Get your Meta credentials

Create a business portfolio

1. Go to business.facebook.com and sign in with your Facebook account.
2. If you don't have a portfolio yet, click Create a business portfolio and enter your business name, your name, and a work email.

Once it exists, Settings shows your portfolio, with WhatsApp accounts and System users under Frequently used. You'll come back here in later steps.

Business verification isn't needed to start. You'll need it later to raise your messaging limit.

Create a Meta app with WhatsApp

1. Open the Meta App Dashboard and click Create app.
2. Enter the app name and your email.
3. Choose the Connect with customers through WhatsApp use case and click Next.
4. Pick the business portfolio from step 1, review the publishing requirements, and click Create app.

Meta creates a WhatsApp Business account with a free test number. The test number only reaches 5 people you add by hand, so add your own number next.

Add your own phone number

1. In the App Dashboard, open WhatsApp → API Setup.
2. Under Send and receive messages, click Add phone number.
3. Enter your business display name and details, then the number, and verify it with the code Meta sends by SMS or voice call.

Meta reviews your display name. Until it's approved, customers may see your number instead of your name.

Add a payment method

Meta charges your WhatsApp Business account for templates, so it needs its own card.

1. Open WhatsApp Manager and go to Settings → Payment methods.
2. Add a card for this WhatsApp Business account.

Without it, templates fail with 141006. A card on the business portfolio doesn't count.

Create a system user and a permanent token

The token on Meta's API Setup page expires in a day, so create a system user and generate a permanent one.

Create the system user

1. Open Business settings, click System users, then Add.
2. Enter a name (for example sys_wa), set System user role to Admin, and click Create system user.

Give it your app and WhatsApp account

3. Select the new system user, open the ⋯ menu, and click Assign assets.

4. Under Apps, tick your Meta app and turn on Manage app under Full access.

5. Under WhatsApp accounts, tick your WhatsApp Business account and turn on Everything under Full access.

6. Click Assign assets. You see Assets assigned; click Done.

Generate the token

7. Back on the system user's page, click Generate token next to its name. Under Select app, choose the app you assigned in step 4, then click Next.

8. Under Set expiry, choose Never.
9. Under Assign permissions, tick whatsapp_business_management and whatsapp_business_messaging.

10. Click Generate token. Meta may ask you to confirm with a code sent to your registered phone number.
11. Click Copy and store the token somewhere safe. Meta shows it only once.