Messages

Overview

The Messages API allows you to send various types of WhatsApp messages including text, media, templates, and interactive messages.

Get Messages

Retrieve messages for a specific contact.

GET /api/contacts/{id}/messages

Query Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
page	integer	Page number (default: 1). Page 1 is the most recent messages.
limit	integer	Page size, 1–100. Default 50.
before_id	string	Cursor — return the limit messages immediately older than this message UUID. Mutually exclusive with page.
account	string	Restrict to one WhatsApp account.

Messages are always returned in chronological order (oldest first) within the page.

Caution

The cursor parameter is before_id, not before. There is no after parameter.

Response

{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "messages": [
      {
        "id": "uuid",
        "contact_id": "uuid",
        "direction": "incoming",
        "message_type": "text",
        "content": { "body": "Hello!" },
        "media_url": "",
        "media_mime_type": "",
        "media_filename": "",
        "interactive_data": null,
        "status": "delivered",
        "wamid": "wamid.xxx",
        "error_message": "",
        "is_reply": false,
        "reply_to_message_id": null,
        "reply_to_message": null,
        "reactions": [],
        "whatsapp_account": "Main Account",
        "created_at": "2024-01-01T12:00:00Z",
        "updated_at": "2024-01-01T12:00:00Z"
      }
    ],
    "total": 100,
    "page": 1,
    "limit": 50,
    "has_more": true
  }
}

The field is message_type (not type), the WhatsApp ID is wamid (not wa_message_id), and timestamps are created_at / updated_at (there is no timestamp). A before_id request returns messages, total and has_more only — no page/limit.

Note

Fetching a contact's messages also marks that contact's incoming messages as read as a side effect. Callers without contacts:read are restricted to contacts assigned to them, and — when the org enables agent_current_conversation_only — to messages from the contact's most recent chatbot session onwards.

Send Text Message

Send a text message to a contact.

POST /api/contacts/{id}/messages

Request Body

{
  "type": "text",
  "content": {
    "body": "Hello! How can I help you today?"
  }
}

Field	Type	Required	Description
type	string	Yes	text or interactive on this endpoint. Media is sent via POST /api/messages/media.
content.body	string	Yes (for text)	The message text
interactive	object	Yes (for interactive)	See Send Interactive Message
reply_to_message_id	string	No	UUID of a message to quote-reply to. Must belong to the same contact, otherwise it is silently ignored.
whatsapp_account	string	No	Name of the WhatsApp account to send from; defaults to the contact's account

Response

Returns the created message object (same shape as in the list response above):

{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "id": "uuid",
    "contact_id": "uuid",
    "direction": "outgoing",
    "message_type": "text",
    "content": { "body": "Hello! How can I help you today?" },
    "status": "sent",
    "wamid": "wamid.xxx",
    "whatsapp_account": "Main Account",
    "created_at": "2024-01-01T12:00:00Z",
    "updated_at": "2024-01-01T12:00:00Z"
  }
}

Note

A legacy POST /api/messages route is kept for backwards compatibility. It maps to the same handler as POST /api/contacts/{id}/messages and expects the same request body. Prefer the contact-scoped endpoint for new integrations.

Send Template Message

Send a pre-approved template message.

POST /api/messages/template

Request Body

Field	Type	Required	Description
contact_id	string	One of contact_id or phone_number	UUID of existing contact
phone_number	string	One of contact_id or phone_number	Phone number (creates contact if not exists)
template_name	string	One of template_name or template_id	Name of the template
template_id	string	One of template_name or template_id	UUID of the template
template_params	object	No	Named or positional body parameters
header_params	object	No	Value for a TEXT header with a {{var}} (max 1). Keyed by the variable's name for named templates, or "1" for positional. Falls back to template_params if omitted.
button_params	object	No	Dynamic URL button parameters (button index → value)
account_name	string	No	Specific WhatsApp account to use

Examples

Using phone number (creates contact if needed):

curl -X POST "http://your-server:8080/api/messages/template" \
  -H "X-API-Key: whm_your_api_key" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "phone_number": "919876543210",
    "template_name": "hello_world"
  }'

{
  "phone_number": "919876543210",
  "template_name": "hello_world"
}

With named parameters:

If your template has placeholders like Hello {{name}}, your order {{order_id}} is ready:

