WhatsApp Message Templates
Use WhatsApp Message Templates to re-engage with your contacts after the messaging window.
Last updated
Use WhatsApp Message Templates to re-engage with your contacts after the messaging window.
Last updated
WhatsApp message templates are pre-defined messages that businesses can use to initiate conversations with customers. Templates can be used for a variety of purposes, including customer service, notifications, and sending promotional messages.
There are a few things to keep in mind when using WhatsApp message templates.
WhatsApp message templates are not free and are charged based on the number of conversations and the template category you use. Learn more about .
WhatsApp Message Templates require pre-approval from Meta to ensure they abide by WhatsApp’s and Policies.
You can only send message templates to your customers to continue the conversation after the 24-hour Customer Service Window ends, which will start a business-initiated conversation.
Business-initiated conversations are broken down into 3 message template conversation categories:
Utility Templates: These templates relate to a transaction, post-purchase notifications and recurring billing statements.
Authentication Templates: These templates enable businesses to authenticate customers with passcodes during the login process such as account registration or recovery. Use or buttons to deliver a one-time password (OTP) via an authentication template.
Marketing Templates: These are templates to market a product or service to customers, such as relevant offers to customers who have opted in.
Rules for Creating Message Templates
There are some rules to follow when creating message templates to increase the chances of your message template being approved by Meta.
Message Template Content Rules
These are some of the content that are prohibited when sending message templates:
Threatening content
Data collection
Prohibited services
Contests or quizzes
Message Template Formatting Rules
There are formatting rules for each part of the message template.
Name: Lowercase alphanumeric characters and underscores. Other special characters and spaces are not allowed.
Body: Cannot contain tabs or more than 4 consecutive spaces and its character limit is capped at 1,024 characters. This includes letters, numbers, special characters, and emojis.
Placeholder: Must be written within double curly brackets, like this: {{1}}. When customizing the content of a placeholder, you may include letters, numbers, or even special characters.
The WhatsApp Message Template table below shows a general overview of each template.
The following is a description of what each column represents:
Field
Description
Status
Indicates the current Status of the Template
Name
Indicates the Name of the Template
Category
Indicates the Category of the Template
Quality
Indicates the Quality of the Template
Language
Indicates the Language of the Template
Label
Indicates the Label of the Template
Actions
Indicates the icon to open up the Action menu
Step 1: Navigate to Settings > Channels.
Step 2: Locate the WhatsApp Business API channel > click Templates.
Step 3: Click Submit Template
Step 4: Fill in the required information to create the template
Field
Description
Template Name
The name can only contain lowercase alphanumeric characters and underscores ( _ )
Category
Language
The language that the template is written in.
Step 5: Create the message by filling in the necessary components, then review the message in the preview section.
Building Block
Description
Body
The Body contains the most important text of your template. Only text is supported.
You may use markdown to format the content of this block.
Header
The Header is optional and serves as the title or header of your template. It supports the following:
• Text
• Image
• Video
• Document
• Location
*IS-Messenger platform accepts uploads up to 20MB in size.
Footer
The Footer is optional and only supports text. It can be used to provide supplementary information in your message template.
Button
The Button is optional and adds interactivity to your templates. There are two types available:
Call To Action Button
• Used to send your client to a Website or call a Phone Number
• Maximum one URL and Phone Number per template
• URL can have a parameter for personalization
Quick Reply Button
• Used to get quick answers from your client
• Maximum 3 Quick Reply Buttons per template
• Each Quick Reply button cannot have more than 20 characters
Step 6: Provide sample value if you have included any parameters in your message template content.
Step 7: Click on Submit to submit your message template for approval.
Once you have submitted your message template for approval, you will need to wait for approximately 24 hours for the approval process to be completed. Check your template status on the platform by navigating to Settings > Channel > your connected WhatsApp Channel > Templates. Then, sync your template to get the latest status update.
Step 1: Navigate to Settings > Channels.
Step 2: Locate the WhatsApp Business API channel
Once you've located the WhatsApp Business API channel, click Templates.
Step 3: Sync Templates
Click Sync Templates to begin the syncing process.
Step 4: Syncing Completed
When the syncing is complete, the message templates will be listed with their corresponding statuses, quality ratings and the last synced date time will be updated. The rejection reason will be displayed below the rejected message template.
The following table lists the possible statuses for the message templates:
Status
Description
Submitted
The message template is submitted and pending approval.
Approved
The message template is approved and can be sent to Contacts.
Rejected
The message template is rejected and cannot be used.
Disabled
The template has been disabled due to recurring negative feedback from customers.
Appeal
The template is under appeal.
