Common WhatsApp Errors

Now and again you'll get a failure when sending a WhatsApp message, this typically happens with template messages. Hovering over the red triangle will give you more details on the error. Below gives more information about what the error message means and what you can do about it.

Marketing Message Experiment (130472)

WhatsApp sometimes runs experiments to understand how different types of messages affect the user experience and engagement. These are standard practices on their platform and are designed to improve the messaging experience for both businesses and end users.

Some experiments don’t have an end date, and to keep them effective, WhatsApp does not allow exceptions or opt-outs.

A small percentage of WhatsApp users do not receive marketing template messages from any business unless:

• There is an active customer service window between the user and your business, or
• There is an open free entry point window between the user and your business.

If you send a marketing template message to a user included in this experiment group:

• The message will not be delivered.
• You will not be charged for the attempt.

Resending the message will result in the same error.

What you can do:

If you need to reach such a user, we recommend:

• Contact the user outside of WhatsApp (for example, by email or SMS).
• Ask them to message your business on WhatsApp.

Once they do, you can resend your marketing message within the open customer service window.

This message was not delivered to maintain healthy ecosystem engagement (131049)

This error is caused by WhatsApp’s per-user marketing template message limit. The template you’re trying to send is classified under the marketing category.

WhatsApp sets these limits based on factors such as:

• How many personal and business messages the user typically receives.
• How often they open or engage with recent marketing messages.
• Limits are based on total marketing messages, including from other businesses.

If a user doesn’t receive many messages overall, or hasn’t interacted with marketing messages recently, WhatsApp may reduce the number of marketing messages delivered to them. This helps keep their inbox balanced and prevents it from being overloaded with promotions.

What you can do:

Try sending the message again later, sometimes it may go through at a different time.

Consider creating a new template that can be classified under a different category (e.g., transactional), though this will mean the wording needs to be more neutral and service-focused rather than promotional.