{
  "contact_id": "uuid",
  "template_name": "order_confirmation",
  "template_params": {
    "name": "John",
    "order_id": "12345"
  }
}

With positional parameters:

{
  "phone_number": "919876543210",
  "template_name": "order_confirmation",
  "template_params": {
    "1": "John",
    "2": "12345"
  }
}

With a TEXT header variable:

Meta allows at most one variable in a TEXT header. If your template's header is Our {{season}} sale is on!, supply the value via header_params:

{
  "phone_number": "919876543210",
  "template_name": "seasonal_promotion",
  "header_params": {
    "season": "Summer"
  },
  "template_params": {
    "customer_name": "John",
    "discount": "25%"
  }
}

For a positional header (Our {{1}} sale is on!), use "1" as the key. If you omit header_params, the value is looked up in template_params by the same name — convenient for named templates where the header variable doesn't collide with a body variable.

With URL button parameters:

If your template has a URL button with a dynamic variable (e.g., https://example.com/track/{{1}}), provide the dynamic value via button_params. The key is the button index (starting from "0"):

{
  "contact_id": "uuid",
  "template_name": "order_shipped",
  "template_params": {
    "name": "John",
    "order_id": "12345"
  },
  "button_params": {
    "0": "12345"
  }
}

Note

The button_params key corresponds to the button's position index in the template (zero-based). For example, if the first button is a URL button with {{1}}, use "0" as the key. The value replaces the dynamic part of the URL.

Response

{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "message_id": "uuid",
    "phone_number": "919876543210",
    "status": "pending",
    "template_name": "order_confirmation"
  }
}

Tip

When using phone_number, a new contact is automatically created if one doesn't exist for that number.

Caution

If required template parameters are missing, you'll receive an error: "Missing template parameters: name, order_id. Expected parameters: [name, order_id]"

Send Media Message

Upload and send an image, video, document, or audio message.

POST /api/messages/media

Caution

This endpoint takes multipart/form-data with a file upload, not JSON. There is no media_url field — the file is uploaded to Whatomate, which then sends it to Meta.

Form Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
contact_id	text	Yes	UUID of the recipient contact
file	file	Yes	The media file
type	text	No	image (default), video, audio, or document
caption	text	No	Caption text
whatsapp_account	text	No	Account to send from; defaults to the contact's account

curl -X POST "http://your-server:8080/api/messages/media" \
  -H "X-API-Key: whm_your_api_key" \
  -F "contact_id=<uuid>" \
  -F "type=image" \
  -F "caption=Check out this product!" \
  -F "file=@./product.jpg"

Meta's own size limits apply (roughly 5 MB images, 16 MB audio/video, 100 MB documents); Whatomate does not enforce its own cap.

Response

Returns the same message object shape as the other send endpoints:

{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "id": "uuid",
    "contact_id": "uuid",
    "direction": "outgoing",
    "message_type": "image",
    "content": { "body": "Check out this product!" },
    "media_url": "images/…",
    "media_mime_type": "image/jpeg",
    "media_filename": "product.jpg",
    "status": "sent",
    "whatsapp_account": "Main Account",
    "created_at": "2024-01-01T12:00:00Z",
    "updated_at": "2024-01-01T12:00:00Z"
  }
}

Send Interactive Message

Send interactive messages with buttons, CTA URLs, WhatsApp Flows, or a Call button.

POST /api/contacts/{id}/messages

The interactive.type selects the variant:

interactive.type	Fields used
button	body, buttons: [{id, title}]
list	body, button_text
cta_url	body, button_text, url
flow	flow_id (required), body, button_text (CTA label, default "Open"), header, first_screen
voice_call	body, display_text, ttl_minutes

Button Message

Send a message with up to 3 quick reply buttons:

curl -X POST "http://your-server:8080/api/contacts/{contact_id}/messages" \
  -H "X-API-Key: whm_your_api_key" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "interactive",
    "interactive": {
      "type": "button",
      "body": "How would you like to proceed?",
      "buttons": [
        { "id": "yes", "title": "Yes" },
        { "id": "no", "title": "No" }
      ]
    }
  }'

{
  "type": "interactive",
  "interactive": {
    "type": "button",
    "body": "How would you like to proceed?",
    "buttons": [
      { "id": "yes", "title": "Yes" },
      { "id": "no", "title": "No" }
    ]
  }
}

