What people call a WhatsApp unofficial API is software that signs in to an ordinary WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business account the way WhatsApp Web does, by scanning the QR code under Linked devices, and then sends and reads messages for you. The official route is the WhatsApp Business Platform: Meta's Cloud API, used directly or through a Business Solution Provider (BSP), where conversations you start go out as Meta-approved templates and Meta bills each delivered template.
WhatsApp's documents are plain about the first route. The WhatsApp Business app terms bar applications that interact with the service without WhatsApp's "prior written consent", and the WhatsApp Help Center says bulk and automated messaging "have always been a violation of our Terms of Service". A QR tool can run for months without trouble. When a ban comes, the number every customer saved stops working on WhatsApp.
The official API is no shield either. The Business Messaging Policy covers Platform numbers too, and Meta can restrict a business that draws heavy negative feedback. The difference is where the risk comes from: on the Platform, from what you send and to whom, not from how you connect.
How each connection works
| Official: WhatsApp Business Platform | Unofficial: QR-code session | |
|---|---|---|
| Connection | Number registered on Meta's Cloud API, directly or via a BSP | Tool linked as a WhatsApp Web session of a phone's app |
| Permission | Meta's Platform terms and the Business Messaging Policy | None documented; the Business app terms require WhatsApp's written consent |
| Starting a chat | Approved template outside the 24-hour customer service window | Any message the tool can type |
| Meta fees | Per delivered template; R$0.3217 per marketing message to Brazil | None; you pay the tool's subscription |
| Events | Webhooks for incoming messages, statuses and errors | Whatever the tool reads from the session |
| Volume | 80 messages per second by default; tiered 24-hour limits on recipients outside the service window | No published limit; the vendors' manuals say volume raises the ban risk |
| Verified badge | Official Business Account can be requested | No Official Business Account for Business app numbers; the paid Meta Verified plan is a separate route |
| Enforcement | Warning, temporary blocks, account lock with appeal, removal | Account restricted or banned |
What WhatsApp's terms say
The document that applies depends on the app the QR tool is attached to.
- WhatsApp Terms of Service (consumer app, version for users outside the European Region, in effect since 4 January 2021) forbid "bulk messaging, auto-messaging, auto-dialing, and the like" and non-personal use "unless otherwise authorized by us". A company line on the personal app already breaks the second.
- WhatsApp Terms for WhatsApp Business App (version in effect since 23 September 2026) forbid serving the app to multiple devices over a network except through WhatsApp's own tools, using applications that interact with it without written consent, and offering software or APIs that work like it. A company whose account is terminated may not open another without written permission.
- WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy (updated 23 September 2026) governs both the Business app and the Platform: message people only if they gave you their number and opted in, and honor opt-outs made on or off WhatsApp.
WhatsApp has also warned vendors. Its help article on automated and bulk messaging says that since 7 December 2019 it takes legal action against those who engage in or assist that abuse, even on off-platform evidence such as a company's public claims about using WhatsApp in ways the terms forbid. Two open-source libraries for this kind of connection agree: the whatsapp-web.js README warns that "WhatsApp does not allow bots or unofficial clients on their platform", and Baileys discourages bulk or automated messaging.
Why numbers get banned
On a QR session, WhatsApp sees an app account behaving like a sender at scale, and its help center says it bans accounts with machine-learning classifiers. Vendors that sell QR connections document the risk themselves. Digisac's manual says its QR connection, WhatsApp Standard, is more exposed to bans because it is not an official WhatsApp Business API connection; BotConversa's help center rates the blocking risk higher on its QR connection and advises warming up new numbers.
On the Platform, the triggers are content and feedback: messages to people who never opted in, templates filed under the wrong category, recipients who block or report you. Meta's enforcement page describes a ladder: a warning, 1- or 3-day blocks on templates, 5-, 7- or 30-day blocks on all messages, an account lock lifted only by appeal, then permanent removal.
What you gain and what you give up
The Platform adds cost and rules. For Brazilian recipients today, Meta charges R$0.3217 per delivered marketing template and R$0.0350 per utility template sent outside the service window. Free-form replies inside the 24-hour customer service window are free until 30 September 2026; from 1 October 2026 Meta charges R$0.0350 for each one after the first 1,000 per number each month. Providers add a plan fee and sometimes a markup. In the catalog's model small-business scenario (2 operators, 1,000 service replies and 1,000 utility templates a month), the median monthly total among platforms with public prices is R$672.53; the WhatsApp API pricing guide breaks it down.
In return:
- Templates reviewed and categorized by Meta, the only permitted way to open a conversation or reopen one after 24 hours (how templates get approved).
- Webhooks, so a CRM, ERP or checkout reacts to messages and delivery status.
- Room to grow: 250 unique people per 24 hours outside the window for a new portfolio, 2,000 after a scaling path such as business verification, then 10,000, 100,000 and unlimited while quality holds.
- Badge eligibility. An Official Business Account shows a blue check (older guides say green tick) and needs 30 days on the Platform, a verified business portfolio, two-step verification and an approved display name. Meta Verified is a separate paid subscription, and WhatsApp says it does not guarantee a badge.
The QR route keeps what small teams like: no template review, no 24-hour window, no per-message fee, one flat price.
Platforms in the catalog that sell both
- BotConversa: the Starter plan uses a WhatsApp Web-style QR session without the official API; the Pro plan connects through the WhatsApp Business Platform, with coexistence.
