Can I send WhatsApp template broadcasts with Whatsable?
Send one approved WhatsApp template to a CSV list with Whatsable: map any columns, label recipients, test, schedule, choose Regular, Smart or Risk pacing, pause or cancel, and download the results.
Yes. A broadcast sends one approved template to a list of recipients from one of your WhatsApp Business numbers. You upload a CSV, match its columns to the template, send yourself a test, then launch now or schedule it. Whatsable paces the sending, because Meta throttles numbers that send faster than people read.
Broadcasts live under Broadcasts in the main menu of the Whatsable app (sign in). They are the main job of the Bulk Message plan, and they are also on Pro and Agency.
Before you start
- A plan with broadcasts. Broadcasts are on Bulk Message, Pro and Agency. The free tier has them too, but it includes only 2 contacts. See Plans.
- An approved template for the number you send from. See Message templates.
- An active number. A paused number cannot send.
- A CSV of recipients: a header row, one column with phone numbers, and one column for each value that changes per person. Up to 100,000 rows and 20 MB.
Who can send broadcasts
Every role can open Broadcasts and create one: an Owner, an Admin or a Member. Bulk Message has one user, the owner. Two limits apply to a Member whose Edit access is restricted (see Team roles):
- A Member limited to certain numbers cannot upload a recipient list, so cannot launch a broadcast.
- A Member limited to certain numbers or labels cannot download a broadcast's results CSV.
Create a broadcast
Open Broadcasts and click New broadcast. The broadcast takes two steps: Campaign setup, then Compose, schedule and launch.
Step one: Campaign setup
Under Campaign basics:
- Campaign name: an internal name for tracking. Recipients never see it.
- Send from: the number the broadcast sends from. Paused numbers cannot send.
- Labels (optional): each recipient's contact gets these labels after their message is sent. Recipients whose message fails are not labelled. You can pick only the labels offered on this number. On plans with the inbox, use them to find the recipients there later. See Labels.
Click Continue to message and recipients.
Step two: Compose, schedule and launch
1. Template. Pick the template to send. Only approved templates can be selected, and only templates of the sending number's WhatsApp Business Account appear. Two kinds of template cannot be sent as a broadcast: an authentication template, and a template with a Copy offer code button.
2. Recipients and variables. Upload one CSV. It gives the phone numbers and the values for your template.
Your columns can have any names. Whatsable matches them to the template for you:
- A column named
phone,phone_number,mobile,whatsapp,telefonoorcelular, among others, is taken as the phone column. - A column named
body1,body2(or1,2,var1,variable1) fills variable 1, variable 2, and so on. - A column named
visit_website0fills the end of the first dynamic website button.
If a match is wrong or missing, choose the column yourself under Match your columns. View sample CSV shows an example file you can download.
For each variable, choose Static (the same value for everyone) or Dynamic (taken from a CSV column). When a dynamic column has empty cells, you can type a value to send instead; without one, those rows are skipped. For a template with an image, video or document header, leave the link empty to send the file the template was approved with, or paste a public https link to send a different file.
Whatsable checks every row before you launch:
- Numbers without a + sign are treated as international numbers, and a + is added. If they are local numbers, tick They are local numbers. Add a country code and pick the country code.
- A number that is invalid, too short, too long, or shortened by a spreadsheet (like
9.1E+11) is skipped. For a shortened number, format the column as text and export the file again. - Duplicate numbers are sent once.
- See skipped rows lists every skipped row with its reason, and Download skipped rows saves them.
The preview, How it will land, shows the message built from a real row of your file.
3. Schedule. Choose Send now or Schedule for later. To schedule, pick the Date & time, the Time and the Timezone. The time zone starts as your browser's.
4. Delivery mode. Choose how fast the list drains. See Delivery modes.
5. Test, then launch. Click Launch now or Schedule broadcast. A dialog opens: Test, then launch (or Test, then schedule). Under Send a test, enter Your phone number and click Send test message. The test goes through the same number, template and variables as the campaign, using a row of your file, so you see the real message on a phone. A test is optional and billed at the same per-message rate. Then launch.
Save draft keeps the campaign under Drafts. It needs a name, a number, an approved template and the variable values first.
When you are over your contact limit
Your plan includes a number of unique contacts per billing cycle. When your organization has already used them all, step two shows Over your unique-contact limit: how many unique contacts you used out of your limit, and that extra unique contacts are billed as overage. The broadcast can still launch. The owner also sees Upgrade.
On the free tier the limit is 2 contacts. If you have contacts left, the broadcast launches, then pauses when it reaches the limit. If you have already used both contacts, the broadcast cannot launch. Subscribe to a plan to message someone new. See Plans.
