There are two ways to connect WhatsApp to Crisp. Crisp's native channel uses the official WhatsApp Business API, requires the Essentials or Plus plan, and handles one-to-one conversations. It does not bring your company's WhatsApp groups into the inbox. For groups, you need a QR code bridge.
The question usually comes up the same way. The team already handles website chat and email in Crisp, but a large share of support happens in WhatsApp groups: customer groups, cohort groups, partner groups. Nobody wants another tab.
This guide covers what Crisp's official WhatsApp integration does and does not do, based on the Crisp help center, the Crisp pricing page and Meta's documentation, all read on October 20, 2026. It also says when the native channel is the better choice, and when it is not.
How does the native Crisp WhatsApp integration work?
The native integration links a number to the WhatsApp Business Platform (Meta's official API) and routes conversations into Crisp's shared inbox. Crisp acts as a Business Solution Provider (BSP): it handles the connection to Meta and bills messages to your workspace, according to the Crisp help center.
The help center lists three requirements:
- A Crisp Essentials or Plus plan. Free and Mini do not include the channel.
- Owner access to the Crisp workspace.
- Admin access to your Meta business portfolio and a number you can verify by SMS or voice call.
You connect it under Plugins by searching for "WhatsApp". You can connect more than one number, all under the same WhatsApp Business account. There is also a coexistence mode: a number already running on the WhatsApp Business app can be connected and keep using the app, but past chat history is not imported into Crisp.
How much does WhatsApp on Crisp cost?
The cost has two parts: the Crisp plan and the messages Meta charges for. On the Crisp pricing page, Essentials is $95 a month per workspace with 10 seats, and Plus is $295 a month with 20 or more seats. Extra seats are $10 a month (pricing checked October 20, 2026).
Messages come on top of the plan. Since July 2025 Meta charges per delivered message, with rates that vary by country and category, according to Meta's pricing documentation:
| Message type | How Meta charges (Oct 2026) |
|---|---|
| Incoming customer message | Not charged |
| Service reply (inside the 24-hour window) | 1,000 free per number per month; charged from the 1,001st (since October 1, 2026) |
| Marketing, utility or authentication template | Always charged, per message |
| Messages after a Click-to-WhatsApp ad | Free while the free entry point window is open (up to 7 days, per Meta) |
In Crisp, pay as you go is off by default and the owner sets a monthly spending cap in euros. Failed messages are not charged.
Does the native Crisp channel support WhatsApp groups?
In practice, no. The Crisp help center does not mention groups anywhere in its WhatsApp integration article (updated October 7, 2026, read October 20, 2026). And on Meta's side, the official groups API has limits that do not fit teams already running groups with customers.
Meta's Groups API documentation states:
- Up to 8 participants per group. A cohort, community or customer group with 30, 100 or 500 people is out.
- Official Business Account only. Not every company has one.
- Not available for WhatsApp Business app numbers. So coexistence mode does not open the door to groups.
- Invite link only. The business cannot add participants directly.
- No editing or deleting messages, no calls, no interactive messages inside groups.
The honest summary: the official API was designed for small groups the business creates through the API, not for bringing in the groups your team already uses. If support happens in those groups, Crisp's native channel will not solve it.
Native Crisp channel vs BatZap vs other bridges: which should you pick?
Pick by the kind of conversation that drives your support. If it is one-to-one with customers arriving from ads or your website, the native channel wins. If it is groups, you need a bridge that treats each group as a conversation.
| Criteria | Native Crisp channel | BatZap | Other bridges (automation or third-party app) |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it connects | Meta's official API, with Crisp as BSP | QR code (unofficial API) | Varies: check each one |
| One-to-one chats | Yes | Yes | Usually yes |
| WhatsApp groups in the inbox | Not documented by Crisp | Yes: each group becomes one conversation in Crisp | Some only trigger an automation on a group message; check whether replies go back to the group |
| Reply to the group from Crisp | Not applicable | Yes, in real time, with the sender's name on each message | Varies |
| Create groups, add and remove members, promote admins | Not applicable | Yes, in the BatZap dashboard (Crisp shows the group and its members) | Rare |
| Templates outside the 24-hour window | Yes, approved in WhatsApp Manager | Not applicable: BatZap does not use the official API | Varies |
| Meta per-message fees | Yes, by country and category | No Meta per-conversation fee | Varies |
| Tool price | Crisp Essentials ($95/month) or Plus ($295/month) | $29/month (30,000 messages) or $59/month (60,000), no per-seat pricing | Varies |
| Risk of the number being blocked | Lower, since it is the official API | Exists, since it is unofficial; BatZap does not do bulk messaging and uses backup numbers as group admins | Depends on the method |
Pricing checked October 20, 2026 on crisp.chat/pricing and batzap.com. Crisp prices exclude Meta message fees.