In Review
The template is still under review. Review can take up to 24 hours.
Reinstated
The template is under reinstated.
Flagged
The status occurs when the quality rating is low. This is a warning status. If the quality rating improves to a high or medium in 7 continuous days, the status will return to Approved.
Paused
The template has been paused due to recurring negative feedback from customers.
There could be several reasons why Meta did not approve your message template:
Technical issues: Ensure your message templates are formatted correctly and do not contain any technical errors.
Inappropriate language or tone: Avoid using offensive, harassing or spammy language.
Incorrect use of template category: Ensure the right template category is selected to match the type of message being sent. For example, when sending an authentication code to your customer, an authentication template must be used.
There could be several reasons why Meta did not approve your message template:
Technical issues: Ensure your message templates are formatted correctly and do not contain any technical errors.
Inappropriate language or tone: Avoid using offensive, harassing or spammy language.
Incorrect use of template category: Ensure the right template category is selected to match the type of message being sent. For example, when sending an authentication code to your customer, an authentication template must be used.
Follow these steps to resolve the issue:
Review the rejection reason: Check the rejection reason on relevant platforms (IS-Messenger, FBM).
Edit and resubmit the message template on:
IS-Messenger: Create a new message template, edit message and resubmit.
Submissions are commonly rejected for the following reasons, so make sure you avoid these mistakes.
Variable parameters are missing or have mismatched curly braces. The correct format is {{1}}.
Variable parameters contain special characters such as a #, $, or %.
Variable parameters are not sequential. For example, {{1}}, {{2}}, {{4}}, {{5}} are defined but {{3}} does not exist.
The content contains potentially abusive or threatening content, such as threatening a customer with legal action or threatening to publicly shame them.
The message template is a duplicate of an existing template. If a template is submitted with the same wording in the body and footer of an existing template, the duplicate template will be rejected. A rejection notification that includes the rejection reason will appear in Account Quality on WhatsApp Manager and be sent via email. You may refer to the Account Quality notification to see the name and language of the existing template with the same content as the rejected duplicate template. You may also choose to edit the template and resubmit. Please note that this check does not apply to templates categorized as AUTHENTICATION.
Before sending your message templates, ensure that your message template has been approved and the status is Active.
Steps to send message templates:
Step 1: Click the Template Message icon in the messaging bar.
Step 2: Select the template to send to your Contact.
Step 3: Personalize the message and specify the parameters for the template.
Step 4: Review the information and click Send.
Before sending your message templates, there are certain best practices you can follow to ensure your message template is well-received and not being blocked or reported as spam by your customers. This is to ensure your message template quality rating remains at a high quality. Here are some examples:
Obtain customer opt-in before sending message templates
Don’t spam your customers
Opt-in is a mandatory process where businesses obtain explicit consent from their customers to send them messages. This consent is required for sending marketing, utility, and authentication conversations outside the 24-hour window after a customer's last message.
Available Opt-In Methods:
SMS: Requesting consent through a text message.
Website: Using a consent form or opt-in checkbox.
In a WhatsApp Thread: Directly asking for consent in a WhatsApp chat.
By phone: Using an interactive voice response (IVR) flow
In person or on paper: Obtaining written consent via a physical document.
Templates can have the following statuses.
In-Review: Indicates that the template is still under review. Review can take up to 24 hours.
Disabled: The template has been disabled due to recurring negative feedback from customers. Message templates with this status cannot be sent to customers.
There are 2 ways you can send a Location message template:
Use Google Maps URL: Copy the Google Maps URL that you want to send and paste it into the URL field.
Input address fields manually: Input the Name, Address, Latitude and Longitude fields manually. The accepted format for latitude and longitude are (3.1545313,101.7151839) or {"longitude":3.1545313,"latitude":101.7151839}.
Step 1: Navigate to Settings > Channels
Step 2: Locate the WhatsApp Business API channel > click Templates.
Step 3: Click Edit Template located in the action menu
Step 4: Edit the content that you wish to update
Step 5: Click on Submit to submit your message template for approval.
Only message templates with an Approved, Rejected, or Paused status can be edited.
You can only edit a message template's category or components.
You cannot edit the category of an approved message template.
Approved message templates can be edited up to 10 times in a 30 day window, or 1 time in a 24 hour window. Rejected or paused templates can be edited an unlimited number of times.
Editing a template from the platform can only be done with WhatsApp Business Platform (API) and WhatsApp Cloud API Channels.
After editing and resubmitting a message template for approval, it will be assigned an 'In Review' status.
Step 1: Navigate to Settings > Channels
Step 2: Locate the WhatsApp Business API channel > click Templates.
