Subscribe WABA Webhook

Verifying your webhook URL is not enough on its own — you also have to tell Meta which events to send you. This is called subscribing to webhook fields. The most important field is messages, which delivers all inbound customer messages. Without subscribing, Meta stays silent even after verification passes.

Where to subscribe#

Meta Dashboard → Your App → WhatsApp → Configuration → scroll to Webhook Fields → find messages → click Subscribe. The toggle turns blue and shows Subscribed.

What the fields do#

For a basic bot, you only need messages.

What happens after subscribing — full flow#

Customer sends "Hi" from their phone
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Meta receives it on their servers
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Meta POST to your webhook URL
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Your server receives the JSON payload
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Terminal: [INBOUND] Text from 919959623255: Hi
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Your code sends an auto-reply
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Terminal: [AUTO-REPLY] Sent to 919959623255
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Customer's phone receives: "You said: Hi"

Reference images#

Frequently asked#

Gotchas & common mistakes#