In this guide
1. Quick overview
WeChat has two main public account types for brands, Subscription Accounts and Service Accounts. Both can be verified. Both can publish articles and talk to followers. The difference is where your messages appear, how often you can push, and which APIs and features you can use.
2. Subscription Account, when content cadence matters
- Posting, up to once per day. Good for media style calendars and frequent updates.
- Placement, messages appear in the user’s Subscription folder. Less disruptive, more like a daily feed.
- Use cases, publishers, education, KOLs, and brands that win with steady content.
- Features, articles, menus, customer service chat, and basic APIs once verified.
- Limitations, fewer high touch service features compared to a Service Account.
3. Service Account, when features and service matter
- Posting, up to four pushes per month. Fewer messages but higher impact.
- Placement, messages appear in the main chat list which gives stronger visibility per push.
- Use cases, commerce, support, bookings, membership, and anything that benefits from deeper functionality.
- Features, access to more platform capabilities once verified, including advanced menus and service oriented APIs.
- Payments, WeChat Pay requires verification and the right business scope. Service Accounts are the usual path when transacting.
4. Side by side comparison
- Visibility, Subscription lives in the Subscription folder, Service lands in the main chat list.
- Push frequency, Subscription up to once per day, Service up to four times per month.
- APIs and features, Service Accounts generally expose more capabilities once verified.
- Menus, both support custom menus for navigation and quick actions.
- Customer service, both support chat. Service is usually better for structured service flows.
- Payments, verification plus payment onboarding is required. Service Accounts are most common for this.
5. Notes for overseas entities
Overseas companies can open and verify accounts. There are region and documentation differences that affect timelines and available features. For payments you need the correct business scope, required documents, and a compliant receiving setup. If you do not plan to accept payments at launch, you can still start with a verified profile and add commerce later.
6. How to choose in practice
Simple chooser
- Pick Subscription if your plan is content led and you want steady daily touchpoints.
- Pick Service if you need stronger message placement, deeper features, or payments.
- Hybrid plan, some brands run a Subscription Account for editorial reach and a Service Account for customer service and transactions. This needs a clear content and menu strategy.
7. What to do next
Decide your primary goal, content reach or service and transactions. From there we select the account type, prepare verification, set up menus, and plan the first four to six weeks of posts and service flows. I can handle the setup and give you a working account with a clean content and menu structure.
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