How to Send WhatsApp Bulk Messages: Broadcast List or API

“How do you send bulk messages on WhatsApp?” is a question we hear most often right before campaign season. The short answer: there are two main routes. You can set up a broadcast list in the WhatsApp Business app on your phone and write to a small number of people, or you can use the WhatsApp Business API to send regularly to a much wider audience through Meta-approved templates. Which one suits you depends on how many people you write to and how often.

Below we walk through both routes step by step, state their limits clearly, and list the signs that it is time to move to the API.

What are the ways to send bulk messages on WhatsApp?

In practice you run into three options. The first two are inside the app on your phone; the third is on the API side.

We left out sending from a personal WhatsApp account or with unofficial "bulk sender" add-ons. That is deliberate. These methods go against WhatsApp's rules and can end with your number being shut down.

How do you send bulk messages with a broadcast list?

A broadcast list is the shortcut for sending the same message to the people you choose, one by one. The recipient sees the message not as a group chat but in their private chat with you; they also don't see each other's numbers. The steps roughly go like this:

1. In the WhatsApp Business app, open the menu on the chats screen and go to the option for creating a new broadcast list. Depending on the interface language, this option may also appear under a name like "bulk message".
2. Select the people you want to add to the list from your contacts.
3. Create the list and give it a clear name. A lasting name like "Wholesale customers" will serve you better than a campaign name like "May sale".
4. Write your message; add an image, document or link if you like, and send it.
5. Long-press the message and open the info screen to check who it was delivered to and who read it.

Setup takes no more than five minutes. The real issue is the limits.

What are the limits of a broadcast list?

• Anyone who hasn't saved your number won't get the message. This is the most common surprise. Don't assume you reached 200 people because the list has 200 names; the message never goes to people who haven't added your number to their contacts.
• List size is limited. There is an upper limit on how many people you can add to each list, and it is measured in hundreds, not thousands. We recommend checking the current figure in the WhatsApp Help Center.
• No personalization. The same text goes to everyone. You can't start with "Hello Ms. Smith".
• No scheduling or reporting. You can't set the message for a later time. You also can't see link clicks or aggregate results by campaign.
• Dependence on a single phone. Replies land on that phone; when hundreds of answers come in after a campaign, it is hard for one person to keep up.

When do you need to move to the API?

A broadcast list does the job at a small scale. If you recognize a few of these situations, you have hit its limit:

• You send campaigns to hundreds or thousands of people every month or every week.
• Your customers don't save your number in their contacts; this is very common with buyers who come from an e-commerce site or a marketplace.
• You want to change the message per person: name, order number, the last product they bought.
• You want to see who read it, who clicked, and what the campaign turned into.
• Incoming replies need to be handled by more than one agent.

At this point the right route is the WhatsApp Business API. The API has no contacts requirement; you can write to anyone whose phone number and consent you have, using template messages approved by Meta.

How do you send bulk messages with the WhatsApp Business API?

The process has a few more steps than the app, but you don't start from scratch with every campaign. Once you set it up, it becomes routine.

1. Open the API account. Meta business verification and number registration are required. You can move your existing number, but the WhatsApp Business app on your phone closes on that number and old chats are not carried over.
2. Prepare the template and submit it for approval. If the customer hasn't written to you in the last 24 hours, you can send the first message only with an approved template. Variables such as the name, plus images, buttons and links can be used in a template. To avoid rejection, take a look at the article explaining why template approval gets rejected.
3. Prepare the recipient list. You can upload it from Excel or pull a list automatically from the e-commerce integration. Instead of sending everyone the same message, building segments by tag, order history or interest protects both the reply rate and your quality rating.
4. Schedule the sending. A discount message that goes out at midnight makes nobody happy. Choose a suitable time according to the recipient's time zone.
5. Read the report and handle the replies. Look at the delivery, read, reply and click data and adjust the next campaign accordingly.

In Chatopya, all of these steps run in a single dashboard. We handle the Meta application and business verification on your behalf, and we prepare the templates in line with the rules together with your team. Uploading contacts with Excel, segments, scheduled sending and per-message reports are in the same place. Details are on our WhatsApp bulk messaging page.

Daily sending limit and quality rating

The API does not mean "unlimited sending". Meta sets a limit for each business on how many different people it can reach with template messages per day. New accounts start with a low limit; as you send regularly and at good quality, the limit rises gradually.

The quality rating, in turn, is fed by recipients' reactions. If many people block or report your message, the rating drops, your limit can shrink and, in the worst case, a restriction is placed on the number. That is why the "the more people, the better" logic backfires here. Don't write to people who haven't given consent, and don't send the same person a campaign message every day.

How is the cost of bulk messaging with the API calculated?

There are two items: the fee for the software you use and Meta's message fee. On Meta's side, template messages are charged by category: marketing, informational (utility) and authentication. Campaign and discount announcements fall into the marketing category, so every message in a bulk campaign is charged.

For replies you give in the 24-hour window that opens after a customer writes to you, 1,000 service messages per number per month have been free since 1 October 2026; after that they are charged. Utility templates sent inside the window are charged as well. So the era of "every reply is free once the customer writes" is behind us.

Chatopya adds no commission to Meta's message fee; whatever Meta's unit price is gets passed through. We work out the estimated cost of a campaign together with our team. For details by category, see the article where we explain Meta's fees.

Is sending bulk messages legal?

Being technically able to send does not mean it is appropriate to send. For commercial messages, you need the recipient's consent and you must let them leave the list whenever they want. We won't repeat the topic here; for consent, the right to opt out and Meta's rules, read our article Is sending bulk messages on WhatsApp legal?

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