Before you start

Signing up for ONPAD takes a minute. Connecting WhatsApp is the part that needs preparation, and almost every problem people hit comes from one of the items on this page.

A phone number you can dedicate

This is the one that catches people out.

The number must not be active on any WhatsApp account. Not WhatsApp Messenger, not the WhatsApp Business app. When a number moves to the Cloud API, it leaves whichever app it was in, and the chat history in that app does not come with it.

So you have two sensible choices:

• Use a fresh number. A new SIM, a landline, or a toll-free number. Cleanest option, and nothing is lost.
• Move your existing business number. Works, but first export anything you need from the WhatsApp Business app, tell your team the app will stop working for that number, and then delete the WhatsApp account on that number before connecting.

Other requirements for the number:

• You must be able to receive an SMS or a voice call on it right now, for the one-time verification code.
• It must be a number you control. A number belonging to a customer, a supplier or a staff member's personal phone is a problem the day they leave.
• Landlines work, as long as you can answer the verification call.

If you connect a number that is still active in the WhatsApp Business app, Meta will refuse it. Delete the WhatsApp account on that number first, then wait a few minutes before trying again.

A Facebook account and Business Manager

Connecting WhatsApp goes through Meta's own flow, and that flow needs:

• A personal Facebook account to sign in with. This is just the login — your personal profile is not shown to customers.
• A Meta Business Manager (also called Business Portfolio). If you do not have one, Meta lets you create it during the connection flow, so you do not need to set it up in advance.

You will also create a WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) during the flow. That account belongs to you, lives in your Business Manager, and stays yours if you ever leave ONPAD.

Your business details

Have these ready, because Meta asks for them and customers see some of them:

• Legal business name. It should match how your business is actually registered. Meta checks this when you apply for a verified badge later.
• Business category — retail, education, health, and so on.
• A website. Not strictly required to connect, but Meta asks for it during business verification, and a business with no web presence is harder to verify.
• A business email and address.

The display name you choose for WhatsApp has its own rules: it must relate to your business, and Meta rejects names that are generic, misleading, or just a category like "Best Deals".

What you do not need

• You do not need a verified badge (the green tick) to start. It is a separate application, and messaging works without it.
• You do not need business verification to send your first messages. Meta lets an unverified business send to a limited number of customers so you can test. Verification raises that limit.
• You do not need to buy numbers from ONPAD. ONPAD does not sell phone numbers. You bring your own.
• You do not need a developer. The connection flow is a series of screens, not code.

If you are in India

Meta localised billing for India on 1 January 2026. Eligible businesses need to migrate their WhatsApp Business Account to INR billing by 31 December 2026, or message delivery can be disrupted from 1 January 2027.

This is between you and Meta — ONPAD does not control it and cannot do it for you. Check your WhatsApp Business Account in Meta Business Manager, and see What it costs.

Ready?

If you have a free number you can verify right now and a Facebook login, you have everything. Start at Create an account.