Telnyx WhatsApp Business API - curl

Installation

# curl is pre-installed on macOS, Linux, and Windows 10+

Setup

export TELNYX_API_KEY="YOUR_API_KEY_HERE"

All examples below use $TELNYX_API_KEY for authentication.

Error Handling

All API calls can fail with network errors, rate limits (429), validation errors (422), or authentication errors (401). Always handle errors in production code:

curl \
  -X POST \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TELNYX_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
      "from": "+19452940762",
      "to": "+18005551234",
      "type": "WHATSAPP",
      "whatsapp_message": {
        "type": "text",
        "text": { "body": "Hello from Telnyx!" }
      }
  }' \
  "https://api.telnyx.com/v2/messages/whatsapp"

Common error codes: 401 invalid API key, 403 insufficient permissions, 404 resource not found, 422 validation error (check field formats), 429 rate limited (retry with exponential backoff).

WhatsApp-Specific Errors

• 40008 — Meta catch-all error. Check template parameters, phone number formatting, and 24-hour window rules.
• 131047 — Message failed to send during the 24-hour window. The customer hasn't messaged you first (for non-template messages).
• 131026 — Recipient phone number is not a WhatsApp user.
• 132000 — Template parameter count mismatch. Ensure the number of parameters matches the template definition.
• 132015 — Template paused or disabled by Meta due to quality issues.

Important Notes

• Phone numbers must be in E.164 format (e.g., +13125550001). Include the + prefix and country code.
• Template messages can be sent anytime. Free-form (session) messages can only be sent within a 24-hour window after the customer last messaged you.
• Template IDs: You can reference templates by Telnyx UUID (template_id) instead of name + language. When template_id is provided, name and language are resolved automatically.
• Billing types: Template messages are billed as whatsapp_marketing, whatsapp_utility, whatsapp_authentication, or whatsapp_authentication_international based on category and destination.

Operational Caveats

• The sending phone number must be registered with a WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) and associated with a messaging profile.
• Templates must be in APPROVED status before they can be used for sending.
• Template names must be lowercase with underscores only (e.g., order_confirmation). No spaces, hyphens, or uppercase.
• When creating templates, provide realistic sample values for body parameters — Meta reviewers check these during approval.
• Category selection matters for billing: AUTHENTICATION templates get special pricing but must contain an OTP. UTILITY is for transactional messages. MARKETING for promotional content.
• Meta may reclassify your template category (e.g., UTILITY to MARKETING) which affects billing.

Reference Use Rules

Do not invent Telnyx parameters, enums, response fields, or webhook fields.

• If the parameter, enum, or response field you need is not shown inline in this skill, read references/api-details.md before writing code.
• Before using any operation in ## Additional Operations, read the optional-parameters section and the response-schemas section.
• Before reading or matching webhook fields beyond the inline examples, read the webhook payload reference.

Core Tasks

Send a WhatsApp template message

Send a pre-approved template message. Templates can be sent anytime — no 24-hour window restriction.

POST /messages/whatsapp

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
from	string (E.164)	Yes	WhatsApp-enabled phone number in +E.164 format
to	string (E.164)	Yes	Recipient phone number in +E.164 format
type	string	No	Must be WHATSAPP
whatsapp_message.type	string	Yes	Must be template
whatsapp_message.template.name	string	Yes*	Template name (e.g., order_confirmation)
whatsapp_message.template.language.code	string	Yes*	Language code (e.g., en_US)
whatsapp_message.template.template_id	string (UUID)	No	Telnyx template UUID. If provided, name and language are resolved from DB
whatsapp_message.template.components	array	No	Template parameter values
messaging_profile_id	string (UUID)	No	Messaging profile to use
webhook_url	string (URL)	No	Callback URL for delivery status updates

*Required unless template_id is provided.

