Set up WhatsApp in lemlist to reach leads via personal messaging as part of your multichannel campaigns. This guide covers connecting your account, managing numbers, monitoring health, configuring warm-up, and reconnecting if you ever get disconnected.
Note: WhatsApp is available exclusively on Multichannel Expert and Enterprise plans.
The WhatsApp add-on costs $20/seat/month. There is no free trial: buy the add-on directly via Manage seats.
Prerequisites
You're on a Multichannel Expert or Enterprise plan.
You have WhatsApp seats (each connected number requires a seat).
You have a WhatsApp account you can connect via QR code (personal WhatsApp recommended).
Ensure your phone number is in the full international E.164 format (e.g., +14157431500) for WhatsApp steps to function correctly.
⚠️ WhatsApp Business accounts are not supported for integration with lemlist. Only personal WhatsApp accounts can be connected.
Phase 1: Connect WhatsApp to lemlist
Open your Sending settings.
From your lemlist workspace, click your name in the bottom-left, then select Settings.
Start the WhatsApp connection from Sending settings.
In Sending settings, select Sending settings in the left sidebar, then expand WhatsApp.
Click Connect WhatsApp account.
In the WhatsApp section, click Connect WhatsApp account to start the setup.
If you don't have WhatsApp seats yet, buy the add-on at $20/seat/month via Manage seats.
Review the onboarding message and continue.
Read the information shown, then click Next.
Review the recommended practices (Practices to follow).
Carefully read the Practices to follow, then continue.
Review the recommended practices (Practices to avoid).
On the next screen, review the practices to avoid, then click Next.
Confirm that you understand the risks and connect your account.
Tick both confirmation checkboxes, then click Connect my account.
Scan the QR code with your phone to complete the connection.
In WhatsApp on your phone, go to Linked devices and scan the QR code shown in lemlist (the QR code expires, so scan within the displayed time).
Confirm your account is connected.
Once verified, you'll see a success confirmation. Click Got it.
Phase 2: Manage multiple WhatsApp numbers (seats + visibility)
You can connect up to 5 different WhatsApp numbers to the same lemlist user to scale outreach and manage multiple warm-up numbers in one place.
Important: each connected number requires a seat (e.g., 5 numbers = 5 WhatsApp seats).
Phase 3: Monitor account health (score + risk levels)
Each connected WhatsApp account has a health score from 0 to 100. This score helps you understand if your account is safe to use for outreach and is influenced by factors like sending patterns, reply rates, account age, new-contact stability, and potential bans.
You'll also see risk levels (Danger, Risk, Watch, OK). Clicking the score shows more detail (e.g., message volume, reply rate, and score evolution).
Phase 4: Configure WhatsApp warm-up
Warm-up is required and takes 2–4 weeks.
Warm-up helps gradually increase the number of messages sent to reduce the risk of being flagged.
Open your WhatsApp account settings.
In the WhatsApp list, click Settings for the connected number. In the WhatsApp account pop-up, you can also click Settings in the warm-up section to open warm-up settings.
Adjust the warm-up increment and daily cap.
Set your WhatsApp warmup increment and WhatsApp warmup daily cap using the +/- controls.
Enable warm-up for the account.
Toggle Enable warm up on to start the warm-up process.
When warm-up is active, you can see its status directly in the WhatsApp accounts list (for example, In progress).
Phase 5: Reconnect if your WhatsApp account disconnects
Use the in-app notification to start reconnection.
If your account disconnects, you'll see a notification. Click Reconnect my account from the notification.
Reconnect from Sending settings for the specific number.
Go to Settings → Sending settings, then click Reconnect next to the disconnected number.
Provide feedback on the disconnection cause.
Fill in the disconnection feedback (required). This helps reduce future disconnections by improving detection and guidance.
Scan the QR code to connect again.
After submitting feedback, a new QR code is generated so you can reconnect.
Troubleshooting & Pitfalls
Issue: My WhatsApp account disconnected.
Root cause: WhatsApp may flag sending patterns (volume spikes, repetitive messages, links) or device/account instability.
Fix: Use the notification to reconnect, submit the disconnection feedback, then scan the new QR code.
Issue: I can't connect more numbers.
Root cause: You may have reached the limit (up to 5 numbers per user) or you don't have enough WhatsApp seats.
Fix: Purchase additional WhatsApp seats or remove an unused number before adding a new one.
From Settings → Sending settings → WhatsApp, click the trash icon next to the number you no longer need.
Click Confirm and disconnect.
WhatsApp add-on billing details
The WhatsApp add-on costs $20/seat/month. Buy it directly via Manage seats. Each connected number requires a seat.
Is there a free trial for the WhatsApp add-on?
No. There is no free trial for the WhatsApp add-on. To test WhatsApp, take 1 or 2 seats on monthly billing.
Using WhatsApp across multiple teams
If you're part of multiple teams, you can connect to WhatsApp separately for each team. Make sure you switch into the correct team view before connecting and configuring WhatsApp.