How to Make a WhatsApp Link With a Pre-Filled Message

This guide covers the format, the encoding rules, a worked example, where the link belongs, and the cases where a link is not enough. It is written for anyone who needs a WhatsApp link: an owner putting a button on a website, an HR or payroll lead sending a standard first message, or an employee sharing a work number with a client.

The rule, and where it comes from

A pre-filled WhatsApp link is built in one fixed pattern. The base is https://wa.me/. After it comes the full phone number, written as country code first and then the national number. The message is optional. It is attached with ?text= and written in a form that a browser can read. WhatsApp documents this click-to-chat pattern publicly, and third-party tools follow the same rules when they build links for you.

No law dictates the link format. The legal question is different. Before you message anyone on WhatsApp, you need their permission. Meta's WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy is the rulebook for businesses using the WhatsApp Business app and the WhatsApp Business Platform. Under it, a number that is simply visible on your website does not count as permission. The person has to start the conversation or give clear consent to be contacted. Where the General Data Protection Regulation applies, which is Regulation (EU) 2016/679, consent must also be specific and informed. A link that opens a chat is a tool. Whether the message you send afterwards is lawful depends on the consent behind it.

How the link is built, step by step

The steps below are the same whether you build the link by hand or use the free calculator on this page. Work through them in order, because a mistake in the number breaks the whole link.

1. Write the number in full international form. Start with the country code. Remove the plus sign, any leading zero that belongs to the local format, spaces, brackets and dashes. An Indian mobile written as +91 98765 43210 becomes 919876543210. A UK mobile written locally as 07700 900123 drops the zero and gains the country code 44, giving 447700900123.
2. Attach the digits to the base. The result is https://wa.me/ followed directly by those digits, with nothing else in the path.
3. Write the message in plain words. Keep it short and tie it to the place where the link appears, such as a product page or invoice reminder. The text becomes part of the URL, so avoid putting names, account numbers or other personal details in it.
4. Encode the message. Replace each space with %20. Replace a comma with %2C, an apostrophe with %27, a question mark with %3F, an ampersand with %26 and a line break with %0A. Some generators use a plus sign for spaces, but %20 is the form most guides and WhatsApp's own pattern rely on, so use it when you build by hand.
5. Add the text tail. Append ?text= and then the encoded message. Use a question mark, not an ampersand, because there is no earlier parameter in the link.
6. Test on a phone and on a computer. Tap the link on a phone with WhatsApp installed, then open it on a desktop. Check that the chat opens with the right number and that the message text is complete.

Worked example with real numbers

Take two businesses, one in the United Kingdom and one in India. Both want a button that opens a chat with a pre-filled first message. The phone numbers below are examples written in the form each business would publish, not real customer lines.

Notice what changed between the written number and the link. The UK number lost its leading zero and gained 44. The Indian number lost its plus sign and the spaces. In both cases the message was written first and then encoded, so the comma and the spaces survived the trip into the URL. If you are unsure, paste the finished link into a browser address bar. If it loads a chat with the right number, the number is correct.

Where to place the link

The same link works in several places, but each place has a different job.

On a website, use the link as a button or a text link beside the contact details. Put it where the visitor already has a question, such as next to a price table or a delivery policy, not in the page footer alone. The customer taps it on a phone and the chat opens. On a desktop, the chat opens in WhatsApp Web or the desktop app, depending on what the visitor has set up, so test both.

In paid ads, the pre-filled message matters more. Meta's ad formats can open a WhatsApp chat with a pre-filled message when someone taps. In that case, the customer's own message counts as the opening move in the conversation. You can then reply inside the customer care window, which is 24 hours from their last message. Anything you send outside that window needs prior opt-in from the person, which is covered in the cases below.

On a QR code, print the link as a scannable image on flyers, shop windows, invoices or event banners. Test the printed code with a second phone before the print run. Remember that a printed QR code is fixed. If you change the number or the message later, the printed code still points to the old version, so you must reprint it or use a short link that you can redirect.

For a business account on a phone, the WhatsApp Business app can generate its own short link under Settings, then Business Tools, then Short Link. That short link hides the full number. It is useful where space is tight, such as an Instagram bio, but it does not replace the pre-filled text option built with the pattern above.

Cases that change the answer

The format stays the same in most situations, but four cases change what you should do.

The first case is the account type. Personal and business WhatsApp numbers use the same public link pattern. The business account adds features such as hours and catalogue, but the link itself does not change. If you run a team, decide early which number the link points to, because changing it later sends every existing button and printed code to the wrong place.

The second case is consent. A link on a page is not permission to send marketing. Under Meta's policy, displaying a number alone does not count as opt-in. A customer who taps your link and sends the pre-filled message has started the conversation, and that gives you a basis to reply. Marketing messages outside that window need prior opt-in. Meta changed its rule in November 2024. A general marketing opt-in collected on any channel can now cover WhatsApp, provided it names your business and tells people that WhatsApp messages will follow. The General Data Protection Regulation is stricter, because it wants consent that is specific and informed, so your privacy notice should name WhatsApp as a channel.

The third case is the type of message. Transactional messages, such as order updates or receipts, carry lower risk than promotional offers, but the people receiving them must still have opted in. In some countries, promotional messages are limited to customers who have opted in, and your legal adviser should confirm the rule for each market you serve.

The fourth case is the link type. The pattern on this page builds a one-to-one chat. A group invitation link is a different kind of link and this calculator does not build it. Similarly, a link that should open a conversation inside an automated chatbot needs a different setup entirely.

One limit applies to every case. A wa.me link cannot tell you who tapped it, cannot send the message on its own, and cannot confirm that the person who typed the message is the person you wanted to reach. You need your own page analytics or a form in front of the link to count clicks, and a person to read and answer the chat.

Common mistakes

• Putting the plus sign, two zeros or the local trunk zero into the number. A link with 00 or a leading 0 after the country code will not open the right chat.
• Leaving literal spaces in the URL. A space breaks the link in many browsers. Replace every space with %20.
• Forgetting to encode an ampersand, a hash sign or a question mark in the message. The rest of the message is then cut off or read as a separate setting.
• Putting personal data in the message. The text sits in the URL, so it can be seen in browser history and in the page code.
• Publishing the link without testing it on a phone. A broken link often looks fine on a desktop screen.
• Treating a visible link as consent and then sending a promotional series to everyone in the contact list.
• Printing a QR code before the number and message are final.

What to check with HR, a data protection lead or a lawyer

Some questions cannot be answered by a link builder. Ask your HR or payroll lead whether staff may use a personal WhatsApp number to contact employees or to send payslip questions, and whether that is covered by your policy and by your employment contracts. Ask your data protection lead whether your privacy notice names WhatsApp, whether you keep a dated record of each opt-in, and how the messages are transferred and stored. If you operate in more than one country, ask a lawyer in each market which marketing rules apply to WhatsApp messages and whether any local rules add to the Meta policy and to the General Data Protection Regulation.

How employers take routine messaging work off their staff

Many HR and payroll teams send the same messages every week: payslip questions, document reminders, onboarding steps and invoice follow-ups. AI workers can handle the repetitive part of that work. They can send the approved first message, record when an opt-in was given, route a reply to the right person and log what was sent. The people in the team keep the decisions that need judgement, such as a dispute over pay or a sensitive employee matter, and they approve the wording and the consent language before anything goes live.