Meta Cloud API Integration with FluentCRM

Meta Cloud API is WhatsApp's official sending platform, run by Meta itself. Connecting it lets FluentCRM send WhatsApp messages to your contacts and receive their replies back into the CRM.

You create an app in the Meta Developer console, copy four credentials out of it, paste them into FluentCRM, then point Meta's webhook back at your site. Budget around 15 minutes the first time.

NOTE

This feature requires FluentCRM Pro. See what's included →

You need a Facebook account and a Meta Business Portfolio before you start. If you don't have a portfolio yet, you can create one during Step 1.

Step 1: Create a Meta App

1. Go to your Meta Developer account and open the app creation page. Click Create App.

2. A popup appears explaining Meta's new app system. Click Create app to continue.

3. Enter your App name in the form and click Next.

4. On the Use cases step, select Connect with customers through WhatsApp, then click Next.

5. Select your business portfolio. If you don't have one, click Create a business portfolio.

6. Nothing else is required. Click Create app on the Overview step.

Step 2: Open the Customize Panel

After the app is created you land on the Use cases page. Click Customize on the WhatsApp use case.

Most of your credentials live in here, so this is the important part.

Step 3: Collect Your Credentials

Go to Basic setup → Step 1. Try it out. This one screen holds three of the four values you need.

Under Claim a WhatsApp test number you'll see your test number, and beside it:

• Phone Number ID — a numeric ID, not the phone number itself.
• WhatsApp Business Account ID — identifies the account that owns your message templates.

Further down, in the Access token section, click Generate new token and copy the token to your clipboard.

Copy all three — you'll paste them into FluentCRM shortly.

NOTE

Once you register your own business number instead of the test number, find these IDs under Other tools → Tools → Manage phone numbers (Phone Number ID) and in Meta Business Settings → Accounts → WhatsApp accounts (WhatsApp Business Account ID).

Step 4: Copy the App Secret

Go to App settings → Basic. Find App secret, click Show to reveal it, and copy the value.

FluentCRM uses this to verify that incoming webhooks genuinely came from Meta.

Step 5: Permanent Access Token (Keeping the Connection Alive)

The token from Generate new token is a temporary one — it expires and takes your connection down with it. That's fine while you're testing, but a live site needs a permanent token from a Meta System User, which is what the Permanent Access Token field is asking for.

To create one:

1. In Meta Business Settings, go to Users → System users and click Add.

2. Enter a System user name, set the System user role, and click Create system user.

3. Give the system user access to your app. Go to Business assets, select your app, and click Assign people.

4. Back on the system user, confirm your app appears under Assigned assets with Full access, then click Generate token.

5. Select your app, set the expiry, then under Assign permissions select both whatsapp_business_management and whatsapp_business_messaging. Click Generate token.

6. Copy the token and paste it into Permanent Access Token in FluentCRM, replacing the temporary one.

WARNING

Meta shows this token once. Copy it straight into FluentCRM — if you close the dialog without copying it, you have to generate a new one.

Step 6: Enter the Credentials in FluentCRM

In WordPress, go to FluentCRM → Settings → Messaging.

1. Turn on Enable Message Module.
2. Open the WhatsApp tab and turn on Enable WhatsApp Module.
3. Set Choose your WhatsApp provider to Meta Cloud API (WhatsApp Business).
4. Paste each credential into its matching field:
   • WhatsApp Business Account ID
   • Phone Number ID
   • Permanent Access Token
   • App Secret
5. In Webhook Verify Token, type any secret string you choose — for example crmwapp. Write it down, because you enter the identical string on Meta's side next.
6. Click Save.

After saving, copy the Webhook URL shown at the bottom of the page. You need it for the next step.

Step 7: Create the Webhook

Go back to your Meta app and open Other tools → Tools. Among the tools listed, find Webhooks under Configuration and click Configure webhooks.

On the webhook page:

1. Paste the Webhook URL you copied from FluentCRM into Callback URL.
2. Paste your Webhook Verify Token — the exact string from Step 6 — into Verify token.
3. Click Verify and save.
4. Under Webhook fields, subscribe to the fields you want. At minimum, subscribe to messages so replies and delivery statuses reach FluentCRM.

That completes the connection.

WARNING

While your app is unpublished, Meta only delivers test webhooks sent from the app dashboard. Publish the app before you rely on production data.

Going Live

The test number is capped and only reaches recipients you add manually. To message your real audience, complete the remaining steps in Meta's panel:

• Step 2. Production setup — register your own business phone number as the sender.
• Step 3. Business verification — verify your business portfolio with Meta.
• Add a payment method — until you do, only conversations your customers start are free, and you can't initiate messages.