CTA URL Button

Send a message with a call-to-action URL button:

curl -X POST "http://your-server:8080/api/contacts/{contact_id}/messages" \
  -H "X-API-Key: whm_your_api_key" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "interactive",
    "interactive": {
      "type": "cta_url",
      "body": "Click below to view your order details",
      "button_text": "View Order",
      "url": "https://example.com/orders/12345"
    }
  }'

{
  "type": "interactive",
  "interactive": {
    "type": "cta_url",
    "body": "Click below to view your order details",
    "button_text": "View Order",
    "url": "https://example.com/orders/12345"
  }
}

WhatsApp Flow

{
  "type": "interactive",
  "interactive": {
    "type": "flow",
    "flow_id": "<meta_flow_id>",
    "header": "Order form",
    "body": "Tap below to place your order",
    "button_text": "Open form",
    "first_screen": "WELCOME"
  }
}

The flow must belong to your organization, otherwise 400 Flow not found for this organization. Omitting flow_id returns 400 flow_id is required to send a flow.

Voice Call Button

{
  "type": "interactive",
  "interactive": {
    "type": "voice_call",
    "body": "Need help? Call us.",
    "display_text": "Call support",
    "ttl_minutes": 60
  }
}

Requires the sending account to have Business Calling enabled, otherwise the request is rejected with 400. When the recipient taps the button, the resulting inbound call is sticky-routed back to the agent who sent it — the routing payload is stamped server-side from the authenticated user and is never read from the request body.

Response

Returns the created message object. interactive_data carries the rendered interactive payload.

{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "id": "uuid",
    "contact_id": "uuid",
    "direction": "outgoing",
    "message_type": "interactive",
    "content": { "body": "How would you like to proceed?" },
    "interactive_data": { },
    "status": "sent",
    "is_reply": false,
    "whatsapp_account": "Main Account",
    "created_at": "2024-01-01T12:00:00Z",
    "updated_at": "2024-01-01T12:00:00Z"
  }
}

Note

Button titles have a maximum length of 20 characters. Button IDs are returned when the user clicks a button.

Send Reaction

Add or remove an emoji reaction on a specific message.

POST /api/contacts/{id}/messages/{message_id}/reaction

Request Body

Field	Type	Required	Description
emoji	string	Yes	The emoji to react with. Send an empty string ("") to remove your existing reaction.

{
  "emoji": "👍"
}

Each user may have only one reaction per message; sending a new emoji replaces the previous one from the same user.

Response

{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "message_id": "uuid",
    "reactions": [
      {
        "emoji": "👍",
        "from_user": "user-uuid"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Mark Conversation as Read

Mark all incoming messages from a contact as read. When the account has auto read receipts enabled, read receipts are also sent to WhatsApp.

POST /api/contacts/{id}/mark-read

Response

{
  "status": "success",
  "data": {
    "status": "ok"
  }
}

Mark Message as Read

PUT /api/messages/{id}/read

Caution

Not implemented. This route is registered but currently returns 501 Not implemented yet. Use Mark Conversation as Read (POST /api/contacts/{id}/mark-read) instead.

Download Media

Stream the media attached to a message. Returns the raw file bytes with the stored MIME type — not a JSON envelope.

GET /api/media/{message_id}

Returns 404 No media found when the message has no attachment. Callers without contacts:read may only fetch media for contacts assigned to them, or for contacts with an active transfer to a team they belong to — otherwise 403 Access denied.

Message Status

Messages go through the following status flow:

Status	Description
pending	Message queued for sending
sent	Message sent to WhatsApp servers
delivered	Message delivered to recipient's device
read	Message read by recipient
failed	Message failed to send
received	Set on inbound messages

Valid message_type values are text, image, video, audio, document, template, interactive, flow, reaction, location, and contact.

Note

Status updates are delivered via webhooks in real-time. Configure your webhook endpoint to receive these updates.

Message Types

Text

Plain text messages

Image

JPEG, PNG images with optional caption

Video

MP4 videos with optional caption

Document

PDF, Word, Excel, and other documents

Audio

Voice messages and audio files

Template

Pre-approved message templates

Interactive

Buttons, lists, and reply buttons

Flow

WhatsApp Flows