ExplainerPrices checked 2 October 2026
What is Wati? How the WhatsApp Business API platform works
What Wati is, how it differs from the WhatsApp Business app, what it does, who it suits and what it costs. Plain answers, checked October 2026.
Key takeaways
- Wati is software that sits on top of the official WhatsApp Business API and gives a team one shared inbox, broadcasts, chatbots and integrations.
- You need something like Wati because the API has no app of its own: it is a connection, not an interface.
- It suits brands that message customers at scale. Very small businesses are usually fine on the free WhatsApp Business app.
- Plans start at $69 a month in the US, plus a fee for most messages you send.
Wati is a platform for running WhatsApp as a business channel. It connects to the official WhatsApp Business API and gives your team what the API itself does not: a shared inbox, bulk campaigns, chatbots and links to your store or CRM. You pay Wati a monthly plan and a fee for most messages you send.
Why a platform like Wati exists #
WhatsApp offers businesses two products, and they are very different:
| WhatsApp Business app | WhatsApp Business API | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | Per message, through a provider |
| Who replies | One person, on a phone and a few linked devices | A whole team, from one shared number |
| Bulk messages | Small broadcast lists | Approved templates sent to large opted-in lists |
| Automation | Greeting and away messages, quick replies | Chatbots, triggers and flows |
| Integrations | None | CRM, store, helpdesk and more |
| Interface | The app | None of its own: you need a platform |
That last row is the point. The API is a connection, not an app. To actually read and send messages, run campaigns or build a bot, you need software on top of it. Wati is one of several options, alongside platforms like respond.io, SleekFlow and Gallabox (compared in our Wati alternatives guide).
What Wati does #
- Shared team inbox. Several agents answer from one WhatsApp number, with chat assignment, tags, round-robin routing and a mobile app. Instagram messages can sit in the same inbox.
- Broadcasts. Send approved template messages to segments of opted-in customers, schedule them, and retarget people based on whether they read or replied.
- Chatbots and automation. No-code chatbots, keyword triggers, welcome and out-of-office messages, and WhatsApp Flows for collecting details inside the chat.
- Commerce. WhatsApp catalogues, catalogue checkout and order management, with Shopify and WooCommerce integrations.
- Integrations. HubSpot, Zoho, Salesforce, Google Sheets, Zapier and an API with webhooks, depending on plan.
- Click-to-WhatsApp ads. Analytics for ads that open a WhatsApp chat. Conversations that start from these ads are free of message fees.
- AI features. AI-drafted replies for agents and an AI bot that answers from your knowledge base, both metered per 1,000 uses beyond the plan's allowance.
Feature list from Wati's public plan data, checked 2 October 2026. Some features depend on plan.
What Wati costs #
Three plans, priced by region. In the US: Growth at $69, Pro at $149 and Business at $349 a month on monthly billing, or $59, $119 and $279 billed annually. Each has a 7-day free trial.
On top of the plan you pay per message, by country and category. For US numbers on Growth or Pro, a marketing message costs $0.0400 and a utility message $0.0061. Since 1 October 2026, replies to customers are charged too, after the first 1,000 a month. The full picture, with a worked example, is in our Wati pricing guide.
Who Wati is for #
A good fit: ecommerce and D2C brands sending order updates, abandoned cart reminders and campaigns; service businesses handling enquiries with a small team; anyone who has outgrown replying to WhatsApp from one phone.
Probably not needed: a business sending a few dozen messages a week. The free WhatsApp Business app does that well.
Worth comparing first: teams that run many channels besides WhatsApp, or that broadcast to very large lists, should price Wati against an omnichannel platform before choosing.
The software is the easy part #
Setting up Wati itself is straightforward. What decides whether it pays off is everything around it: clean customer data, opt-ins you can rely on, templates Meta approves, and messages triggered by what customers actually do rather than a campaign calendar.
A WhatsApp platform with poor data behind it just sends the wrong message faster. Get the data and the triggers right first, then the tool.
FAQs
Is Wati the official WhatsApp?
No. Wati is a separate company whose software connects to the official WhatsApp Business API, which Meta runs. You keep a verified WhatsApp Business account; Wati provides the inbox, automation and campaign tools on top.
What is the difference between Wati and the WhatsApp Business app?
The WhatsApp Business app is free and built for one person replying from a phone. Wati uses the WhatsApp Business API, so many team members can share one number, send approved broadcasts to large lists, run chatbots and connect to a CRM or store.
Is Wati free?
No. There is a 7-day free trial, then a monthly plan plus per-message fees. See our Wati pricing guide for the full breakdown.
Does Wati work with Shopify?
Yes. Wati offers a Shopify integration as a $4.99 a month add-on, alongside integrations with WooCommerce, HubSpot, Zoho, Salesforce, Google Sheets and Zapier, depending on plan.
More from the blog
Related: WhatsApp marketing services · How retention marketing works · All posts