WhatsApp Interactive Messages: Buttons, Lists, Media and Carousels Explained

A plain text message is only one of the things a business can send on the WhatsApp Business API. Customers can also receive photos and PDFs, tap a button instead of typing, pick from a menu, or swipe through a row of product cards. These formats make chats faster to answer and easier to automate — but each one comes with its own limits, and not all of them can be sent at any time.

This guide walks through every format Meta offers, what it is good for, and the single rule that decides when you can use it. Where it matters, we also say plainly what wbm.link's template builder supports today.

The rule that decides everything: templates vs the 24-hour window

Every WhatsApp format falls into one of two groups:

• Free-form (service) messages — text, media, reactions and interactive messages such as reply buttons and lists. These can only be sent while a customer service window is open, which happens for 24 hours after the customer last messaged you.
• Template messages — pre-approved by Meta. These are the only messages you can send outside the window, for example to start a conversation. Templates can carry their own header, buttons and, for marketing, a carousel.

So “can WhatsApp send a list menu?” has two answers. Inside an open chat, yes. As the first message to a customer, no — you would need a template, and templates do not support list menus. Keep that split in mind for the rest of this guide. For the full explanation of the window, see session messages vs template messages.

Rich media message support in the WhatsApp Business API

Inside an open window, Meta's Cloud API lets a business send these message types:

In templates, media appears in a different way: as the optional header above the body. Meta allows a text header of up to 60 characters (with one variable), or an image, video, GIF or document header, or a location header. That is how an order confirmation can arrive with the invoice PDF attached, or an offer with a product photo on top.

Interactive reply buttons

An interactive reply-button message shows your text with up to three buttons underneath. The customer taps one instead of typing, and your chatbot or team receives the choice as a reply. Each button title can be up to 20 characters. The message can have a header (text, image, video or document), a body of up to 1,024 characters and a footer of up to 60.

Because it is a free-form message, it only works inside an open window — perfect as the next step after a customer says “Hi”: Check order status, Talk to sales, Store timings.

WhatsApp Business API list message format

When three buttons are not enough, a list message shows a single button — for example “See options” — that opens a menu. The format Meta allows:

A coaching institute might use one section called “Courses” with rows for each batch, and a second called “Help” with “Fee structure” and “Talk to a counsellor”. Lists are service messages: they can be sent only inside an open window, and there is no list-message template.

CTA URL and other interactive messages

Meta also offers a call-to-action URL message — body text (up to 1,024 characters) with a button that opens a link, whose label can be up to 20 characters — a location request message that asks the customer to share their location, and WhatsApp Flows, which open multi-screen forms inside the chat. All of these are interactive service messages for an open window.

WhatsApp Business API interactive buttons template

Buttons also work outside the window — but only as part of an approved template. Template buttons are different from interactive reply buttons, and Meta allows more of them:

A template can have up to 10 buttons in total. Quick replies must be grouped together, not mixed between link and phone buttons — “Quick reply, Quick reply, URL, Phone” is valid; “Quick reply, URL, Quick reply” is rejected.

On wbm.link, the template builder lets you add up to three buttons — any mix of quick reply, website URL and phone number — which covers the common cases: *Confirm / Reschedule*, *Track order*, *Call us*. Buttons are submitted to Meta with the template, and taps on quick replies arrive in the team inbox like any other reply.

WhatsApp Business API quick reply buttons setup

Quick replies are the easiest way to turn a one-way notification into a conversation. A setup that gets approved and actually gets tapped:

1. Write the body first. Say what happened and what you want the customer to decide: “Hi {{1}}, your appointment is on {{2}} at {{3}}.”
2. Add two or three quick replies with short, distinct labels — “Confirm”, “Reschedule”, “Cancel”. Keep them well under Meta's 25-character limit so they are not cut off on small phones.
3. Keep quick replies together. If you also want a URL or phone button, add it after the quick replies.
4. Match the category. Buttons on an appointment reminder keep it utility; a “Shop the sale” button makes it marketing.
5. Give an opt-out on marketing. A “Stop promotions” quick reply lets customers leave without blocking you, which protects your quality rating.
6. Plan what happens after the tap. Each tap is a message from the customer, which opens a 24-hour window. Route it to a chatbot step or a teammate so the customer gets an answer.

Before submitting, run the text through the free WhatsApp template checker to catch variable and category problems.

WhatsApp Business API carousel template example

A media card carousel template is a marketing template that shows one message followed by a row of cards the customer swipes through. Meta's rules:

• 2 to 10 cards.
• Each card must have an image or video header.
• Each card can have body text of up to 160 characters and up to two buttons — quick reply, URL or phone.
• All cards must have the same components — if one card has body text and two buttons, every card does.
• The message above the cards can be up to 1,024 characters and can use variables.
• Carousels are available for marketing templates only — not utility or authentication.

An example for a furniture store's festive sale:

Each card is a separate product with the same shape: image, one line, the same two buttons.

Which format should you use?

Whatever the format, the cost follows the same logic: templates are charged per delivered message by category — see WhatsApp message templates for how Meta categorises them — and from 1 October 2026 Meta also charges for service messages. The pricing calculator turns that into a monthly estimate.