Delivery modes
| Mode | How it sends | Settings |
|---|---|---|
| Regular (recommended, the default) | A fixed number of messages every minute, at a steady pace, until the list drains. No engagement check, so a bad list still drains at full pace. | Messages per minute: 1 to 60, default 3. |
| Smart (safest) | Sends a first batch, then sends the next batch only while the read rate stays at or above your target. If people stop reading, delivery waits until the read rate recovers. | Batch size: 1 to 20, default 5. Target read rate (%): 10 to 100, default 30. |
| Risk (unsafe) | Sends the whole list as fast as Meta allows, with no engagement checks. A per-number rate cap still applies. | You confirm Send to everyone at once and I accept the risk. |
Beside the settings, Whatsable rates your choice, from Well within safe limits to Likely to get blocked, and estimates how long the list takes once a CSV is uploaded.
Use Smart or a modest Regular pace for a large list, a cold list or a new number. Numbers that blast large lists get flagged or banned by Meta, and a banned number takes your inbox down with it.
Track a broadcast
The Broadcasts list has four tabs: Drafts, Upcoming, Ongoing and Previous. Each campaign shows its template, mode, status, recipients, and counts of Sent, Failed and Read.
A launched campaign moves to Upcoming, then to Ongoing when the first batch goes out. Click Open monitor to see its Progress (sent, failed and queued) and its Failures.
Whatsable holds a broadcast on its own in two cases, and says why on the broadcast:
- The sending number is paused. Delivery continues by itself once the number is active again.
- Your plan or billing no longer allows the send, for example when the number is over your plan. The broadcast is paused, and the reason shows on it.
Pause, resume and cancel
| You want to | Do this |
|---|---|
| Stop a broadcast that is sending, for now | Pause delivery. Click Resume delivery to continue. |
| Stop a scheduled broadcast before it starts | Cancel broadcast. A broadcast that has not started cannot be paused, only cancelled. |
| Stop a broadcast that is sending, for good | Pause delivery first, then Cancel broadcast. |
These actions are in the campaign's menu in the list and at the top of its monitor. Cancelling cannot be undone: recipients that were not sent stay unsent. Messages already sent are still billed.
To send the same campaign again, use Duplicate campaign. The copy keeps the name (with "(copy)"), the number, the template, the delivery mode, the variable values and the labels. Upload the recipient list again.
Download the results
Once a broadcast has launched, Download results CSV (in the list) or Results CSV (in the monitor) saves one row per recipient:
| Column | Holds |
|---|---|
phoneNumber | The recipient's number |
status | pending, attempting, sent, failed or skipped |
failureCode | The error code, when the send failed |
failureReason | The error in words, when the send failed |
sentAt | When the message was sent |
Failed rows keep their error code, so you can re-target them in a follow-up campaign.
After the broadcast
- Replies arrive in the shared inbox on Pro and Agency. Bulk Message has no inbox. See Team inbox.
- AI agent follow-ups do not start after a broadcast unless you turn on Also follow up after a broadcast on the agent. It is off by default. See AI agent configuration.
- Reports: on Pro and Agency, the Broadcasts tab of Analytics lists the broadcasts started in a date range, with recipients, sent, failed, read and read rate. See Analytics.
Broadcasts from the API and AI assistants
The API v1 creates and launches a broadcast in one request, now or at a time you set, and reads its progress and recipients. It also pauses and resumes a broadcast that is sending, and cancels one. The Whatsable MCP server lets an AI assistant do the same: ask "send spring_sale to everyone labeled VIP on Monday at 9:00", and later "pause it".
Related
Message templates
Create the template a broadcast sends.
Plans
Bulk Message, Pro and Agency, and how unique contacts are counted.
Team inbox
Answer the replies on Pro and Agency.
API v1: broadcasts
Create, read and cancel broadcasts from your own code.
FAQ
Which plans can send broadcasts?
Bulk Message, Pro and Agency. The free tier can too, up to its 2 contacts.
What columns does my CSV need?
A header row, a column of phone numbers, and a column for each value that changes per person. The names are up to you: Whatsable matches them to the template, and you can choose each column yourself under Match your columns.
Can I schedule a broadcast?
Yes. Choose Schedule for later and pick the date, time and time zone. Until it starts, you can cancel it.
Can I pause a broadcast?
Yes, while it is sending: Pause delivery, then Resume delivery. A scheduled broadcast that has not started can be cancelled but not paused.
Can I tag the people I broadcast to?
Yes. Pick Labels in Campaign setup. Each recipient's contact gets them after their message is sent.
Where do I see who received the message?
Open the broadcast and download the Results CSV. It lists each number with its status, any error, and when it was sent.
Why can't I pick my template?
Only approved templates of the sending number's WhatsApp Business Account appear. Authentication templates and templates with a Copy offer code button cannot be broadcast.