What is WAHA and why do I need it?

WAHA is the WhatsApp API server this connector talks to — a free open-source app you run in Docker on your own infrastructure. It keeps your WhatsApp session under your control: no third party ever sees your messages or credentials.

What do I need to set up before first post?

Run WAHA on a VPS bound to 127.0.0.1:3000 (docker run -p 127.0.0.1:3000:3000 -e WAHA_API_KEY=secret devlikeapro/waha) and expose it over HTTPS via a reverse proxy (Caddy/Nginx/Traefik) on your own domain. Open WAHA's dashboard at that HTTPS URL, start a session, scan the QR code with the phone that owns your channel, then set WAHA_BASE_URL (https://...) and WAHA_API_KEY in this server's credentials.

Why do my posts fail with a permissions error?

Only owners and admins can publish to a channel — subscribers cannot. Run list_channels to check your role, and make sure the channel id you pass ends with @newsletter.

Is my WhatsApp account safe using WAHA?

WAHA is self-hosted, so your session stays on your own server and never touches a third party. It emulates WhatsApp Web, which is outside WhatsApp's official terms — keep posting volume human-like (a few broadcast posts, not spam) to minimise restriction risk.

WhatsApp Channels MCP Connector for Claude

A+

Post text and media to WhatsApp Channels from any AI agent — create channels, publish posts, search public channels and read their feed.

8 tools Updated Oct 1, 2026 Official Vinkius Partner

More Details Connect to Claude

Post to WhatsApp Channels from any AI agent through WAHA, a free open-source WhatsApp HTTP API you run in Docker on your own server — your WhatsApp session never leaves it.

What you can do

Publish posts — Send text, image, video or voice posts to any channel where you are owner or admin, with captions and public-file URLs
Create channels — Spin up a new branded channel (name, description, avatar) and get its invite link
Discover & monitor — Search public channels by keyword (explore-style), preview any channel's latest posts with view counts and reactions, and pull full message history from channels you follow
Manage — List the channels linked to your number with roles and subscriber counts

How it works

Run WAHA on a VPS, bound to the local interface (docker run -p 127.0.0.1:3000:3000 -e WAHA_API_KEY=secret devlikeapro/waha), and expose it over HTTPS with a reverse proxy (Caddy, Nginx or Traefik) on a domain you control
Open WAHA's dashboard, start a session (pick the NOWEB engine to create channels) and scan the QR with your phone (WhatsApp → Linked devices)
Subscribe to this server and set your WAHA URL + optional API key
Ask your agent to post — e.g. "publish today's release notes to our announcement channel"

Notes

WAHA is free and open source.
WAHA emulates WhatsApp Web: automating a channel through it is outside WhatsApp's official API. Use it on your own account and accept the (small, session-based) risk of restrictions.
You must be OWNER or ADMIN of a channel to post — subscribers are read-only.

Who is this for?

Creators & community managers — automate announcements, digests and scheduled newsletters
Marketers — monitor competitor channels and reaction analytics programmatically
Developers — wire WhatsApp broadcasting into agents, cron jobs and publishing pipelines

whatsappwhatsapp-channelsbroadcastnewsletterwahasocial-media-automationcommunityannouncements

8 tools expose this connector's capabilities to your AI agent.

get_channel_preview

Pass the invite code from a whatsapp.com/channel/<CODE> link or the @newsletter id. Only the preview window is visible; use get_channel_messages for full history of channels you follow. Preview the latest posts of any public channel without subscribing to it

list_channels

Use it first to find the @newsletter channel id needed for posting; filter with role=OWNER or role=ADMIN — subscribers cannot post. List WhatsApp Channels linked to the logged-in number (owned, administered or subscribed)

get_channel_messages

Page back in history with before_timestamp set to the oldest timestamp of the previous page; page forward with after_timestamp set to the newest one seen. The channel must be one your number follows — otherwise use get_channel_preview. Read posts from a channel you are subscribed to, newest first

get_channel

Accepts either a full channel id ("120363...@newsletter") or the invite code — the last path segment of a https://whatsapp.com/channel/<CODE> link. Use it to check subscriber reach before or after posting. Get one channel profile by newsletter id or invite code, including subscriber count

post_channel_media

file_url must be publicly downloadable — WAHA downloads it server-side before posting. For image/video the optional caption appears under the media; voice posts ignore captions. Requires role OWNER or ADMIN; channel_id ends with "@newsletter". Publish an image, video or voice post to a WhatsApp Channel from a public file URL

post_channel_text

Requires your role OWNER or ADMIN on the channel — subscribers cannot post. channel_id must end with "@newsletter" (get it from list_channels). Supports normal WhatsApp text formatting; emoji included as-is. Publish a text post to a WhatsApp Channel you own or administer

search_channels

Paginate with start_cursor using the endCursor from the previous response (recommended limit 50). Useful to monitor competitors or find a channel before subscribing. Discover public WhatsApp Channels by keyword (like the in-app explore search)

create_channel

The WAHA session must use the NOWEB, WPP or GOWS engine — the default WEBJS engine cannot create channels (posting to an existing channel still works on WEBJS). Keep the name short and unique. Optionally attach a profile picture from any public image URL. Create a new WhatsApp Channel owned by the logged-in number

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