WhatsApp Display Name
On this page, you learn when you need to get your display name approved, how to ensure it gets approved and how to change it.
When creating a WhatsApp Business Account (WABA), you must choose a display name. Your display name is the name your customers see on WhatsApp when communicating with you. You can choose to have it approved by WhatsApp or not. With an unapproved display name you still can:
- Connect a maximum of 2 phone numbers to your WABA.
- Send 50 or fewer message templates in a rolling 24 hours; That is, if you want to start business-initiated conversations with 50 or fewer customers outside of the 24-hour customer service widow.
- Receive unlimited number of user-initiated conversations.
However, if you decide to increase your messaging limits or connect more phone numbers to your account, you must first verify your Facebook Business Account, and WhatsApp must approve your display name.
Display Name Requirements and Best Practices
Here are the best practices and guidelines when you want to choose a display name:
The name must comply with WhatsAppโs policies.
Your display name must adhere to three WhatsApp policies:
- WhatsApp commerce policy
- WhatsApp business policy and
- WhatsApp Business Terms of Service
Your display name must not infringe any copyright or trademark. It cannot be deceptive or mislead people to think you are another business.
Moreover, WhatsApp has a list of banned products and services like tobacco, alcohol, live animals, and more that businesses may not sell using WhatsApp. If your products and services are related to these products but are not against WhatsAppโs policy, your display name must clearly reflect that. For example, if you have a veterinary clinic for pets, the display name must show that you are not selling pets, but rather services for pets. Here is an example:
- Accepted: ABC Pets Clinic
- Unaccepted: ABC Pets
You are allowed to have separate WhatsApp Business accounts for different divisions of your company. However, only those divisions that are in compliance with WhatsAppโs policies are allowed to have a WhatsApp Business account. In the example of the pet clinic, if you also sell prescription drugs for pets, you may not have a separate WhatsApp Business account for it, as WhatsApp does not allow the sale of drugs.
The display name must be specific.
Your display name must not be too generic. In the example of the pets clinic, the name โClinicโ, for example, is not an acceptable display name. Generic geographical locations such as โBrazilโ are not acceptable either. Other generic names such as slogans, long descriptions, and peopleโs full names arenโt acceptable.
The name must be consistent with external branding.
Your display name must be exactly the same as it appears on your company website and your marketing materials. Grammar mistakes, adding emojis, or symbols, and including trademark designs to your display name are not acceptable. Only names of cities, countries, or regions are allowed to be added to the name. In the case of the ABC Pets Clinic, here are acceptable and unacceptable variations:
- Acceptable: ABC Pets Clinic (It is the exact name of the business)
- Acceptable: ABC Pets Clinic Dubai (Only the name of the city is added)
- Unacceptable: ABC Clinic (The branding is changed by removing โPetsโ)
- Unacceptable: ABC Clinic Dubai (The branding is changed by removing โPetsโ)
- Unacceptable: A B C Pets Clinic (You changed the branding by adding space between the letters)
- Unacceptable: ABC Petz Clinic (โPetzโ has a spelling error)
The name must have a clear relationship with your business.
If the ABC Pets Clinic account is a test or a demo account, your display name must show that. For example, โABC Pets Clinic Test Accountโ.
Letโs say that ABC Pets Clinic produces and sells pet collars with a separate branding, such as โMisha Collarsโ. The name โMisha Collarsโ is an acceptable display name as long as it is mentioned on the website of ABC Pets Clinic or another source. If the relationship between the brand and the business is not clear, one can add โby [company name]โ to the name. In this case, the display name could be โMisha Collars by ABC Pets Clinicโ. The name โMisha Collarsโ alone, if it is not mentioned on the website of ABC Pets Clinic or any other websites, is not acceptable.
Your display name must not contain the following:
Grammar mistake
Acceptable: ABC Pets Clinic
Unacceptable: ABC Petz Clinic
All capital letters, except for acronyms
Only the first letter of each word can be capitalized. Conjunctions may not be capitalized.
Acceptable: Sweet Treats or Tammy’s Burritos and Tacos
Unacceptable: SWEET TREATS* or Tammy’s Burritos And Tacos
Acceptable: ABC Pets Clinic (Only the first letters are capitalized.)
Unacceptable: ABC PETS CLINIC
Have fewer than 3 characters
Acceptable: TGIF
Unacceptable: TG
Have special characters
Characters such as ~!@#$%^&*()_+:;"’{}[]\|<>,/? may not be included in the display name.
Your name cannot be in URL format.
The above formatting guidelines do not apply to businesses that already brand this way externally.
โHow to change your display name
You create your display name from your Business Solution Provider (BSP) account. If youโd like to change it, you can do so from the BSP portal or from your Facebook Business account.
You may change your display name after it has been approved. The steps you need to take for this depend on whether your business is an official business account (OBA; accounts that have a green tick) or not. If your business is an OBA, you need to contact direct support and provide the following information to change your display name:
- Question topic: Request an official business account
- Request type: Update OBA display name
If you donโt have an official business account, follow the steps below to change your display name:
- Go to https://business.facebook.com/ and log in to your account.
- Go to Settings.
- On the next page, click on Business settings. A new page will open.
- Under Accounts, select WhatsApp Accounts. Click on Settings and scroll down to see WhatsApp Manager.
5. Click the account that youโd want to change your display name for.
6. A new tab will appear. On the left-most menu and click Phone numbers.
7. Under the Name column, hover over your current display name and click the pencil icon.
8. In the new window that opens, type your new display name. Press Next.
If your business is not verified, you’ll see a confirmation that your display name has been created and a new certificate is available for download immediately.
If your business is verified, in the Phone numbers section of your WhatsApp Manager, your phone number will have a pending review label below Certificate. Once it’s been approved, you’ll see a View button. You can click it to see the available certificate for the phone number.
You can change your display name up to 10 times in 30 days.
Remember that the certificate for the new display name is only available for 14 days. If the certificate expires, you’ll need to follow the steps above to submit the display name for review again.
Checklist for display name approval
โ Youโre not selling illegal or banned products and services.
โ Itโs specific and not generic.
โ Itโs not the full name of a person.
โ Itโs free from grammar mistakes unless the mistake is part of the original branding (Petz instead of Pets, or bASic instead of Basic).
โ Itโs not all capital. Only the first letters could be capitalized.
โ It has a minimum of 3 characters.
โ It doesnโt infringe on any copyright or trademark.
โ It is not misleading or deceptive.
โ It has a clear relationship with your business. (Ex. Misha Collars by ABC Pets Clinic)
โ Itโs consistent with your external branding.
โ You have not changed the branding by adding or removing anything, including a word, space, emoji, and symbols. Only adding the names of cities, regions, and countries are allowed.
โ It doesnโt have any special characters such as ~!@#$%^&*()_+:;"’{}[]\|<>,/? unless the original branding has these characters.
โ Itโs not in URL format unless the original branding is in URL format.