---
title: "How to Add a Pause Between Messages"
description: "If your customers tend to send several short messages in a row, you might want the AI to wait before replying — so it responds to the full thought, not just…"
canonical_url: https://chatfuel.com/docs/ai-features/how-to-add-a-pause-between-messages
markdown_url: https://chatfuel.com/docs/ai-features/how-to-add-a-pause-between-messages.md
last_updated: 2026-08-12
lang: en
site: https://chatfuel.com/docs
llms_txt: https://chatfuel.com/llms.txt
---

# How to Add a Pause Between Messages

If your customers tend to send several short messages in a row, you might want the AI to wait before replying — so it responds to the full thought, not just…

If your customers tend to send several short messages in a row, you might want the AI to wait before replying — so it responds to the full thought, not just the first message. That's what the **Message delays** setting on each [automation](https://chatfuel.com/docs/ai-features/automations) does.

## Set it up in Automations [#set-it-up-in-automations]

1. Go to **Fuely AI** → **Automations**.
2. Open the automation for the channel or post you want (or **Main bot** to change it everywhere).
3. Open the **Message delays** setting and turn it on.

When enabled, Fuely AI waits a few seconds after the customer's first message before responding. This gives the customer time to finish typing, and the AI replies to all their messages at once instead of answering each one separately.

During the delay, the customer sees a ["Typing..." animation](https://chatfuel.com/docs/ai-features/how-to-enable-typing-animation) — so they know a reply is on its way and the conversation feels natural.

Like every automation setting, Message delays is inherited from Main bot unless you override it — so you can keep one behavior everywhere or slow down just one source.

## Or ask the AI Co-Worker [#or-ask-the-ai-co-worker]

Tell it what you want in chat:

*"Make the AI wait until the customer finishes typing before replying."*

It applies the change and confirms what it set.

## Flow Builder [#flow-builder]

Flow Builder does not support delays between messages. Message delays are a Fuely AI feature — if you need a pause, use the automation setting described above.