To build a WhatsApp chatbot in Python, connect a Meta business account to the official WhatsApp Cloud API, expose a publicly reachable HTTPS webhook for incoming events, and send replies through the API. This tutorial walks through a small text-in, text-out bot using Flask and direct HTTPS requests. You will need a Meta business portfolio, a WhatsApp Business Account (WABA), a business phone number, and API credentials before writing the Python code.
What you need before you start
Meta’s WhatsApp Cloud API documentation describes the official WhatsApp Business Platform API and its required business assets. These are platform prerequisites, not Python packages.
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- A Meta business portfolio and a WhatsApp Business Account (WABA).
- A business phone number connected to the WABA.
- The phone-number ID and an access token from Meta’s setup flow.
- A Python application with an HTTPS callback URL that Meta can reach.
Use Meta’s current setup instructions to confirm the required permissions and API details for your account. Do not place access tokens, app secrets, or webhook verification strings in source code, screenshots, or a public repository.
How the chatbot works
The bot has two separate network paths. Your Python app sends replies to the Cloud API, while Meta delivers incoming message and status events to your webhook. The webhook must be reachable over HTTPS with a valid certificate, and your app must be subscribed to the WABA to receive its events. See Meta’s webhook documentation for configuration details.
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- Meta sends a verification request when you configure the callback URL.
- After verification, Meta sends event notifications to the webhook when subscribed events occur.
- Your app checks that an event contains an inbound text message and chooses a reply.
- Your app makes an authenticated request to the messages endpoint using the phone-number ID.
Set up a Python project and secrets
Install Flask and an HTTP client in a virtual environment:
python -m venv .venv
# macOS or Linux
source .venv/bin/activate
# Windows PowerShell
.venvScriptsActivate.ps1
pip install Flask requestsSet configuration in your shell or deployment platform rather than hard-coding it. The example below reads the values from environment variables:
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export WHATSAPP_TOKEN="your-access-token"
export PHONE_NUMBER_ID="your-phone-number-id"
export VERIFY_TOKEN="a-random-webhook-verification-string"
export APP_SECRET="your-meta-app-secret"The verification string is a value you choose and also enter in Meta’s webhook configuration. Keep it private, along with the token and app secret. Meta’s documentation says user tokens expire after 24 hours; system-user tokens may be configured to last up to 60 days or permanently, depending on configuration. Treat token lifetime as a setting to verify in your account, not as a guarantee, and plan a secure renewal process.
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Create app.py. The GET route handles Meta’s webhook verification handshake. The POST route processes notifications separately: a notification may be a status update or another event rather than an inbound user message, so the handler checks the nested structure before reading text.
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import os
import requests
from flask import Flask, abort, request
app = Flask(__name__)
VERIFY_TOKEN = os.environ["VERIFY_TOKEN"]
WHATSAPP_TOKEN = os.environ["WHATSAPP_TOKEN"]
PHONE_NUMBER_ID = os.environ["PHONE_NUMBER_ID"]
@app.get("/webhook")
def verify_webhook():
mode = request.args.get("hub.mode")
token = request.args.get("hub.verify_token")
challenge = request.args.get("hub.challenge")
if mode == "subscribe" and token == VERIFY_TOKEN and challenge:
return challenge, 200
abort(403)
@app.post("/webhook")
def receive_webhook():
payload = request.get_json(silent=True) or {}
for entry in payload.get("entry", []):
for change in entry.get("changes", []):
value = change.get("value", {})
for message in value.get("messages", []):
sender = message.get("from")
if not sender:
continue
if message.get("type") == "text":
text = message.get("text", {}).get("body", "").strip()
if not text:
continue
reply = choose_reply(text)
send_text(sender, reply)
else:
# Add explicit handling for media and other supported types.
pass
return "EVENT_RECEIVED", 200
def choose_reply(text):
normalized = text.casefold()
if normalized in {"hi", "hello", "hey"}:
return "Hello! How can I help?"
return "Thanks for your message. What would you like help with?"
