Connect WhatsApp Business.
Every customer message coming into your WhatsApp Business number ends up in the same CRM thread as your emails and SMS. One unified inbox per lead. No more flicking between apps.
This is not a launch step
WhatsApp used to sit inside the six onboarding steps and it held people up, because it cannot be set up until the rest of your CRM is live. Get your leads flowing first. Come back to this whenever you want customer WhatsApp chats landing in your CRM thread, and tell us when you do so we can turn it on at our end.
Watch this first
What you do
- Log into your CRM and go to Settings → WhatsApp Business
- Complete the WhatsApp purchase inside HighLevel (one-time setup, then metered messaging fees billed through HighLevel)
- Within a few minutes, you'll get a connection request on your WhatsApp Business app from Meta
- Open it, tap Approve. Done.
The connection happens on your phone
Meta sends the connection request directly to the WhatsApp Business app on your phone. If you don't see it within 30 minutes, force-close the app and reopen. Still nothing, hit reply on the onboarding email and we'll trigger it again from our side.
Common questions on this step
I don't have WhatsApp Business yet, only personal WhatsApp.
Reply to the onboarding email and we'll send a two-minute walkthrough to create one. WhatsApp Business is a separate free app from WhatsApp Messenger. You can run it on the same phone using a different number, or on a second phone, or via WhatsApp Web. Setting one up adds about a day to your onboarding timeline.
Why is there a setup fee for this and not the other steps?
Meta charges per WhatsApp Business API connection, and the setup runs through HighLevel's billing rather than a separate invoice from us. The one-off setup covers the connection plus our verification and template approval time. Ongoing messaging is billed through HighLevel on a metered basis (per-message conversation pricing set by Meta).
Can I still use WhatsApp Business normally on my phone after this is connected?
Yes, exactly the same. Connecting it to the CRM doesn't change anything in your WhatsApp Business app. You see messages there as usual. The CRM just gets a copy so all your conversations are searchable and tagged to the right lead.
What happens if I reply from the CRM instead of my phone?
The customer sees it as a normal WhatsApp message from your business number. They can't tell whether you typed it on your phone or in the CRM. Both work. We recommend the CRM for typed replies during business hours and your phone for quick voice notes on the go.
I don't want to use WhatsApp for business. Can I skip this step?
Yes. WhatsApp is optional. Reply "skip WhatsApp" on the onboarding email and we'll mark Step 3 as done. Your pipeline still works fully via email + SMS. You can come back and add WhatsApp anytime.
More FAQs in the full FAQ section.