Introduction

What are Flows?

Flows are forms that open inside the WhatsApp conversation itself. The customer fills them in without leaving the chat and without opening a browser — and you get structured answers back. They fit appointment booking, sign-up, satisfaction surveys, lead generation, support and login.

Flows belong to the WABA, not to the channel. Use the wabaId from List WABAs on the endpoints in this section.

Category	What it is for
`APPOINTMENT_BOOKING`	Booking a time slot
`LEAD_GENERATION`	Capturing a lead
`SIGN_UP`	Account sign-up
`SIGN_IN`	Login / authentication
`CONTACT_US`	Contact us
`CUSTOMER_SUPPORT`	Service and support
`SURVEY`	Survey and satisfaction
`OTHER`	When none of the above applies

Lifecycle

Status	Meaning
`DRAFT`	Being edited. The only status where `flow_json` can change and the flow can be deleted
`PUBLISHED`	Published and available for use in messages. `flow_json` is frozen
`DEPRECATED`	Accepts no new openings; sessions already running continue
`BLOCKED`	Blocked by Meta for a policy violation
`THROTTLED`	Throttled by Meta due to excessive errors from your endpoint

Build the flow_json

Define the screens, the components and the routing_model. It is JSON, sent as a string in the flow_json field.

Create it in DRAFT

Use Create flow without publish. That way you can still iterate.

Fix the issues

Get flow returns validation_errors with whatever Meta flagged.

Publish

Publish flow. From then on flow_json no longer changes.

`flow_json` structure

{
  "version": "7.0",
  "routing_model": { "WELCOME": ["DONE"], "DONE": [] },
  "screens": [
    {
      "id": "WELCOME",
      "title": "Booking",
      "layout": {
        "type": "SingleColumnLayout",
        "children": [
          { "type": "TextHeading", "text": "Pick a time" },
          {
            "type": "Form",
            "name": "form",
            "children": [
              { "type": "TextInput", "name": "name", "label": "Your name", "input-type": "text", "required": true },
              { "type": "DatePicker", "name": "date", "label": "Date" },
              {
                "type": "Footer",
                "label": "Continue",
                "on-click-action": { "name": "navigate", "next": { "type": "screen", "name": "DONE" }, "payload": {} }
              }
            ]
          }
        ]
      }
    }
  ]
}

Available components

Group	Components
Text	`TextHeading`, `TextSubheading`, `TextBody`, `TextCaption`
Media	`Image`
Input	`TextInput`, `TextArea`, `DatePicker`
Selection	`Dropdown`, `RadioButtonsGroup`, `CheckboxGroup`
Consent	`OptIn`

On TextInput, input-type accepts text, number, email, password, passcode and phone.

Actions

Action	What it does
`navigate`	Goes to the next screen, declared in `next.name`
`complete`	Ends the flow and returns the answers
`data_exchange`	Calls your `endpoint_uri` mid-flow to decide the next step

data_exchange requires endpoint_uri to be configured. If your endpoint fails too often, Meta puts the flow in THROTTLED.

Endpoints

List flows

See the WABA flows with status and categories.

Create flow

Create a flow from its flow_json.

Get flow

Fetch a flow and its validation issues.

Update flow

Change the name, the categories or the flow_json.

Publish flow

Make the flow available for use.

Deprecate flow

Stop accepting new openings.

Delete flow

Delete a flow in DRAFT.

Sync flows

Force a status refresh with Meta.

Channels

Messages

Templates (WhatsApp)

Flows (WhatsApp)

Webhooks

What are Flows?

Categories

Lifecycle

`flow_json` structure

Available components

Actions

Endpoints

List flows

Create flow

Get flow

Update flow

Publish flow

Deprecate flow

Delete flow

Sync flows

​What are Flows?

​Categories

​Lifecycle

​flow_json structure

​Available components

​Actions

​Endpoints

List flows

Create flow

Get flow

Update flow

Publish flow

Deprecate flow

Delete flow

Sync flows

What are Flows?

Categories

Lifecycle

`flow_json` structure

Available components

Actions

Endpoints