#Why would you move off the WhatsApp Business app?
The free app is built for one person on one phone. It allows a few linked devices, and it has no team inbox, no assignment of chats and no automation beyond away messages and quick replies. Once two or three people answer the same number, chats get missed or answered twice.
The API removes those limits. Chirpoo puts the same number in a shared inbox where you can assign a chat, leave an internal note, snooze it and see the 24-hour reply window on every chat. It also adds templates, broadcasts to people who opted in, no-code flows and an AI agent that is off until you switch it on.
The move has a cost, and it is better to know it first. Meta's rules mean the same number cannot sit in the app and the API at the same time through the standard route. You also lose the old chat history inside WhatsApp. The sections below show how to do it without losing anything you need. For the full comparison, read WhatsApp Business app vs API and Chirpoo vs the WhatsApp Business app.
#How do you move the number, step by step?
Meta documents the process in Migrate an existing WhatsApp number to a business account (checked 26 Oct 2026). In short:
- Back up your chat history from the WhatsApp Business app.
- In the app, go to Settings, then Account, then Delete my account, and follow the prompts for that number.
- Wait. Meta says "It may take up to 3 minutes for the disconnected number to become available." Messages sent to the number are queued meanwhile.
- Register the number for Cloud API. In Chirpoo this is the connect step: sign in at the Chirpoo login with an email code, then connect your number through Meta's sign-up window.
Meta states the cost of step two plainly:
If you delete your WhatsApp Business app phone number and then register it for use with Cloud API using the steps below, your existing messaging history will be lost, and you will be unable to use that number with the WhatsApp Business app again, unless you deregister the number from Cloud API.
The same page says that if you onboard through a partner that supports business app number onboarding, you can use both the app and the partner's app together. Ask any provider whether it supports this before you delete anything.
#What does the move do to your chats and contacts?
Chats do not migrate. Back them up first, using WhatsApp's own backup and chat export features. Meta's page says "Remember to back up your chat history from the WhatsApp Business App" and links WhatsApp's guides. Export the chats that matter, such as long threads with your best customers, and save them as files.
Contacts arrive as customers message you. Chirpoo has no bulk import, so each person appears the first time they write, with one contact per phone number. A Shopify store's customers sync in, and developers can add contacts through the API. Keep your exported customer sheet as a record. Marketing consent comes from Shopify's consent field or from the customer sending START, so ask past opt-ins to send START once. People who did not opt in can still be answered when they message you. They should not receive broadcasts.
Your customers lose nothing. Their chat with you is still on their own phones. They see the same number. Labels you used in the app are not documented as part of the move, so note them down and recreate them as Chirpoo tags.
#What should you check before you delete the app account?
Run through this list the day before:
- Backup done. Chat history exported and saved off the phone.
- Two-step verification. If you set a six-digit PIN on the number, have it ready. Meta documents two-step verification on its own page.
- Meta Business account. You need one, with a payment method. Meta bills its message charges to you directly, and Chirpoo adds nothing per message.
- A quiet hour. Pick a time with few chats. Messages queue during the gap, but a customer waiting is still waiting.
- Staff briefed. Tell the team which login to use from now on.
Chirpoo's trial is 14 days, with every feature and no card. Run through the connect step on a spare number first if you have one.
#What changes for your team after moving to Chirpoo?
Phones stop being the inbox. Each person signs in to Chirpoo with an email code, and five logins are included in the ₹999 plan, excluding 18% GST. Push alerts reach their phones once Chirpoo is installed on the home screen. On iPhone, add it to the Home Screen first.
Replies work differently in one way. Free text is only allowed within 24 hours of the customer's last message. Outside that, you send an approved template. The 24-hour window explained covers this, and running an inbox with a team shows how to split the work. If you come from a paid tool instead of the app, see migrating from WATI.
Start free, then follow Meta's steps above on a quiet morning.
Frequently asked questions about Chirpoo and this topic
Will I lose my old chats if I move to the API?
Yes, inside WhatsApp. Meta says your existing messaging history will be lost when you delete the app number and register it for Cloud API. Back up your chat history first. Your customers still have their side of every chat.
Can I use the WhatsApp Business app and the API on the same number?
Not through the standard route, per Meta's page. After you register the number for Cloud API you cannot use it in the app again unless you deregister it. Some partners support onboarding that keeps both apps, so ask your provider.
How long is the number offline during the move?
Meta says the disconnected number may take up to 3 minutes to become available, and messages sent to it queue meanwhile. Plan the whole connect step for a quiet hour so you can test a message right after.
Do my contacts come with me?
Not as a file. Chirpoo has no bulk import, so contacts appear as customers message you, from a Shopify sync or through the API. Marketing consent comes from Shopify or from the customer sending START, and only opted-in people get broadcasts.