- Digisac: the default connection, WhatsApp Standard, is a QR session; the official API is contracted separately (via 360dialog, Gupshup or Meta's Cloud API) and priced in a custom proposal.
The WABA Index ranking admits only platforms with a documented official path and scores each on its official plan: BotConversa on Pro, Digisac on the WABA proposal. QR-only products are not ranked (methodology).
Is the unofficial WhatsApp API cheaper than the official one?
Not necessarily. QR-code tools look cheaper because they pay Meta nothing per message, but the monthly plan is part of the price too, and several official providers start lower. The QR-code plans in this catalog are BotConversa (from R$199/month) and Digisac (from R$197/month). These platforms connect the official API and start below the cheapest of them:
| Platform | Price | Setup fee |
|---|---|---|
| Gupshup | No monthly fee, pay per message | No setup fee |
| Twilio | No monthly fee, pay per message | No setup fee |
| SendPulse | from R$95/month | No setup fee |
| Zenvia | from R$100/month | + R$649 one-time setup |
| Kommo | from $20/month | No setup fee |
What that comparison leaves out:
- On the official API, Meta charges per delivered template: R$0.0350 per utility template and R$0.3217 per marketing template in Brazil. Replies inside the 24-hour window are free until 30 September 2026; from 1 October Meta charges them after 1,000 free service messages per number per month.
- Plans with no monthly fee charge a fee per message on top of Meta's rates and come without an inbox for your agents.
- If WhatsApp blocks a number used through a QR-code tool, every sale that runs through that number stops; the sections above explain why that happens.
The pricing guide works out the full monthly cost of one standard scenario for every platform.
Coexistence: keeping the WhatsApp Business app on the same number
Many teams stay on QR tools to keep answering from the phone. Meta's answer is coexistence: a WhatsApp Business app number is onboarded to the Cloud API through a partner that supports it, and both stay active. Per Meta's documentation:
- The app must be version 2.24.17 or later; onboarding runs through the partner's Embedded Signup.
- Contacts and the last 6 months of chats can be synced, and new messages are mirrored both ways.
- Messages sent from the app stay free; API messages follow Cloud API pricing.
- Broadcast lists, disappearing and view-once messages and live location are switched off; WhatsApp for Windows and WearOS stop working as companions.
- Throughput is fixed at 20 messages per second.
Catalog cards that document coexistence: 360dialog, Blip Go, BotConversa (Pro), Digisac (via 360dialog), Huggy, Manychat (beta), WATI and Zenvia. Support can depend on the plan, so check the card.
How to migrate from a QR tool
- Check which app holds the number. Coexistence starts from the WhatsApp Business app; a number on the personal app moves there first.
- Choose a provider that supports coexistence if you want to keep the app (how to choose a BSP); for the API itself, see how the WhatsApp Cloud API works.
- Prepare the Meta side: a business portfolio, business verification and a display name that matches the brand.
- Log the QR tool out under Linked devices, so two systems aren't answering the same chats.
- Onboard the number. With coexistence, the app and synced history stay. Without it, Meta requires deleting the WhatsApp account on the number first, the chat history is lost, and the number can take up to 3 minutes to become available.
- Rewrite outbound messages as templates and get them approved before switching the old tool off.
- Clean the list. Keep contacts with a record of opt-in, start with customers who write to you (replies inside their 24-hour window need no template), and let the messaging limit grow instead of loading an old broadcast list on day one.
- Connect webhooks to the CRM or order system and confirm status events arrive before the first campaign.
Related guides
- WhatsApp Business API in Brazil
- WhatsApp API pricing in Brazil
- How the WhatsApp Cloud API works
- Choosing a WhatsApp BSP
- WhatsApp message templates
- WhatsApp platforms ranked for Brazil
About this guide
Written by the editorial team of WABA Index, an independent catalog of WhatsApp Business platforms for companies selling to customers in Brazil. No platform pays for its position or a mention, and this page has no affiliate links.
Methodology
On 24 September 2026 the editors read WhatsApp's terms, policy and help articles, Meta's developer documentation (Cloud API, messaging limits, enforcement, pricing, coexistence, migration, Official Business Accounts), two open-source library READMEs and BotConversa's and Digisac's help pages. Meta rates and platform facts come from the catalog data and update with it. Nothing was tested hands-on, and no number was connected to any tool.
Last updated
24 September 2026: WhatsApp's terms and policy and Meta's documentation re-read, Meta's service-message charge from 1 October 2026 added, BotConversa and Digisac facts checked against their cards.
FAQ
Is WhatsApp Web itself unofficial?
No. WhatsApp Web is a WhatsApp feature for a person using their own account. The problem starts when third-party software drives the session.
Does the official API guarantee my number won't be banned?
No. The Business Messaging Policy applies to Platform numbers, and Meta can restrict a business that messages people without opt-in. The Platform adds a documented enforcement process with appeals.
Can I run bulk campaigns on the official API?
Yes: marketing templates to people who opted in, within your messaging limit, paid per delivered message.
Will I lose my chat history if I move to the API?
With coexistence, contacts and the last 6 months of chats can be synced and the app keeps working. A full migration deletes the WhatsApp account on the number first, and its history goes with it.
Is an unofficial WhatsApp API illegal in Brazil?
This guide covers WhatsApp's contract terms, not Brazilian law. Under them the usual consequence is losing the account, and WhatsApp says it takes legal action against companies that engage in or assist automated or bulk messaging.