Owners and admins only. Everyone else does not have the WhatsApp page, and should ask an owner or admin.
Before you start
- The Facebook login that manages your business.
- The phone the number is on. Meta sends a code to it.
- If the number is on the WhatsApp Business app, version 2.24.17 or later of that app.
- A card you can add at Meta afterwards. See Add a card at Meta.
Connect a number
1
Open the connect page
Go to WhatsApp and choose Connect number.
2
Say how the number is used today
Choose It is on a phone with the WhatsApp Business app to keep replying from the phone. This is the recommended choice.Choose It is a new number for the platform only if the number will only be used through Companion. It will not work in the WhatsApp app afterwards. You are given a six-digit Two-step verification PIN. Keep it somewhere safe, because Meta asks for it if the number is ever moved.
3
Continue with Facebook
Choose Continue with Facebook. In the Meta window, sign in with the Facebook account that manages the business, pick or create the business portfolio, then follow the steps for the number. Enter the code Meta sends to the phone.
4
Come back to Companion
When the Meta window closes, Companion finishes the connection in a few seconds and shows that the number is connected.
Keep the WhatsApp Business app and your chats
If your number is on the WhatsApp Business app, it stays on your phone and keeps working there. This is called coexistence.- Chats sync both ways. Replies sent from the phone appear in Companion.
- Your contacts and past chats are copied across. Keep the WhatsApp Business app open for a few minutes after connecting so this can finish. The number shows Syncing history while it does, and you can send in the meantime.
A number on ordinary WhatsApp
Move it to the free WhatsApp Business app first. Install the app, sign in with the same number, and it offers to move your chats. Then connect the number in Companion.Add a card at Meta
Meta charges for some WhatsApp messages and bills you directly. It does not deliver chargeable messages until there is a payment method on your WhatsApp Business account. Once the number is connected, the connect page and the setup screen link to Meta’s billing settings. Add a card there. Companion never sees your card and adds nothing to what Meta charges. See What Meta charges.More than one number
Choose Connect number again for each number. When Meta asks, choose your existing WhatsApp Business account, not a new one. Your templates then cover every number, with nothing to approve twice. Each number can be shared by the team or belong to one person. Use the Assigned to column on the WhatsApp page to choose. New chats on a number that belongs to someone go to that person. Each plan covers a set number of WhatsApp numbers. When they are all connected, the connect page tells you so. Remove a number you no longer use, or move up a plan. See Plans.Check a number’s status and health
The WhatsApp page lists every connected number.
The menu at the end of each row has:
- Refresh from Meta: check the number with Meta now.
- Reconnect: go through Meta’s sign-up again for the same number. Use this when the connection has expired or the number is not sending. Its conversations and settings stay as they are.
- Pause number and Resume number: stop the number sending without removing it. Messages still arrive while it is paused.
Disconnect a number
1
Choose Remove number
On the WhatsApp page, open the menu at the end of the number’s row and choose Remove number.
2
Type the number to confirm
Type the number as shown, then choose Remove number.