def send_text(recipient, text):
# Select the current Graph API version from Meta's documentation.
url = f"https://graph.facebook.com/{os.environ['GRAPH_API_VERSION']}/{PHONE_NUMBER_ID}/messages"
headers = {
"Authorization": f"Bearer {WHATSAPP_TOKEN}",
"Content-Type": "application/json",
}
payload = {
"messaging_product": "whatsapp",
"to": recipient,
"type": "text",
"text": {"body": text},
}
response = requests.post(url, headers=headers, json=payload, timeout=15)
response.raise_for_status()
if __name__ == "__main__":
app.run(host="0.0.0.0", port=8000)Set GRAPH_API_VERSION using the version shown in Meta’s current documentation; it is intentionally not fixed in this example. The URL uses the phone-number ID, not the business phone number itself. Meta’s messages reference describes the request endpoint and payload.
This is a teaching example, not a deployed or tested service. It omits production safeguards such as signature validation, structured logging, durable processing, and application-specific error handling. Add those before using the bot with real customers. In particular, validate webhook authenticity using Meta’s current guidance before trusting event contents.
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Configure and verify the webhook
- Run the Flask app locally and make its callback path,
/webhook, reachable from the public internet over HTTPS with a valid certificate. A local development tunnel can provide reachability, but choose and configure one yourself; the important requirement is public HTTPS access. - In Meta’s app and WhatsApp setup, enter the callback URL and the same verification string used for
VERIFY_TOKEN. - Complete the GET verification handshake. Meta’s request should receive the challenge value back with a successful response; a mismatch in the string or route prevents verification.
- Subscribe the app to the WABA and the relevant message events using Meta’s current configuration flow.
- Send a test message to the configured business number and inspect the POST payload and application logs. Confirm the bot handles a message event without treating status notifications as messages.
Webhook payloads include account and phone-number metadata alongside event-specific data. Status notifications can represent sent, delivered, read, failed, or deleted states; they are not user messages to answer. Consult Meta’s webhook payload reference when extending the parser.
Test the outbound API request
Once the callback is configured, send a message from a test conversation and verify that the webhook receives a text message and that the API request succeeds. The example raises an error for unsuccessful HTTP responses; in a real app, log the response status and safe diagnostic details without recording tokens or unnecessary message content. A successful request only confirms the API accepted the send request; use subsequent status events to track delivery state.
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Prepare the bot for launch
Follow the template rule for business-initiated messages
Meta’s WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy says businesses may initiate conversations only with an approved message template. Design outbound workflows accordingly, and consult the live policy for the applicable rules rather than assuming a free-form reply can start a conversation.
Check current costs and API settings
WhatsApp Business API fees follow Meta’s rate card, and the terms allow rate-card updates. Check the current region-specific pricing information before estimating operating costs; a static figure can become misleading as pricing changes. The API version, token permissions, and account-specific setup details can also change, so use Meta’s live documentation during configuration.
Make event handling resilient
- Handle missing fields, unsupported message types, and non-message events without crashing the request handler.
- Return promptly to webhook deliveries; move slow work to a background queue if the bot later performs substantial processing.
- Make processing safe against repeated deliveries by tracking event identifiers or otherwise preventing duplicate replies. Confirm current delivery and retry behavior in Meta’s webhook documentation for the API configuration you use.
- Rotate any token or secret that has been exposed, and keep production secrets in a managed environment rather than source control.
- Run the app behind a stable HTTPS endpoint with monitoring and uptime appropriate for the service.
Direct API calls or a Python wrapper?
Direct HTTP requests, as shown here, keep the request and event-handling logic visible and under your control. A Python wrapper can reduce some integration work. PyWa is a third-party framework, not an official Meta Python SDK; its documentation describes integrations for Flask and FastAPI.
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Quick Recap
| Approach | What you implement | Fit |
|---|---|---|
| Direct HTTPS calls | Your app handles webhook routes, payload checks, API requests, and error handling directly. | Useful when you want a small dependency footprint and explicit control of the integration. |
| PyWa | The wrapper provides an abstraction over parts of the WhatsApp integration; the exact responsibilities depend on the framework and configuration. | Consider it if you want an abstraction that fits an existing Flask or FastAPI app. See PyWa’s documentation. |
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