Overview

Connecting your WhatsApp Business account to Bugalou allows you to receive and send WhatsApp messages directly from your team inbox, set up automations, and manage all conversations in one place. Bugalou uses the official WhatsApp Business API (Cloud API) via Meta. Use our WhatsApp pricing calculator to estimate your messaging costs.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have:

• A Meta Business Account at business.facebook.com
• A payment method added to your Meta Business Account (required by Meta, even for free usage)
• A verified Meta Business Account (this can take up to 24 hours)
• A phone number that is not currently registered with the WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business app
• A Bugalou account on a paid plan (Starter or higher)

Step 1: Open the Channel Catalog

In your Bugalou dashboard, click "Channels" in the left sidebar. This opens the Channel Catalog where you can see all available channels. Find the "WhatsApp Business Platform (API)" card and click the "Connect" button.

Step 2: Complete the Setup Wizard

Bugalou uses a 7-step Setup Wizard to guide you through the entire WhatsApp connection process. You'll see a progress bar at the top showing all steps:

Step 1 of 7: Requirements

The wizard shows three prerequisites you need to verify:

1. Create a Meta Business Account — visit business.facebook.com, click "Create an account", and fill in your business details
2. Add a Payment Method — in Meta Business Suite, go to Settings → Billing and add a credit card or bank account
3. Account is Verified — your Meta Business Account needs to be fully verified. This can take up to 24 hours.

Check the box "I have completed all requirements" and click "Continue to Meta Account Connection".

Step 2 of 7: Connect Meta Account

Click the "Connect Meta Account" button. A popup window will open where you log in to Facebook and authorize Bugalou to access your Meta Business Account. After completing the authorization, the popup will close automatically.

Step 3 of 7: Select Phone Number

Choose a phone number for your WhatsApp Business account:

• Use an existing number — if you already have phone numbers registered, select one from the list
• Add a new number — click "Add New Number", enter your phone number with country code (e.g., +31612345678) and your business name, then click "Register Number"

Step 4 of 7: Ownership Verification

Verify that you own the phone number by receiving a 6-digit code. Choose whether to receive the code via SMS or Voice Call, then enter the code in the verification field.

Step 5 of 7: PIN Registration

Set a 6-digit PIN for Two-Step Verification. This PIN protects your WhatsApp Business account. Enter the PIN twice to confirm and click "Set PIN and Register". You can also skip this step if you prefer.

Step 6 of 7: Configuration

Bugalou automatically configures webhooks and messaging settings. This happens automatically — just wait for the process to complete.

Step 7 of 7: Complete

Your WhatsApp Business Account is now fully set up! The success screen shows you the next steps:

• Click "Go to WhatsApp Templates" to create message templates
• Connect WooCommerce or Shopify for automated order notifications

Setup Status

At any point during setup, you can see the Setup Status card showing green checkmarks for completed steps: Meta connected, WABA created, Phone number, System User Token, Phone verified, and Webhooks configured.

Creating Message Templates

To send the first message to a customer (outbound), you need an approved message template. After setup, click "Go to WhatsApp Templates" or navigate to WhatsApp Templates in the dashboard to create and submit templates for approval by Meta.

Troubleshooting

Phone number already in use

If your phone number is already registered with the WhatsApp app, you need to delete the account from the app first. Open WhatsApp → Settings → Account → Delete my account.

Meta Business Account not verified

Meta verification can take up to 24 hours. Check your email and SMS for verification codes. You can check the status at Meta Business Suite → Settings → Business Verification.

Popup blocked

If the Meta authorization popup is blocked by your browser, allow popups for the Bugalou dashboard and try again.

Starting over

If something went wrong, you can reconnect using the options on the setup page: "Choose Different Phone Number" (keeps your Meta account connection) or "Complete Fresh Start" (resets everything).

Multiple Phone Numbers

You can connect multiple WhatsApp phone numbers to the same Bugalou organization. Each phone number appears separately on the WhatsApp settings page. This is useful if you have different numbers for different departments, regions, or brands.

The number of WhatsApp connections is unlimited on all paid plans. You can connect as many WhatsApp phone numbers as you need.

Team Routing

After connecting WhatsApp, you can assign a default team per phone number. All new incoming WhatsApp conversations on that number will automatically be routed to the assigned team. On the WhatsApp setup completion page, you'll see a "Phone Numbers & Team Routing" section with a dropdown for each connected number.

This lets you route different numbers to different teams — for example, your sales number to the Sales team and your support number to the Support team.

For more advanced routing, you can create routing rules that route conversations based on keywords, time of day, or other conditions. See Teams Management for a complete overview.