Connected, but messages are not arriving
A WhatsApp channel that shows as connected but does not deliver is almost always one of five things. This page puts them in the order they are usually the answer, with the check to run and what a healthy result looks like, so you can stop guessing and stop reconnecting the number hoping it helps.
- Symptom first: find the row that matches what you are seeing
- Checks that map to what the product actually reports, not a generic list
- What a healthy result looks like, so "I checked it" means something
- The two cases that are rules rather than faults, and cannot be fixed
Short answer
Check the webhook subscription first. A channel can show as connected while its webhook subscription is in an auth error state, and that combination is the single most common cause of inbound messages not arriving. Everything still looks fine on the surface, which is exactly why it wastes so much time.
If the subscription is healthy, work down the branches below in order. Two of the five are rules rather than faults and cannot be fixed, only understood.
Before you change anything
Do not disconnect and reconnect the number as a first move. It rarely fixes anything, it clears the very state that would have told you what was wrong, and on a Coexistence number it starts a fresh history sync you did not need.
Establish which kind of connection you have. A Coexistence number runs the WhatsApp Business app alongside the Cloud API; a dedicated Cloud API number has no app on it. The product records how the number was connected and which onboarding mode was used, and several of the checks below differ between the two.
Finally, be precise about the symptom. "It is not working" covers at least four different faults with four different fixes.
Work down these in order
Ordered by how often each one turns out to be the answer.
Nothing arrives at all, and the channel says connected
- Check the webhook subscription status on the channel.
- If it reports an auth error, the connection is authorized but the subscription is not delivering, so reauthorize rather than reconnecting from scratch.
- Check when the token was issued, in case the grant it depends on has been changed on the Meta side.
A webhook subscription status of active. A connected channel with a subscription in auth error is the classic "looks fine, delivers nothing" state.
The number was just connected and has never received anything
- Check the recorded outcome of the number registration step, which is stored persistently rather than only shown at connect time.
- Confirm the number is the one you actually connected, not a second number on the same business account.
- On Coexistence, confirm the app version was 2.24.17 or higher when you connected.
A number that completed registration. A number that never activated will not receive, no matter how healthy everything downstream looks.
Messages arrive, but replies never reach the customer
- Check when the customer last messaged you.
- If it was more than 24 hours ago, check whether you are sending a normal message rather than an approved template.
Inside the 24 hour customer service window any message type sends. Outside it, template messages are the only type that can be sent. This is a platform rule, not a fault, and reconnecting will not change it.
Sending worked earlier today and has now stopped
- Check your messaging limit tier and how many unique users you have started conversations with in the period.
- Check the quality rating on the templates you have been sending.
A tier with headroom. A new business portfolio is limited to 250 unique users; verification raises that to 2,000, and above that the limit scales on quality and usage rather than on request.
Some messages arrive and others do not, on a Coexistence number
- Check whether the missing ones are group chat messages.
- Check whether the conversations you are looking for are older than six months.
- Check whether someone answered from the WhatsApp Business app rather than the inbox.
Group chat messages are never included in the Coexistence sync, and only the most recent six months of chat messages are synchronized. Neither is a fault.
What each result actually means
| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Connected, webhook subscription in auth error | The channel is authorized but the subscription is not delivering | Reauthorize the connection. Do not tear the number down |
| Connected, registration never completed | The number was attached but never activated for messaging | Complete the registration step for that number |
| Everything healthy, replies rejected | The 24 hour window has closed | Send an approved template, and create the templates you keep needing |
| Everything healthy, sending stopped mid-day | You have reached your messaging limit for the period | Verify the business, or wait for the period, and check template quality |
| Partial history missing after connecting | Coexistence syncs six months and excludes group chats | Nothing to fix. Older threads stay on the phone |
Things that look like faults and are not
Recognising these saves the most time, because no amount of reconnecting will change them.
- ▲You cannot send a normal message outside the 24 hour customer service window. Only approved templates go through.
- ▲A new business portfolio is capped at 250 unique users until the business is verified.
- ▲Coexistence never syncs group chat messages, and only carries the most recent six months of chat messages.
- ▲Media in synced history arrives without media asset ids unless it was sent within 14 days of onboarding.
- ▲A Coexistence number is fixed at 20 messages per second, so a burst can queue behind that ceiling.
- ▲On Coexistence, a reply sent from the WhatsApp Business app will not carry inbox ownership or SLA state, because it did not go through the inbox.
If none of that is it
Collect three things before asking for help: the exact symptom in one sentence, the time the last message that did work arrived, and the connection status and webhook subscription status as they read right now.
Those three turn a support conversation from a guessing exercise into a diagnosis, and they are the same three we would ask for.
Do not reconnect the number before reporting it. The state that would identify the fault is thrown away by reconnecting, and then nobody can tell what happened.
Troubleshooting questions
Should I reconnect the number?+
Almost never as a first step. It rarely fixes the problem, it destroys the evidence, and on Coexistence it triggers a new history sync. Check the webhook subscription first.
Why does it say connected if nothing is arriving?+
Because the connection and the webhook subscription are separate states. A channel can be authorized while its subscription is in an auth error, which is the most common version of this problem.
Why can I receive but not reply?+
The 24 hour customer service window has probably closed. Outside it, approved templates are the only message type that can be sent.
Why did sending stop halfway through the day?+
You most likely hit your messaging limit. New business portfolios are limited to 250 unique users; verification raises that to 2,000.
Where did my old conversations go?+
On Coexistence only the most recent six months of chat messages are synchronized, and group chat messages are not included. Older threads stay on the phone.
Sources, checked June 2026
Sources
The window rule, messaging limits and Coexistence sync scope are set by Meta.
- Meta for Developers: Pricing and messaging windows
- Meta for Developers: Messaging limits
- Meta for Developers: Onboard WhatsApp Business app users (Coexistence)
Checked on 2026-08-03
Who wrote this
marv.Inbox team
Product and support team, marv.Inbox
We build marv.Inbox and we run our own customer conversations inside it, on the same WhatsApp number the buttons on this page open.
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