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WhatsApp Business Calling lets you place and receive voice calls with your customers over WhatsApp, through the /v1/calls* API.

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Supported providers

Calling works on two provider types — and behaves differently on each:
Any other number type returns 400 FEATURE_NOT_SUPPORTED. The error message: “Calling is only supported for Meta Cloud API and Pilot Status (web) numbers.” A web number that is not connected returns 409 WHATSAPP_INSTANCE_NOT_CONNECTED.
Enabling calling on an official (Meta Cloud) number has two Meta-side prerequisites: (1) a messaging tier of TIER_2K (2,000 msgs/24h) or higher — Meta’s gate for the Calling API (attempting it below that returns Meta error 138015); and (2) the WABA must have the calls webhook field subscribed (or SIP configured) — otherwise Meta returns 138018 (“technical pre-requisites not met”). Pilot Status turns calling on automatically when you connect the number and re-tries as the messaging tier climbs, so a fresh number in a low tier (e.g. TIER_250) simply can’t take calls yet. The tier that counts is the number’s own messaging_limit_tier — not the Business Portfolio limit (whatsapp_business_manager_messaging_limit), which is a different, usually higher number and does not unlock calling. You can also trigger it manually with the Enable calling button in the number’s Meta details on the Numbers page — it reports back ENABLED, PENDING_TIER (tier still below 2K), or PENDING_WEBHOOK (subscribe the calls webhook field on the WABA / set up SIP, then retry). Unofficial (web) numbers have no such gate.
A number in coexistence with the WhatsApp Business app cannot use calling at all. When a number keeps running in the WhatsApp Business app on the phone and is only connected to the Cloud API, Meta never registers it as a full Cloud API number: POST /{phone-number-id}/register is refused with “Register endpoint is not available for SMB businesses”, and every write to the calling settings answers Meta error 141000 — “The phone number is not a valid Cloud API number”. Messaging keeps working normally; only calling is blocked, and no tier increase or webhook subscription changes that. Tell-tale signs in the number’s Meta details: code_verification_status: NOT_VERIFIED, name_status: NON_EXISTS, and no PIN enabled. The only way out is migrating the number off the WhatsApp Business app onto the Cloud API (it then has to be registered and reach TIER_2K), which also removes it from the app on the phone.

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Call types

Pilot Status does not charge anything for calls.

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Meta pricing for business-initiated calls (official numbers)

On Meta Cloud API numbers, BIC minutes are billed by Meta directly on your WABA (official pricing):
  • User-initiated calls are free — always, on both providers.
  • BIC duration is measured in 6-second pulses; any fractional pulse counts as a whole pulse (a 56-second call = 9.33 → 10 pulses).
  • The per-pulse rate depends on the destination country and your monthly volume tier (same tier-accrual structure as WhatsApp messaging). When a call crosses a tier boundary, the entire call is priced at the cheaper (higher-volume) rate.
  • A valid payment method on the WABA is required to place calls — without one, calls fail with Meta error 131044.
  • Call-permission request messages are billed as normal messages, not as call minutes.
  • Rates are published per currency on Meta’s rate cards (BRL rate card effective July 1, 2026).

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Capability support by provider

A capability that a provider doesn’t support returns 400 FEATURE_NOT_SUPPORTED.

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How each provider handles media

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META — signaling only

Pilot Status relays the SDP; audio flows browser ↔ WhatsApp directly. Your WebRTC client produces the SDP offer/answer. There is nothing server-side to play into, so play and realtime-session do not apply. The dashboard /chat page includes a built-in softphone (available on both number types).

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Pilot Status web — server-side media (no SDP)

POST /v1/calls and /accept take no sdp — the call connects and audio is processed on the server. You then drive audio with the two web-only endpoints:
  • POST /v1/calls/{callId}/play — the backend downloads your audio file (the URL is validated server-side) and plays it into the call; pass hangupAfterPlay: true to end the call automatically when playback finishes (notification bots need no client-side timer).
  • POST /v1/calls/{callId}/realtime-session — opens a full-duplex PCM16 WebSocket session. The returned wsUrl is on a dedicated public media host and its token is single-use with a short (~2 min) TTL; connect to it directly (it is not proxied through the API).
Web numbers need no BIC permission grant and have no calling settings surface (those are Meta concepts).

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Migration / compatibility layer

If you already integrate with Evolution GO, the compatibility layer proxies the GO /call/* endpoints (start, answer, reject, hangup, list, get, media/play, media/realtime/session) — point your base URL at /api/layer/evolution-go/ and your existing GO calling code keeps working. The realtime WebSocket (/call/media/realtime/ws/*) is reached directly on a dedicated public media host (the HTTP layer does not upgrade WebSockets); GO frontend/manager routes are not proxied.

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Follow call progress with webhooks

Subscribe to call.ringing, call.connected, call.ended (includes duration in seconds when answered), call.missed, and call.permission_updated. Normalized call.* events fire for both META and Pilot Status web numbers.
Logs page showing a CALLS stat card and incoming call rows with Completed, Missed, and Rejected statuses

Calls in the Logs page — each call appears with direction, status (Completed with duration, Missed, Rejected), and its own CALLS counter.

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Next steps

Calls API Reference

Every endpoint, parameters, and per-provider behavior.

Voice Calls Guide

Step-by-step: place a call, answer, permissions, softphone.