What is a WhatsApp message template?

The definition in two minutes

A template is a message prepared in advance, with variable fields such as the customer’s first name or the date of an appointment. Meta reviews it before you can send it.

It exists for a simple reason. Outside the 24-hour window you can no longer write freely, and a template is the only type of message Meta lets through. It is also used to send the same message to many customers at once.

What a template is made of

The main text

It is the only compulsory element. It accepts variables (first name, date, order number) that you fill in at each send.

The header

Optional: a short title, an image, a video, a document or a location.

The footer

Optional: a short line of text under the message.

The buttons

Optional: quick reply, call, link to a website, copy a code. The customer acts with a tap.

The language

Each template is written in one language. Meta does not translate it: to serve customers in French, Spanish and English, you need one template per language.

Category, approval and status

Each template has a category: marketing, utility or authentication. It matters for the price and for the content rules. Meta checks that it matches the text.

Meta reviews each template automatically, when you create it and after every edit. The status tells you what you can do with it:

• In review: Meta is looking at the template. In WhatsApp Manager this can take up to 24 hours.
• Approved (shown as “Active” in WhatsApp Manager): you can send it.
• Rejected: it cannot go out. Fix it and submit it again.
• Paused or disabled: Meta has suspended it because customers report it or read it little. It can no longer go out.

Even once approved, a template stays under watch. Meta rates its quality from customer feedback, and can move it to another category.

• Template categories explained →

What it means for a small business

Prepare your templates before you need them. The messages that come up every week are the best candidates: appointment confirmation, order ready, reminder the day before.

• Allow for a delay: approval is not instant.
• Plan one template per language: Meta translates nothing.
• Check the customer’s consent: a template only goes to people who have agreed to receive your messages.
• Keep a reasonable number of templates: a messaging account can only hold a limited number, higher once the business portfolio is verified, and Meta archives those left unused for a long time.

Meta charges for each delivered template by its category and the customer’s country. The price of the software you use is billed separately.

• Ready-to-copy templates, by trade →
• WhatsApp campaigns →

Creating a template and getting it approved: the steps

1. Choose where to create it : Create the template in Meta’s WhatsApp Manager, or in your software, which goes through Meta’s API for you.
2. Choose the category : Pick marketing, utility or authentication according to the content. Meta checks that the category matches the text.
3. Write the message : Choose the language, write the main text and add a header, a footer and buttons if needed. Give an example value for each variable.
4. Submit it to Meta : Send the template: Meta reviews it automatically. The “in review” status can last up to 24 hours.
5. Check the status : Wait for the approved status before sending. A rejected template cannot go out: fix it, its category for example, and submit it again.

Example

Illustrative case: a hardware shop prepares a utility template: “Hello {{1}}, your order {{2}} is ready, we will wait for you until {{3}}.” When the day comes, it fills in the first name, the number and the time. A customer who has not written for a week still receives the message, which free text would not have allowed.

Frequently asked questions