WhatsApp Business app or official WhatsApp (API)? Differences and requirements

The WhatsApp Business app: when is it enough?

The app is free and suits a small business where one person replies from their phone: a greeting, saved quick replies and a simple catalog. But it has no bot that understands and carries a conversation, and no shared team inbox.

Official WhatsApp (Cloud API): what does it add?

This is the route Meta provides for systems and bots. With it, a bot replies on its own 24/7, the whole team replies from one inbox, and you message customers who opted in using templates Meta approves.

• A bot that replies and records orders and bookings
• A shared inbox with conversation takeover
• Template campaigns to opted-in customers
• A number in your business's name, under Meta's rules

Requirements

A Meta Business account and a dedicated business number. Verification with Meta is easier with a commercial register and tax card — if you don't have them, our team prepares the paperwork and submits it, and the decision is Meta's. In BotYalla, official WhatsApp is in the WhatsApp and Agency plans, with a step-by-step connection guide in the dashboard.

What about my current WhatsApp Business number?

You can use a new number dedicated to the bot, or — if your number runs on the WhatsApp Business app — the coexistence mode keeps the number on the app while also connecting it to the bot. Read the warnings in the dashboard before choosing it.

The 24-hour rule in short

When a customer messages you, a 24-hour window opens where you can reply freely. After that, any message from you must be a template Meta approves. The bot replies inside the window; campaigns outside it use templates.