Can I use one WhatsApp number for the Business app and the API?

Yes. Since February 2025, Meta has let businesses connect a number they already use on the WhatsApp Business app to the WhatsApp Business Platform, without leaving the app. Meta calls this API solutions for WhatsApp Business app users; its docs and most providers call it coexistence. It is set up through the signup of a provider Meta supports for this, such as InfiQ.

To qualify, the number must be on the WhatsApp Business app (not personal WhatsApp), the app must be version 2.24.17 or later, and the number needs a history of genuine use. It can't be connected to another provider at the same time, and it can't already be running on the platform on its own. Indian (+91) numbers have been eligible since May 2025.

Setup takes minutes. You log in with Facebook, enter your number, confirm your business profile, pick your Meta business portfolio and confirm from inside the app. You can choose to share up to six months of one-to-one chat history.

From then on, text, photos, videos and documents are mirrored both ways, with edits and deletes, and contact changes sync too. Group chats stay in the app and aren't synced. You can start a chat from the app with a normal message, but approved templates can only be sent from the platform.

There are limits. A coexistence number sends at a fixed 20 messages per second. It can't get the Official Business Account badge, and Meta's platform calling and platform-managed groups need a platform-only number. For now it connects to one provider at a time.

Pricing depends on where you send from. One-to-one messages from the app stay free and aren't bound by the 24-hour window. Messages from the platform follow Meta's per-message pricing. You can disconnect any time from the app under Settings › Account › Business Platform.