how many.
2. When they send, they confirm the payment. Depending on the app version, a regular sender may be able to skip the confirmation for later messages to the same chat.
3. If they do not have enough Stars, Telegram offers to buy more. Our guide on paying with Stars or crypto explains the buying side.
4. Each message is charged separately. Five short messages cost five times one long one.

That last point shapes behaviour. People will write fewer, longer messages. If you prefer that, say so; if you need photos or several files, tell senders to put everything in one message where possible.

Refunds

Telegram lets the person charging refund Stars to a sender, returning the full amount they paid. Use it when:

• Someone paid by mistake, for example messaging the wrong person.
• You cannot help with their question and do not want to keep money for it.
• A group message was removed for a reason that was not the sender's fault.

Write your refund policy down, even if it is one line, and apply it consistently. For the sender's side of refunds in general, see Telegram Stars refunds.

How to choose a price

There is no correct price, and there are no published averages worth copying. Work from what you want the price to do.

If the goal is stopping spam

Use the lowest price that changes behaviour. Spam is a volume business; any cost per message breaks it. A high price here mainly blocks legitimate strangers, which is the opposite of what you want.

If the goal is charging for your time

Work backwards from what an answer is worth to you.

1. Estimate how long a typical reply takes you.
2. Decide what that time is worth to you in the currency you think in.
3. Find the current Stars value from the official sources mentioned above, and convert.
4. Remember that senders often need two or three messages to explain themselves. Price the conversation, not just the first message.

Illustrative example: if you decide a typical question is worth the value of 50 Stars to you, and most people send two messages, a price of 25 Stars per message reaches that target. Adjust once you see how people actually write.

If the goal is a better group

In groups, the price sets the tone. A low price keeps the chat lively while filtering drive-by spam. A higher price turns the group into something closer to a paid Q&A where a few people post carefully. Neither is wrong; choose deliberately and say which one you are building.

Review after a few weeks

Look at what actually happened:

• Did the spam stop? If not, raise the price slightly.
• Did real people stop writing? If messages you wanted dried up, lower it or exempt those people.
• Are you replying as promised? If not, the price is too low for the effort, or you need fewer paid messages.

Realistic scenarios

These are examples to show how the setting is used, not data about real accounts.

Example: an author drowning in DMs

An author with a public username receives dozens of messages a day, mostly greetings and requests for free copies. She turns on a low price for private messages and adds her editor, agent and close readers as contacts. Greetings stop. The messages that remain are from people who really want to reach her, and she answers them in a weekly batch, as her profile bio explains.

Example: a consultant selling short answers

A tax consultant offers "one question, one answer" through private messages at a higher price. His bio says he answers within two working days and refunds anything he cannot answer. Clients he already works with are contacts and message free. He notes his Stars earnings for his accountant.

Example: a group that went quiet

A hobby group turned on a high price overnight to stop spam. Spam stopped, but so did the conversation. The admins lowered the price, exempted long-standing members, and pinned an apology explaining the change. Activity recovered over the following weeks.

A price, a restriction, or nothing?

Charging is one of several ways to control who reaches you, and the right choice depends on whether you want strangers to be able to write at all.

Leave messages open to everybody

Best when you rely on strangers finding you: a journalist taking tips, a seller answering buyers, a channel admin who wants feedback. The cost is spam, which you handle with blocking and reporting. Our guide on how to report on Telegram covers that side.

Limit messages to contacts

Telegram's privacy settings can restrict new private chats so that strangers cannot start one at all, with Premium users sometimes allowed through depending on the option you choose. This is the quietest option and costs senders nothing, but it also closes the door completely. Nobody new can reach you, however important their message.

Charge strangers

The middle path: the door stays open, but walking through it costs something. It suits people who do want to hear from strangers, just fewer of them and more seriously. It also turns some of your inbound attention into income, which neither of the other options does.

How to decide

Ask yourself one question: "If a stranger had something important to tell me, would I want them to be able to?" If no, restrict to contacts. If yes, but you are overwhelmed, charge. If yes, and the volume is manageable, leave it open and block the occasional spammer. You can change your mind at any time, and the change applies to new messages from then on.

When the option is missing

If you cannot find the setting, one of these is usually the reason. Each has its own fix.

You do not have Premium (private chats)

How to recognise it: the messages privacy screen shows the usual choices, but the paid option is missing or shows a Premium badge or lock.

1. Check your Premium status in Settings.
2. If it has lapsed or you never had it, decide whether the feature is worth subscribing for. Our Premium vs free comparison lists what else Premium includes.
3. After subscribing, close and reopen the privacy screen.

If you have Premium and still see no option, move on to the app version.

Your app is out of date

How to recognise it: a friend on a newer version sees the option and you do not, or Telegram Desktop shows it but your phone does not.

1. Update Telegram from your app store or from the official Telegram website for Desktop.
2. Restart the app fully, not just switch away from it.
3. Look again in the same place.

If the store says you are up to date and the option is still missing, try another platform. The setting is stored on your account, so setting it on one device applies to all of them.

You lack the right permission in the group

How to recognise it: you can open the group's settings but the permissions section is greyed out or missing the paid option.

1. Ask the owner which rights your admin role has.
2. The owner or an admin with permission to change group settings can enable the price, or give you that right.

