Migrating a number from another WhatsApp provider
It depends on how the number is connected today. A number shared with the WhatsApp Business app through another provider is disconnected from inside the app, then onboarded again with the new one. An API-only number moves through Meta's phone number migration, which keeps its display name, quality rating, messaging limit and Official Business Account status.
Display name, quality rating, messaging limit and Official Business Account status in a phone number migration.
The quality rating every migrated template starts with; template ratings do not carry over.
Two-step verification state a number needs before a migration between partners.
There is no API endpoint to disable two-step verification.
Which case am I in?
Ask one question: does someone still answer this number from the WhatsApp Business app on a phone?
If yes, the number is on Coexistence with the current provider, and the app is the thing that holds it. Leaving that provider happens in the app, and joining a new one is a fresh Coexistence onboarding.
If no, the number is registered on the Cloud API only, with no app behind it. Meta has a separate migration for that, which moves the number from one partner's WhatsApp Business Account to another without re-registering it from scratch. Mixing the two up is the usual reason a move stalls halfway.
How does a Coexistence number change provider?
By offboarding and onboarding again. Meta documents that a business disconnects from Cloud API in the app under Settings, Account, Business Platform, using the Disconnect Account button, and that the provider receives an account_update webhook with PARTNER_REMOVED.
Once disconnected, the number is just a WhatsApp Business app number again, and it can be onboarded by the new provider through Embedded Signup. The conditions are the ordinary Coexistence ones: a recent app version, a portfolio you administer, and no other provider still attached. The history sharing question is asked again, and its 24 hour synchronisation window starts again from the new onboarding.
What carries over in an API-only migration?
More than most people expect, which is why the migration exists rather than a delete and re-register. The number keeps the reputation it built with customers, and only the template quality history starts again.
- Display name, quality rating, messaging limit and Official Business Account status are preserved.
- Eligible templates are duplicated into the destination account with the same statuses.
- Media already uploaded on the number can still be used.
- Template quality ratings do not carry over: every migrated template starts as UNKNOWN.
What has to be ready before an API-only migration?
Meta lists conditions on both sides, and the client-side ones are where moves get stuck.
The business's Meta portfolio has to be verified, its existing WhatsApp Business Account approved, with a valid payment method attached. The number must have two-step verification disabled, and Meta provides no API endpoint to disable it, so a provider cannot do this step through the API. On the receiving side, at least one app has to be subscribed to webhooks on the destination account.
Registration on the new account is instant with no messaging interruption, but template duplication takes time, so affected templates cannot be used until their copies exist.
Common mistakes
- Onboarding with a new provider while the old one is still attached. The number has to be disconnected in the app first.
- Starting an API-only migration with two-step verification on. Meta requires it disabled, and no endpoint does it.
- Expecting template quality to survive. Migrated templates restart at UNKNOWN.
EasyCoexistence connects numbers that live in the WhatsApp Business app through Meta's Coexistence onboarding. A number with another provider is disconnected there from the app first, then connected here in about two minutes.
Frequently asked questions
Do I lose my chats when changing Coexistence provider?
The app keeps them throughout. Sharing history with the new connection is offered again at onboarding.
Does an API-only migration change my display name?
No. Meta preserves the display name, quality rating, messaging limit and Official Business Account status.
Why did my templates lose their quality rating?
Meta duplicates templates into the destination account, and every copy starts with an UNKNOWN rating.
Is there downtime?
Meta states registration in an API-only migration is instant with no messaging interruption. Templates are usable once duplicated.
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