Step 3: Click Delete Template located in the action menu
You cannot delete sample message templates provided by Meta. The delete button will still be present, but the message template will still exist if you click delete.
Why is my WhatsApp message template taking so long to approve?
Why is the link I attached in my Template Message displaying as plain text on the Contact’s side?
This is due to a limitation from both Android and iOS. The first template message from a business will display the link in the message as plain text. For Android users, the link will turn into a clickable hyperlink after the Contact replies to the business once. However, for iPhone users, the link will remain as plain text until the Contact saves the business’ phone number. This is due to a security measure taken by the iOS system.
Workaround solution:
Here’s an example of how a message with a Call-To-Action button will look like:
What is the maximum character limit for a WhatsApp template message?
A WhatsApp template message has a maximum character limit of 1024 characters.
How many message templates can my WhatsApp Business account have?
A single WhatsApp Business Account can create up to 250 message templates.
Why was my predetermined WhatsApp message template rejected?
This is likely because of Meta's inconsistency while reviewing message templates. To get the template approved, you will need to edit the rejected template and re-submit it for approval.
Go to Workspace Settings > Channels
Select your WhatsApp Business API channel > Templates
Select Edit Template in the Actions column
Do not change anything and click Submit Template
How do you categorize message templates that may be both utility and marketing? What about ones with vague content?
Templates with mixed content, such as order updates combined with promotions or offers, are categorized as marketing. The same applies to templates with unclear content, like placeholders or general phrases. These are also classified as marketing.
What can I do if Meta incorrectly rejects my message template, but I believe it's categorized correctly?
In your Meta Business Manager, select the rejected template.
Click on "Request Review"
Choose "Correct category was rejected" as your reason.
The template's status will then be updated to "In Review."
This issue occurs when your WhatsApp Business API account balance is zero. While your message templates remain approved and are correctly synced with your account, they become invisible and unselectable in the messaging composer. Additionally, a zero balance in your WABA account leads to the messaging window being locked. To resolve this, you need to top up your account balance, which will allow you to view your templates and unlock the messaging window.
Learn more about .
Meta assigns categories to message templates submitted for WhatsApp Business API and Cloud API channels based on their and the content of the templates. This can prevent your template from being rejected for miscategorization.
The category to which the message template belongs. Learn more on how to choose a template category with these .
The purpose for syncing your message templates on the platform is to retrieve their latest .
Meta determines the template category based on the template contents and their .
Violation of Meta Commerce Policy: Make sure your message templates comply with the , which includes guidelines on content such as spam and unapproved products or services.
Violation of Meta Commerce Policy: Make sure your message templates comply with the , which includes guidelines on content such as spam and unapproved products or services.
Facebook Business Manager (FBM): Edit the message template in your FBM. Then, submit the edited message template. Learn more .
The message template contains content that violates WhatsApp’s Commerce Policy: When you offer goods or services for sale, we consider all messages and media related to your goods or services, including any descriptions, prices, fees, taxes and/or any required legal disclosures, to constitute transactions. Transactions must comply with the .
The message template contains content that violates the : Do not request sensitive identifiers from users. For example, do not ask people to share full length individual payment card numbers, financial account numbers, National Identification numbers, or other sensitive identifiers. This also includes not requesting documents from users that might contain sensitive identifiers. Requesting partial identifiers (ex: last 4 digits of their Social Security number) is OK.
You may use to fill in the required fields i.e. the values for {{1}}, {{2}}, etc.
Learn more about .
Learn more about .
Rejected: The template has been rejected during our review process or violates one or more of our policies. See .
Active - Quality pending: The message template has yet to receive quality feedback from customers. Message templates with this status can be sent to customers. See .
Active - High Quality: The template has received little to no negative customer feedback. Message templates with this status can be sent to customers. See .
Active - Medium Quality: The template has received negative feedback from multiple customers but may soon become paused or disabled. Message templates with this status can be sent to customers. See .
Active - Low Quality: The template has received negative feedback from multiple customers. Message templates with this status can be sent to customers but are in danger of being paused or disabled soon, so we recommend that you address the issues that customers are reporting. See .
Paused: The template has been paused due to recurring negative feedback from customers. Message templates with this status cannot be sent to customers. See .
Appeal Requested: Indicates that an appeal has been requested. See
The approval process for WhatsApp message templates can vary depending on the content type. This process will take approximately 24 hours. It's important to follow the guidelines closely to avoid any delays or rejections in the approval process. Learn more about the .
To encourage Contacts to click the link, you can embed the link in a Call-To-Action button in the template message. Follow .
If Meta rejects your message template but you're confident it's correctly categorized, you can request a review via .