The chat is not the kind of chat the feature supports

How to recognise it: you are looking in a channel, a bot chat or a secret chat. The group price applies to groups; the private-chat price applies to your account's ordinary chats. For a channel, the closest equivalent is pricing its direct messages, where that feature is available.

If none of these explains it, the feature may not yet be available to your account or region. Check Telegram's help pages or ask through the app's support option. Our guide on contacting Telegram support explains the routes.

Running paid messages day to day

Turning the price on is the easy part. Handling the messages well is what keeps people paying.

Say what the fee buys

Put one or two sentences where senders will see them before they pay. For private chats, that is your profile bio. For groups, it is the description and the pinned rules. A good statement answers three questions:

• What happens to a paid message: will you read it, reply, or both?
• How quickly: same day, within a week, or "when I can"?
• What happens if you cannot help: a refund, or nothing?

Even "I read everything and reply to most within a week; I refund anything I cannot answer" removes most complaints before they start.

Keep paid chats separate from personal ones

If paid messages arrive among your family chats, some will be missed. A chat folder that includes non-contacts and excludes contacts gives paid conversations their own tab. Work through it at a set time, the way you would an inbox.

Reply in batches

Answering paid messages as they arrive fragments your day and teaches senders to expect instant replies. Batching once or twice a day is easier to sustain, and saying so in your bio sets the expectation.

Reuse answers you give often

If the same question keeps arriving, write one good answer and paste it, adjusted for each person. If you have a business account, Telegram's quick replies help here; see quick replies and away messages. Better still, post the answer in your channel and link to it, which can reduce how many people need to pay to ask.

Track what you earn

Your Stars balance and transaction history show incoming payments. Once a month, note the total in a spreadsheet with the date. It makes withdrawal planning and tax records easy, and it shows you whether the price is working.

If you are the sender

Sometimes you will be on the paying side, and a few habits protect your Stars.

1. Check you are writing to the right account. Compare the username with the one linked from the person's official channel or website. Display names and photos can be copied.
2. Read their bio first. It may already answer your question, or say they do not take the kind of request you are sending.
3. Write one complete message. Put the question, the context and any links in a single message, since each message is charged.
4. Keep it polite and specific. People who charge for messages get many; a clear question is more likely to be answered.
5. If you paid by mistake, ask once for a refund. The recipient can return the Stars. If they do not, the payment was made inside Telegram's rules and is generally not something support can reverse.

When paid messages are the wrong tool

• Customer support. Charging customers to report a problem with something they already bought damages trust. Use free support channels; see Telegram customer support for business.
• New communities still finding members. Any price slows down the conversation a new group needs.
• Groups that exist for help or safety, where the people most in need may be least able to pay.
• When your problem is one specific spammer. Blocking or restricting that person is simpler. See block and restrict on Telegram.
• When you want only contacts to reach you. Telegram's privacy settings can already limit who can message you, without any payment involved. Our privacy settings checklist covers those options.

Scams to watch for

Paid messages create new hooks for scammers, on both sides.

• Fake "pay to reach the admin" accounts. A scammer copies a famous creator's name and photo and charges Stars to "message them directly". Senders should check the username, not the display name, and reach creators through links in their official channel.
• "Unlock your earnings" messages. Anyone telling you to pay a fee or share a login code to release your Stars is a scammer. Telegram never asks for your login code; see never share your Telegram login code.
• Off-platform payment requests. A sender who asks you to "skip the Stars fee" and be paid another way is often setting up a payment scam.

Common mistakes

• Forgetting that contacts are free, then wondering why some people never pay.
• Switching a group to paid messages with no warning.
• Pricing to keep people out when the goal was to filter spam, which loses the conversations you wanted.
• Not saying what the fee buys. Without a stated reply time, paying senders feel ignored.
• Not exempting moderators and regular contributors in a group, so the people doing the work end up paying.
• Ignoring refunds, which turns occasional mistakes into public complaints.
• Never reviewing the price after the first week.
• Treating earnings as untaxed pocket money without checking local rules.

FAQ

Do I need Telegram Premium to charge for messages?

For your private chats, Telegram tied the feature to Premium. In groups, admins set the price from the group's permissions. Check the setting in your app, as requirements can change.

Do my contacts have to pay?

No. Contacts can always message you for free in private chats. You can also remove the fee for specific people who are not contacts.

Can I refund a message someone paid for?

Yes. Telegram lets the recipient refund the Stars a sender paid, returning the full amount to them.

How much of the fee do I keep?

Telegram's Stars terms state 85 percent at the time of writing. Check the current terms in the app before relying on that figure.

Can bots charge for messages?

This feature is for people's private chats and for groups. Bots that want to charge use Telegram's payment tools instead; developers can read bot payments for developers.

Will charging for messages reduce spam completely?

It removes most bulk spam, because volume becomes expensive. A determined sender can still pay to reach you, so keep the usual tools like blocking and reporting.

Summary

Charging Stars for messages puts a price on reaching you: in private chats through your Premium privacy settings, and in groups through the group's permissions. Contacts and admins stay free, and you can exempt others. Choose a price based on whether you want to filter spam or charge for your time, tell people what their Stars buy, refund mistakes, and review the price once you see how people respond. Check Telegram's current terms for your share and the withdrawal rules before you plan income around it.