Connect a WhatsApp Business number through Embedded Signup and read and reply to customer messages with the same direct message API you use for every other platform. SocialAPI.ai wraps the WhatsApp Cloud API and delivers inbound messages to your unified inbox in real time via webhooks. WhatsApp is a messaging connector: it handles conversations and template messages.
Reply to a WhatsApp conversation
1curl -X POST https://api.social-api.ai/v1/inbox/conversations/<conversation-id>/messages \
2 -H "Authorization: Bearer <your-api-key>" \
3 -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
4 -d '{
5 "account_id": "<whatsapp-account-id>",
6 "text": "Thanks for reaching out! Your order shipped today."
7 }' | jq
8
9# Response (HTTP 201)
10{
11 "id": "wamid.HBgL...",
12 "platform": "whatsapp",
13 "conversation_id": "<conversation-id>",
14 "text": "Thanks for reaching out! Your order shipped today.",
15 "created_at": "2026-08-15T10:24:00Z"
16}
17
18# Outside the 24-hour window? Send an approved template instead:
19# curl -X POST https://api.social-api.ai/v1/platforms/whatsapp/accounts/<whatsapp-account-id>/send-template \
20# -H "Authorization: Bearer <your-api-key>" \
21# -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
22# -d '{ "to": "15551234567", "template_name": "order_confirmation", "language": "en_US" }'
Inbound messages stream into the unified inbox via webhooks; replying is one POST. Within the 24-hour service window you can send free-form text. Outside it, send an approved template through the template endpoints.
Receive customer messages in real time and reply through the same unified inbox endpoint used for Instagram, Facebook, and Telegram DMs.
Create templates, submit them to Meta for approval, and send approved templates: the route for reaching customers outside the 24-hour service window.
Send images, documents, interactive buttons and lists, locations, contact cards, and emoji reactions in a reply.
Inbound messages and delivery statuses (sent, delivered, read) arrive as real-time webhook events the moment they happen.
Read and update your WhatsApp business profile, including description, address, email, and website, through the API.
List your WhatsApp Business phone numbers and register or verify new ones programmatically.
the official WhatsApp Cloud API
Create a Meta app, pass business verification, and configure the WhatsApp product before sending your first message.
With SocialAPI.ai
Sign up and connect your number through Embedded Signup in minutes. No Meta app of your own, no app review.
the official WhatsApp Cloud API
Build and host your own webhook endpoint, then wire two independent subscription layers. Miss one and messages silently never arrive.
With SocialAPI.ai
Webhooks are registered and verified at connect time. Messages land in the unified inbox with the same schema as Instagram, Facebook, and Telegram DMs.
the official WhatsApp Cloud API
Hand-build template payloads with components, parameters, and language codes against the raw Graph API.
With SocialAPI.ai
Create, submit for approval, and send templates through dedicated template endpoints.
the official WhatsApp Cloud API
A WhatsApp-only integration you maintain separately from every other messaging API.
With SocialAPI.ai
The same /v1/inbox endpoints cover WhatsApp plus nine other platforms.
Free-form messages are limited to a 24-hour customer service window that resets with each inbound customer message. Outside the window, only approved template messages can be sent.
There is no message-history backfill. The Cloud API has no history endpoint, so the inbox is populated by webhooks received after you connect.
A phone number cannot be on the consumer WhatsApp app and the Cloud API at the same time. Migrating a number to the Business Platform disconnects it from the app.
Meta has paused marketing template messages to US (+1) numbers since April 2025. Utility and authentication templates are unaffected.
When you connect a number, SocialAPI.ai registers and verifies the WhatsApp webhook subscription automatically. Every customer message is ingested in real time and surfaced in the unified inbox with the same conversation and message schema used across all platforms, so one direct message API covers WhatsApp alongside Instagram, Facebook, and Telegram.
Reply with text, images, documents, interactive buttons and lists, locations, contact cards, or emoji reactions. SocialAPI.ai maps each reply to the right Cloud API message type for you, through the same send-message endpoint you already use on every other messaging platform.
WhatsApp only allows free-form replies within 24 hours of the customer's last message; after that, approved templates are mandatory. SocialAPI.ai gives you the full template lifecycle: create a template, submit it to Meta for approval, track its status, and send it, all through the API or the dashboard.
Connecting WhatsApp normally means creating a Meta app, passing business verification, and configuring webhooks by hand. With SocialAPI.ai you walk through Meta's Embedded Signup flow in the dashboard: pick your business, pick your number, done. Token storage, refresh, and webhook subscription are handled for you.
Reading comments, DMs, and mentions is free and unlimited on every plan. Paid plans start at $29/mo with unlimited posts and interactions. The free tier needs no credit card.
FAQ
Yes. Meta's WhatsApp Business Platform exposes the Cloud API for sending and receiving messages programmatically. Using it raw means running a Meta app, business verification, webhook infrastructure, and template plumbing yourself. SocialAPI.ai wraps the Cloud API behind one REST API: connect a number through Embedded Signup and read and reply to messages from the same unified inbox as every other platform.
Two costs apply. Meta bills template messages per delivered message by category (marketing, utility, authentication), with rates varying by country; replying to a customer within the 24-hour service window is free. SocialAPI.ai starts at $0: the Free plan includes 2 social profiles and 50 interactions per month, and paid plans have unlimited interactions.
Connect your WhatsApp Business number through Embedded Signup in the SocialAPI.ai dashboard, then POST to /v1/inbox/conversations/:id/messages with your API key and the reply text. Within the 24-hour service window that delivers as a free-form message; outside it, send an approved template through the template endpoints instead.
No. SocialAPI.ai acts as your WhatsApp Business API provider: you connect through our approved Meta app via Embedded Signup, so there is no app of your own to create, no app review to pass, and no separate BSP contract to sign. You keep ownership of your WhatsApp Business Account and phone number.
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