QR Codes & Short Links

What QR Codes and Short Links Do

A WhatsApp QR code or short link routes someone directly into a chat with your business — no need for them to type your phone number. Each code generates both a scannable QR image and a short URL of the form https://wa.me/message/<CODE>.

The code can be programmed with a prefilled message (up to 140 chars). When the user scans or taps, the chat opens with that text already populated in the input field — they tap send to start the conversation.

You manage QR codes via the WhatsApp Business Management API or the Business Manager UI.

Limitations

• 2,000 QR codes / short links per business phone number maximum.
• 140 character prefilled message limit.
• No analytics — Meta deliberately does not log scan counts or related data, for user privacy.
• Codes do not expire automatically — you delete them when done.

Create a QR Code

POST /<PHONE_NUMBER_ID>/message_qrdls

{
  "prefilled_message": "Cyber Monday",
  "generate_qr_image": "SVG"
}

Response:

{
  "code": "4O4YGZEG3RIVE1",
  "prefilled_message": "Cyber Monday",
  "deep_link_url": "https://wa.me/message/4O4YGZEG3RIVE1",
  "qr_image_url": "https://scontent-iad3-2.xx.fbcdn.net/..."
}

code is the persistent identifier. deep_link_url is the human-shareable short link. qr_image_url is the scannable image asset hosted by Meta.

List QR Codes

GET /<PHONE_NUMBER_ID>/message_qrdls

Returns all QR codes on the phone number:

{
  "data": [
    {
      "code": "4O4YGZEG3RIVE1",
      "prefilled_message": "Cyber Monday",
      "deep_link_url": "https://wa.me/message/4O4YGZEG3RIVE1"
    },
    {
      "code": "WOMVT6TJ2BP7A1",
      "prefilled_message": "Tell me more about your production workshop",
      "deep_link_url": "https://wa.me/message/WOMVT6TJ2BP7A1"
    }
  ]
}

The qr_image_url is not included in the list response — fetch the single QR code to get the image, or generate it again at create time.

Get a Single QR Code

GET /<PHONE_NUMBER_ID>/message_qrdls/<CODE>

{
  "data": [
    {
      "code": "4O4YGZEG3RIVE1",
      "prefilled_message": "Cyber Monday",
      "deep_link_url": "https://wa.me/message/4O4YGZEG3RIVE1"
    }
  ]
}

Update a QR Code

POST /<PHONE_NUMBER_ID>/message_qrdls

{
  "code": "4O4YGZEG3RIVE1",
  "prefilled_message": "Cyber Tuesday"
}

Updates the prefilled message in place — the code stays the same, so any existing scans / short links continue to work but with the new message text.

Response includes the updated message:

{
  "code": "4O4YGZEG3RIVE1",
  "prefilled_message": "Cyber Tuesday",
  "deep_link_url": "https://wa.me/message/4O4YGZEG3RIVE1"
}

Delete a QR Code

DELETE /<PHONE_NUMBER_ID>/message_qrdls/<CODE>

{ "success": true }

After deletion, anyone scanning or clicking the code/link sees an "expired" error message.

User Experience

Best Practices

• Use SVG for print materials so the code scales without quality loss.
• Don't customize the QR's appearance (colors, embedded logos) — preserves scan reliability. If you must, do it post-export with QR-aware tools that respect error correction zones.
• Use one code per language / locale. You're responsible for routing users to the right code based on geography.
• Track campaign attribution out of band. Since Meta provides no analytics, embed campaign markers in the prefilled message itself (e.g. "Cyber Monday code: CYB42") if you need to know which scan triggered which conversation.

vs Plain wa.me Links

A plain wa.me/<NUMBER>?text=Hello link works without the API — just click-through to a chat with prefilled text. The API-managed QR codes / short links add:

For one-off campaigns, plain wa.me is fine. For tenant-specific or campaign-managed codes that need editing, use the API.