When the native Crisp channel is the better choice
Be direct about your case. The native channel is the right pick when:
- Support is almost all one-to-one and customers arrive from your website, a Click-to-WhatsApp ad or a link.
- You need to message outside the 24-hour window, such as order updates or reminders, with an approved template.
- Your company requires the official API for internal policy, audits, or because it will not accept the risk of a blocked number.
- You want Crisp's chatbot and knowledge base answering directly on WhatsApp.
In these cases, a QR code bridge offers no advantage worth the trade-off.
When BatZap makes sense
BatZap makes sense when the group is where support happens: one group per B2B customer, per cohort, per mentoring program, per partner. Each group becomes a conversation in the Crisp inbox, next to one-to-one chats. The team replies from Crisp and the message lands in the WhatsApp group in real time. Whatever the group sends comes back to Crisp.
The trade-off should be clear: BatZap connects by QR code, which is not the official API. That removes Meta's per-message fee, but it requires discipline. BatZap does not do bulk messaging (its terms prohibit it), and backup numbers join as group admins, so the group is not lost if the main number goes down or is banned.
Read next: how to manage WhatsApp groups for business
How do you connect WhatsApp groups to Crisp with BatZap?
It takes three steps, and you keep the number you already use.
- Connect your WhatsApp number to BatZap by QR code. Create your account, open the connection screen and scan the QR code with the phone that holds the number, as with WhatsApp Web.
- Connect BatZap to your Crisp workspace.
- Start replying from Crisp. Each group shows up as one conversation in the Crisp inbox, with the sender's name on each message.
From then on the work splits like this: conversations, assignment and replies happen in Crisp; creating groups, adding or removing participants and promoting admins happen in the BatZap dashboard.
Common mistakes when bringing WhatsApp into Crisp
The most expensive mistake is choosing on tool price and forgetting the kind of conversation. Four traps come up often:
- Assuming coexistence brings in groups. It connects the app number to Crisp, but Meta's Groups API does not work with WhatsApp Business app numbers.
- Forgetting per-message costs. Since October 1, 2026, service replies are charged from the 1,001st message each month, per number. For a team with heavy one-to-one volume, that adds up.
- Using an unofficial bridge for bulk messaging. A QR code bridge is for support. Messaging people who did not ask for it is the shortest path to losing the number.
- Not planning a backup number. If the group depends on a single admin number and that number goes down, the company loses the group.
Read next: WhatsApp Slack integration, if part of your team follows WhatsApp in Slack rather than Crisp.
FAQ
Does Crisp integrate with WhatsApp?
Yes. Crisp has a native channel for the WhatsApp Business Platform, Meta's official API, available on the Essentials ($95/month) and Plus ($295/month) plans. One-to-one conversations land in the shared inbox, and messages are billed at Meta's rates, by country and category (pricing checked October 2026).
Can you see WhatsApp groups in Crisp?
Not through the native channel: the Crisp help center does not mention groups, and Meta's Groups API allows at most 8 participants and does not work with WhatsApp Business app numbers. With BatZap, each group becomes a conversation in the Crisp inbox, and replies land in the group in real time.
Do I need a paid Crisp plan to use WhatsApp?
For the native channel, yes: the Crisp help center requires the Essentials or Plus plan, plus admin access to your Meta business portfolio. The Free and Mini plans do not list WhatsApp.
Does BatZap use the official WhatsApp API?
No. BatZap connects your number by QR code, an unofficial connection, so there is no Meta per-conversation fee. In exchange, BatZap does not do bulk messaging and uses backup numbers as group admins, to reduce the risk of losing a group if the main number goes down.
Groups in Crisp, without changing your number
If your support is one-to-one and you need templates, Click-to-WhatsApp ads and the official API, use Crisp's native channel. If support happens in WhatsApp groups, the native channel will not bring those groups into the inbox, and that is where a bridge comes in.
BatZap turns each WhatsApp group into a conversation in Crisp, with the sender's name on each message and real-time replies in the group. Plans cost $29/month (30,000 messages) or $59/month (60,000), with unlimited users and no setup fee.
Try BatZap with Crisp free for 14 days
Published October 20, 2026
Sources (all read October 20, 2026): Crisp help center, "Connect WhatsApp Business Platform with Crisp", help.crisp.chat/en/article/11rcwkw (updated October 7, 2026) · Crisp pricing page, crisp.chat/en/pricing · Meta for Developers, "Pricing on the WhatsApp Business Platform", developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/pricing · Meta for Developers, "Groups API", developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/cloud-api/groups · BatZap pricing, batzap.com.