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Guide · WhatsApp Business app · For the owner whose staff share one number

A team on one WhatsApp Business app number: linked devices, multi-agent and assigning chats

A WhatsApp Business app number does not have to live on one phone. WhatsApp's Help Center explains how staff can answer from their own computers or phones, how many devices are allowed with and without multi-agent, how chats are assigned to one person, and what linked devices still cannot do. Here is what those pages say.

Published 7 October 2026 · Updated 8 October 2026

Four devices, or up to ten with multi-agent

The WhatsApp Business app runs on one main phone, and other devices can be linked to it: WhatsApp Web, the desktop app or another phone. WhatsApp's Help Center says this lets more staff answer customers, which it suggests is most useful during ad campaigns and promotions. Every business gets the basic version; multi-agent is a paid extra that comes with a subscription:

Without multi-agent
Up to four linked devices and the main phone, and each device can be given a name.
With multi-agent
Up to 10 linked devices, chats assigned to a named person, and a record of which person and device sent each message. The exact maximum depends on the benefits in the business's Meta Verified or Meta One subscription.

If the subscription ends or its benefits change, the Help Center says only the four most recently active devices stay linked. It also says the larger version may not be available to every business yet.

Linking and naming a device

Linking is always done from the main phone. With multi-agent, the Help Center's steps are: open the WhatsApp Business app on the main phone, tap Tools, then Subscriptions, then Meta Verified or Meta One, then Linked devices and Link device. Point the phone at the screen of the new device, scan its code, and give the device a name. Meta suggests using the name of the person who will use it, which can be changed later.

Without multi-agent, the main phone links a device under Linked devices, then Link a device. WhatsApp Web, the desktop app or a tablet shows a code for the main phone to scan. Another phone becomes a companion: install the WhatsApp Business app on it, choose Link as companion device, then unlock the main phone with its fingerprint, face or PIN and scan. The Help Center says live location and adding status are not available on a companion phone.

WhatsApp Web can also be linked without scanning. Choose Link with phone number, enter the business number, and an 8-character code appears; the main phone shows the device name to confirm and asks for the code. If WhatsApp Web is already signed in to a personal WhatsApp account, log out of it first.

The list shows each device's type, location and when it was last active. Linked devices keep working when the main phone is offline, but they log out if the main phone is not used for more than 14 days, and any device left unused for 30 days is disconnected.

Assigning chats, and seeing who replied

Assigning a chat
In the Chats tab, tap and hold a chat, tap any others to include, then choose Assign chat and pick yourself or another person.
Seeing your own chats
Filter the Chats tab by Assigned to you.
Seeing who sent a message
Tap and hold a message to open its details, which name the person and the device it came from.

Customers see none of this. The Help Center says they cannot tell which person or device sent a message, or who their chat was assigned to. Calls depend on the count: with four linked devices or fewer, calls ring on all of them; with more than four, only the main phone rings.

What linked devices cannot do, and keeping them safe

The Help Center lists what still needs the main phone. Linked devices cannot share or view live location, create or view broadcast lists, or add and delete status updates, and multi-agent does not work on tablets. Registering the number and linking new devices also stay on the main phone.

For safety, it says to switch on notifications on the main phone, so a device you do not recognise can be removed from the alert, and to check the Linked devices list regularly. Any device can be logged out from there.

Our reading: one name per person, and a check when someone leaves

Name every device after the person using it, so message details and assignments mean something. When a member of staff leaves, log their device out the same day rather than waiting for the 30-day cut-off.

Staff who answer from Meta Business Suite instead

Meta's help article on permissions describes two levels, full control and partial access, for the business portfolio and for each asset in it, such as a WhatsApp account. Full control of the portfolio covers everything, including people and settings, and the power to delete it. Basic access, the default for anyone added, covers only the assets that person is assigned, and partial access to an asset covers set tasks, such as responding to messages. Someone with full control of the WhatsApp account can give other people in the portfolio access to it without controlling the whole portfolio. Finance access, to view or manage invoices and payment methods, is a separate option. Temporary access gives basic access for between 3 and 75 days, then removes the person automatically. Meta says giving people only the permissions they need helps keep the portfolio secure. Our reading: seasonal or short-contract staff who answer customers suit temporary access, so nobody has to remember to remove them.

A staff member added this way gets an invitation. Meta's help article on accepting one says the person confirms who they are by logging into Meta Business Suite with a Facebook account, an Instagram account, or a managed Meta account if their organisation made one for them, and then lands on the Business Suite home page, seeing only what their access allows. Someone in more than one portfolio who joins with different accounts gets a separate profile for each, switched from the top right of the home page. Our reading: if a new hire says the WhatsApp account is missing, check which account they joined with before changing their access.

Changing or removing that access later takes full control of the portfolio. Meta's steps on a computer: in Meta Business Suite open Settings, then People, then the person's name. Choose Manage in the business portfolio access section, or Manage beside a single asset such as the WhatsApp account, then save the change or choose Remove access. If People does not appear, Meta says you may not have full control of the portfolio; full control of one asset is not enough to edit permissions there. If an agency or another business shares an asset with you, you can only work within the permissions it gave your business.

More on protecting the number is in the account takeover guide, the subscriptions in the Meta One guide, and when a team has outgrown the app in the app or Platform guide.

Questions

Does a staff member need a Facebook account to join our business portfolio?

Not necessarily. Meta's help article says an invited person can log into Meta Business Suite with a Facebook account, an Instagram account, or a managed Meta account their organisation created for them.

How do we take away a former employee's access in Meta Business Suite?

Someone with full control of the business portfolio opens Settings, then People, then the person's name, and chooses Manage beside the portfolio or the asset, then Remove access. If People is missing, Meta says you may not have full control.

Can we give a staff member access that ends by itself?

Yes, in Meta Business Suite. Meta says temporary access gives basic access to the business portfolio for between 3 and 75 days, after which the person is removed from the portfolio and its assets automatically.

How many people can use one WhatsApp Business app number?

WhatsApp's Help Center says up to four linked devices plus the main phone. With multi-agent, part of a Meta Verified or Meta One subscription, it can be up to 10 linked devices.

Can we assign a WhatsApp chat to one member of staff?

Yes, with multi-agent. Tap and hold the chat in the Chats tab, choose Assign chat and pick the person. Customers do not see who it was assigned to.

Do linked devices need the main phone to stay online?

No. They work while it is offline, but WhatsApp's Help Center says they log out if the main phone is not used for more than 14 days.

Can we link WhatsApp Web to our business number without scanning a code?

Yes. WhatsApp's Help Center says WhatsApp Web offers Link with phone number: enter the business number, then type the 8-character code it shows into the main phone. Log out of any personal WhatsApp Web session first.

Why do calls only ring on our main phone?

WhatsApp's Help Center says that with more than four linked devices, calls ring only on the main phone. With four or fewer, they ring on every device.

Can staff send broadcast lists from WhatsApp Web?

No. The Help Center lists creating and viewing broadcast lists among the things linked devices cannot do.

Sources

More plain-language notes like this one are on the guides page.

Want every chat in one place you own?

We set up a business's WhatsApp number on a system its team runs, so every customer conversation sits in one place the business owns. A short call is the easiest way to see how that would work for you.

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