Getting Started: Send Your First WhatsApp Message in 5 Minutes

This guide walks you through sending your first WhatsApp message from your backend system to your mobile device in just a few minutes.

1. Message Preview on Mobile

Here is how the test message appears on the recipient's WhatsApp screen:

CODE

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 🟢 PFNApp Official                           │
│                                              │
│ Hello! This is your first test message sent  │
│ via the WhatsApp Business API.               │
│                                              │
│ 10:45 ✓✓                                     │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────┘

2. Quick Setup (1 Minute)

Before making your first API call, prepare the following:

Organization API Key: Go to Console > WhatsApp > API Keys (/console/whatsapp/api-keys), click Generate API Key, and securely save your token.
Recipient Number Format (E.164): Always use the international format starting with a plus sign (+) and country code without leading zeros.
- ✅ Correct: +6281234567890
- ❌ Incorrect: 081234567890, 62812-3456-7890

3. Dispatch Test Message (Select Your Stack)

The message dispatch endpoint is POST https://pfnapp.id/api/whatsapp/messages.

cURL

BASH

curl -X POST "https://pfnapp.id/api/whatsapp/messages" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_API_KEY>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "to": "+6281234567890",
    "type": "text",
    "text": {
      "body": "Hello! This is your first test message sent via the WhatsApp Business API."
    }
  }'

Node.js / TypeScript (Fetch API)

TYPESCRIPT

const API_KEY = process.env.PFN_WHATSAPP_API_KEY || "pfn_wa_sec_YOUR_API_KEY"
 
async function sendQuickMessage() {
  const response = await fetch("https://pfnapp.id/api/whatsapp/messages", {
    method: "POST",
    headers: {
      Authorization: `Bearer ${API_KEY}`,
      "Content-Type": "application/json",
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      to: "+6281234567890",
      type: "text",
      text: {
        body: "Hello! This is your first test message sent via the WhatsApp Business API.",
      },
    }),
  })
 
  const result = await response.json()
  console.log("Dispatch Result:", result)
}
 
sendQuickMessage()

PHP / Laravel (Http Client)

PHP

use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Http;
 
$response = Http::withToken(config('services.pfn.whatsapp_key'))
    ->post('https://pfnapp.id/api/whatsapp/messages', [
        'to' => '+6281234567890',
        'type' => 'text',
        'text' => [
            'body' => 'Hello! This is your first test message sent via the WhatsApp Business API.',
        ],
    ]);
 
if ($response->successful()) {
    $data = $response->json();
    logger()->info("Message dispatched successfully. ID: " . $data['id']);
}

Python (Requests)

PYTHON

import os
import requests
 
api_key = os.getenv("PFN_WHATSAPP_API_KEY", "pfn_wa_sec_YOUR_API_KEY")
 
payload = {
    "to": "+6281234567890",
    "type": "text",
    "text": {
        "body": "Hello! This is your first test message sent via the WhatsApp Business API."
    }
}
 
response = requests.post(
    "https://pfnapp.id/api/whatsapp/messages",
    headers={
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {api_key}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json",
    },
    json=payload,
)
 
print("Status:", response.status_code)
print("Response:", response.json())

4. Verifying Delivery Status

Once dispatched, track message statuses inside the Console:

Navigate to Console > WhatsApp > Messages (/console/whatsapp/messages).
Review status badges:
- SENT: Message accepted by WhatsApp cloud servers.
- DELIVERED: Successfully delivered to the user's device (double gray checkmarks).
- READ: Opened and read by the user (double blue checkmarks).
- FAILED: Dispatch failed (e.g., unregistered phone number or insufficient balance).