# Send by template name + language
curl \
  -X POST \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TELNYX_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
      "from": "+19452940762",
      "to": "+18005551234",
      "type": "WHATSAPP",
      "whatsapp_message": {
        "type": "template",
        "template": {
          "name": "order_confirmation",
          "language": { "code": "en_US" },
          "components": [
            {
              "type": "body",
              "parameters": [
                { "type": "text", "text": "ORD-12345" },
                { "type": "text", "text": "March 15, 2026" }
              ]
            }
          ]
        }
      }
  }' \
  "https://api.telnyx.com/v2/messages/whatsapp"

# Send by Telnyx template_id (no name/language needed)
curl \
  -X POST \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TELNYX_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
      "from": "+19452940762",
      "to": "+18005551234",
      "type": "WHATSAPP",
      "whatsapp_message": {
        "type": "template",
        "template": {
          "template_id": "019cd44b-3a1c-781b-956e-bd33e9fd2ac6",
          "components": [
            {
              "type": "body",
              "parameters": [
                { "type": "text", "text": "483291" }
              ]
            }
          ]
        }
      }
  }' \
  "https://api.telnyx.com/v2/messages/whatsapp"

Primary response fields:

• .data.id — Message UUID
• .data.to[0].status — queued, sent, delivered, failed
• .data.from.phone_number
• .data.type — WHATSAPP

Send a free-form WhatsApp text message

Send a text message within the 24-hour customer service window (customer must have messaged you first).

POST /messages/whatsapp

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
from	string (E.164)	Yes	WhatsApp-enabled phone number
to	string (E.164)	Yes	Recipient phone number
whatsapp_message.type	string	Yes	text
whatsapp_message.text.body	string	Yes	Message content

curl \
  -X POST \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TELNYX_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
      "from": "+19452940762",
      "to": "+18005551234",
      "type": "WHATSAPP",
      "whatsapp_message": {
        "type": "text",
        "text": { "body": "Your order has shipped!" }
      }
  }' \
  "https://api.telnyx.com/v2/messages/whatsapp"

List WhatsApp Business Accounts

Retrieve all WABAs associated with your Telnyx account.

GET /v2/whatsapp/business_accounts

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
page[number]	integer	No	Page number (default: 1)
page[size]	integer	No	Page size (default: 20)

curl \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TELNYX_API_KEY" \
  "https://api.telnyx.com/v2/whatsapp/business_accounts"

Primary response fields:

• .data[].id — Telnyx WABA UUID
• .data[].waba_id — Meta WABA ID
• .data[].name — Business name
• .data[].status — Account status
• .data[].country — WABA country

List templates

Retrieve message templates, optionally filtered by WABA.

GET /v2/whatsapp/message_templates

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
waba_id	string (UUID)	No	Filter by Telnyx WABA UUID (query parameter)
category	string	No	Filter by category: AUTHENTICATION, MARKETING, UTILITY
status	string	No	Filter by status: APPROVED, PENDING, REJECTED, DISABLED
page[number]	integer	No	Page number
page[size]	integer	No	Page size

curl \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TELNYX_API_KEY" \
  "https://api.telnyx.com/v2/whatsapp/message_templates?waba_id=019c1ff0-5c30-7f36-8436-730b1d0b0e56&status=APPROVED"

Primary response fields:

• .data[].id — Telnyx template UUID (use this as template_id when sending)
• .data[].name — Template name
• .data[].category — AUTHENTICATION, MARKETING, or UTILITY
• .data[].language — Language code (e.g., en_US)
• .data[].status — APPROVED, PENDING, REJECTED, DISABLED
• .data[].components — Template components (header, body, footer, buttons)

Create a message template

Submit a new template for Meta review. Templates typically take minutes to hours for approval.

POST /v2/whatsapp/message_templates

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
waba_id	string (UUID)	Yes	Telnyx WABA UUID (body parameter)
name	string	Yes	Lowercase with underscores only (e.g., order_update)
category	string	Yes	AUTHENTICATION, MARKETING, or UTILITY
language	string	Yes	Language code (e.g., en_US)
components	array	Yes	Template components

curl \
  -X POST \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TELNYX_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
      "waba_id": "019c1ff0-5c30-7f36-8436-730b1d0b0e56",
      "name": "order_shipped",
      "category": "UTILITY",
      "language": "en_US",
      "components": [
        {
          "type": "BODY",
          "text": "Your order {{1}} has been shipped and will arrive by {{2}}.",
          "example": {
            "body_text": [["ORD-12345", "March 20, 2026"]]
          }
        }
      ]
  }' \
  "https://api.telnyx.com/v2/whatsapp/message_templates"

Primary response fields:

• .data.id — Telnyx template UUID
• .data.name — Template name
• .data.status — Initially PENDING until Meta approves

