Carousel Template
A carousel template is a WhatsApp Business API marketing template that carries up to ten horizontally swipeable cards inside a single message. Each card has its own media (image or video), its own body text and up to two buttons, all sitting under one shared message bubble. It turns a flat broadcast into a mini product gallery your customer can flick through inside the chat — ideal for showcasing a range of products, plans, offers or listings without sending ten separate messages.
In one line
A carousel template packs 2–10 swipeable cards (each with its own image/video, text and buttons) into one WhatsApp marketing message. It bills once as a delivered marketing message, needs approval like any template, and every card must follow the same structure.What a carousel template actually is
Structurally, a carousel template is a standard marketing template with an optional header body plus a 'carousel' component holding an array of cards. WhatsApp allows between 2 and 10 cards per carousel. Every card must be identical in shape — if the first card has an image header and one quick-reply plus one call-to-action button, all cards must have an image header and the same button layout. You cannot mix a video card with image cards, and you cannot give one card three buttons while another has one. Each card carries its own media asset, its own body text (up to 160 characters), and up to two buttons chosen from quick reply, URL, or phone-number call-to-action types. The parent message can also include a short introductory body above the cards to frame the whole thing.
- 2 to 10 cards per carousel, all with matching structure
- Each card: one media header (image or video), body text up to 160 characters, and up to two buttons
- Buttons per card can be quick reply, visit-website (URL), or call-phone-number
- An optional intro body sits above the cards to set context
- Category is Marketing — carousels are not available for utility or authentication templates
Why carousel templates matter for Indian businesses
On the WhatsApp Business API, attention is scarce and every marketing send costs money. A carousel lets you present a whole catalogue slice — five sarees, four EMI plans, three property listings, six restaurant combos — in one delivered message instead of flooding the customer with a stream of separate broadcasts. That matters commercially because since 1 July 2025 Meta bills per delivered message by category, and a carousel counts as a single delivered marketing message no matter how many cards it holds. So the customer gets a richer, more browsable experience and you still pay for one marketing message rather than ten. For D2C brands, real-estate teams, travel operators and retailers running festival or launch campaigns, that combination of higher engagement and controlled cost is exactly why the format exists.
- One delivered marketing message covers up to ten cards — richer content, single charge
- Per-card buttons let each product deep-link to its own landing page or trigger its own reply flow
- Higher tap-through than a single static image because customers can browse in-chat
- Deep-linked URL buttons can carry UTM parameters so you can attribute clicks per card
How to build and send one
You author a carousel template in the template manager, submit it for approval, and only then can you send it in a campaign. During authoring you upload sample media and sample values for every variable in every card, because Meta reviews the whole carousel — intro body, each card's copy, each card's media and each button — as one unit. If any single card breaks the rules, the entire template is rejected, not just that card. Once approved, the template gets a status you can send against; at send time you supply the runtime media handles and variable values per card. Personalisation works the same way as any template: variables like {{1}} in a card body are filled per recipient. In InfiQ you set carousels up through the campaign builder with a live preview of every card, and pricing follows Meta's live marketing rate card with transparent ₹ pricing (ex-GST), so you can see the per-message cost before you launch.
- Draft the carousel, add sample media and sample values, submit for approval
- Meta reviews the entire carousel as one unit — one bad card fails the whole template
- After approval, send it in a campaign supplying per-card media and variable values
- InfiQ's campaign builder previews every card and shows Meta's live marketing rate in ₹ (ex-GST)
Common mistakes to avoid
The most frequent reasons carousels get rejected or underperform come down to inconsistency and policy. Teams try to give cards different button counts or mix media types — that fails validation instantly because all cards must share the same structure. Others write body copy over the 160-character limit, forget to supply sample media for review, or use promotional language in a template they mistakenly filed under a non-marketing category. A subtler mistake is treating a carousel as a way to dodge cost expectations: it is a marketing template, so it can only be delivered to users who have opted in, and it consumes your per-user marketing message limits like any other marketing send. Finally, some senders overload a carousel with ten near-identical cards; curation beats volume, because a tight set of three or four relevant cards usually out-converts a bloated ten-card wall.
- Cards with mismatched button counts or mixed media types — this fails validation
- Body text over 160 characters per card, or missing sample media at submission time
- Filing a promotional carousel under the wrong category, then getting rejected
- Sending without opt-in, or ignoring per-user marketing limits — carousels are marketing messages
- Padding to ten cards when three or four well-chosen cards convert better
Frequently asked questions
How many cards can a WhatsApp carousel template have?+
Is a carousel template charged per card or per message?+
What can each carousel card contain?+
Can I use a carousel template for utility or authentication messages?+
Do carousel templates need Meta approval?+
Why did my carousel template get rejected?+
Can each card link to a different product page?+
Do carousel sends count against my marketing message limits?+
Launch a carousel campaign the right way
InfiQ's campaign builder previews every card, keeps your carousel structure compliant, and shows Meta's live marketing rate in ₹ (ex-GST) before you hit send — book a demo and see it on your own catalogue.