The WhatsApp integration brings the WhatsApp conversations your team has with clients into Rex. Messages appear on the matching contact record, so the whole conversation history sits alongside your calls, emails and notes, and stays with the agency even if an agent moves on.
This article covers what the integration does, what you need before you connect, the ways you can set it up, and what changes in the WhatsApp Business app when you connect.
What Is the WhatsApp Integration?
Once your agency connects its WhatsApp Business account, WhatsApp messages with your contacts are recorded in Rex automatically. You'll see:
- Messages your clients send you
- Messages your team sends from the WhatsApp Business app
- Photos in the conversation, plus a label for any voice notes and documents
Messages appear on the contact record in Rex CRM and in Rex Pocket. Your team keeps using the WhatsApp Business app exactly as they do now.
❗ Please Note: The integration is read-only. You can't send, reply to or start a WhatsApp conversation from Rex. Your team still replies in WhatsApp.
❗ Please Note: The WhatsApp integration is in open beta. It's available to every agency at no extra cost, but some details may still change. If something doesn't look right, contact Rex Support.
What Do I Need Before I Connect?
- The WhatsApp Business app on the number you want to connect. Personal WhatsApp can't be connected. If your number is on personal WhatsApp, move it to WhatsApp Business first.
- WhatsApp Business version 2.24.17 or later. Update the app on the phone if needed.
- A personal Facebook login. You'll sign in to Facebook during setup. Meta may not accept a work-only account.
- The phone that runs WhatsApp Business, so you can approve the connection on it.
- 🔒 An admin with the privilege to manage integrations in Rex.
❗ Please Note: Numbers that only run through a WhatsApp provider such as Twilio or WATI, without the WhatsApp Business app, aren't supported.
Can We Connect One Shared Number or One Number per Agent?
Either, or both:
- One shared office number - connect it once, then choose which team members can see its conversations in Rex.
- One number per agent - connect each agent's own WhatsApp Business number as its own connection. Each agent sees their own conversations.
- Both - connect a shared office number and agents' own numbers to the same Rex account.
For the connection steps, see - Connecting Your WhatsApp Business Account.
A principal can see every agent's conversations by being given access to each number. For how to choose who sees each number's messages, see - Choosing Who Sees WhatsApp Messages.
A shared number can be used from the main phone and up to 4 linked devices, such as WhatsApp Web. Rex records replies from all of them, but can't show which person sent each one.
What Changes in the WhatsApp Business App When We Connect?
Connecting uses Meta's official connection for the WhatsApp Business app, so your number stays on your phone and the app keeps working. WhatsApp does change a few things when a number is connected:
- Broadcast lists are turned off. Existing ones become read-only.
- Disappearing messages, view once and live location stop working in one-to-one chats.
- Linked devices such as WhatsApp Web, desktop or tablet are disconnected and need to be linked again.
- Group chats aren't brought into Rex.
Calls and everything else in the app work as before.
❗ Please Note: If your agency relies on broadcast lists to message many clients at once, be aware they'll stop working when you connect. Rex doesn't have a WhatsApp broadcast option to replace them.
Can We Bring In Conversations From Before We Connected?
Yes. When you connect, you can choose to bring in up to six months of past conversations for contacts Rex can match, including photos and documents. WhatsApp asks you to approve this on the phone running WhatsApp Business.
Photos, voice notes and documents older than about 30 days won't open in Rex, because WhatsApp deletes them after that. The message itself still shows, and you can open the file on the phone instead.
Is There a Video Guide?
Yes. Watch the Rex + WhatsApp Video Guide for a walkthrough of connecting, approving on the phone and viewing conversations in Rex.
❓ FAQs
Does it cost anything?
No. The WhatsApp integration is included with Rex CRM.
Can agents reply to WhatsApp messages from Rex?
No. Rex records the conversation, but replies are still sent from WhatsApp.
Will our number stop working on our phone?
No. The number stays on your phone and the WhatsApp Business app keeps working as before.
Can we connect personal WhatsApp?
No. Only the WhatsApp Business app can be connected.
Is it available in Australia, New Zealand and the UK?
Yes. It's available to every agency in all three regions.
Is WhatsApp available in Rex Pocket?
Yes. WhatsApp messages show on the contact record in Pocket. The connection is set up in Rex CRM.