List phone numbers

GET /v2/whatsapp/phone_numbers

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
waba_id	string (UUID)	No	Filter by Telnyx WABA UUID (query parameter)

curl \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TELNYX_API_KEY" \
  "https://api.telnyx.com/v2/whatsapp/phone_numbers?waba_id=019c1ff0-5c30-7f36-8436-730b1d0b0e56"

Primary response fields:

• .data[].phone_number — Phone number in E.164 format
• .data[].number_id — Meta phone number ID
• .data[].quality_rating — GREEN, YELLOW, or RED
• .data[].messaging_limit_tier — Current messaging tier

---

Webhook Verification

Telnyx signs webhooks with Ed25519. Each request includes telnyx-signature-ed25519 and telnyx-timestamp headers. Always verify signatures in production.

Webhooks

These webhook payload fields are inline because they are part of the primary integration path.

Message Delivery Update

Field	Type	Description
data.event_type	enum: message.sent, message.finalized	Delivery status event
data.payload.id	uuid	Message ID
data.payload.to[0].status	string	queued, sent, delivered, read, failed
data.payload.template_id	string	Telnyx template UUID (if template message)
data.payload.template_name	string	Template name (if template message)
data.payload.cost	object	Cost information
data.payload.errors	array	Error details if failed

Template Status Change

Configure webhook events on your WABA to receive template lifecycle notifications.

Field	Type	Description
event_type	string	whatsapp.template.approved, whatsapp.template.rejected, whatsapp.template.disabled
payload.template_id	string	Telnyx template UUID
payload.template_name	string	Template name
payload.status	string	New template status
payload.reason	string	Rejection/disable reason (if applicable)
payload.waba_id	string	WABA ID

Phone Number Quality Change

Field	Type	Description
event_type	string	whatsapp.phone_number.quality_changed
payload.phone_number	string	Phone number in E.164 format
payload.previous_quality_rating	string	Previous rating (GREEN, YELLOW, RED)
payload.new_quality_rating	string	New rating

Template Best Practices

• Naming: Use lowercase with underscores. Be descriptive (e.g., appointment_reminder, not msg1).
• Sample values: Provide realistic examples in the example field — Meta reviewers check these.
• Category selection:
  • AUTHENTICATION — OTP/verification codes only. Gets special pricing.
  • UTILITY — Transactional (order updates, shipping, account alerts).
  • MARKETING — Promotional content, offers, newsletters.
• Keep it concise: Meta prefers shorter templates. Avoid unnecessary formatting.
• Avoid prohibited content: No misleading claims, prohibited products, or URL shorteners in template body.
• Parameters: Use {{1}}, {{2}}, etc. for variable content. Always provide the correct number of parameters when sending.

Important Supporting Operations

Operation	Endpoint	Use Case
Get template details	GET /v2/whatsapp_message_templates/{id}	Check template status, view components
Get business profile	GET /v2/whatsapp/phone_numbers/{phone_number}/profile	View business display name, photo, description
Configure WABA settings	PATCH /v2/whatsapp/business_accounts/{id}/settings	Subscribe to template/account events

Additional Operations

Operation	Method	Endpoint	Use Case	Required Params
Send WhatsApp message	POST	/messages/whatsapp	Send template or free-form message	from, to, whatsapp_message
List WABAs	GET	/v2/whatsapp/business_accounts	List all business accounts	—
Get WABA	GET	/v2/whatsapp/business_accounts/{id}	Get WABA details	id
List templates	GET	/v2/whatsapp/message_templates	List templates with filtering	—
Get template	GET	/v2/whatsapp_message_templates/{id}	Get template details	id
Create template	POST	/v2/whatsapp/message_templates	Create new template	waba_id, name, category, language, components
List phone numbers	GET	/v2/whatsapp/phone_numbers	List WABA phone numbers	—
Get business profile	GET	/v2/whatsapp/phone_numbers/{phone_number}/profile	View profile info	phone_number
Update business profile	PATCH	/v2/whatsapp/phone_numbers/{phone_number}/profile	Update profile info	phone_number
Get WABA settings	GET	/v2/whatsapp/business_accounts/{id}/settings	View WABA settings/webhook config	id
Update WABA settings	PATCH	/v2/whatsapp/business_accounts/{id}/settings	Set webhook URL and events	id