Send Contact - GOWA - Go WhatsApp Web Multi-Device API

Send a contact card to a WhatsApp number or group. Recipients can easily save the contact to their phone.

Contact cards appear as interactive elements in WhatsApp with an “Add to Contacts” button, making it easy for recipients to save the information.

Endpoint

POST /send/contact

Headers

X-Device-Id

string

Device identifier for multi-device support. Required when multiple devices are registered.

Content-Type

string

required

Must be application/json.

Request Body

phone

string

required

Phone number with country code and WhatsApp suffix of the recipient.Format: {country_code}{phone_number}@s.whatsapp.netExample: [email protected]

contact_name

string

required

Display name for the contact being shared.Example: "Aldino Kemal"

contact_phone

string

required

Phone number of the contact being shared (without WhatsApp suffix).Format: {country_code}{phone_number} (numbers only, no special characters)Example: "6289685024992"

is_forwarded

boolean

default:false

Mark the message as forwarded.

duration

integer

Disappearing message duration in seconds (optional).Common values:

86400 - 24 hours
604800 - 7 days
7776000 - 90 days

Response

code

string

Response status code. Returns "SUCCESS" on successful send.

message

string

Human-readable response message.

results

object

message_id

string

Unique identifier for the sent message.Example: "3EB0B430B6F8F1D0E053AC120E0A9E5C"

status

string

Detailed status message.

Code Examples

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-Device-Id: my-device" \
  -d '{
    "phone": "[email protected]",
    "contact_name": "John Doe",
    "contact_phone": "6281234567890"
  }'

Response Example

{
  "code": "SUCCESS",
  "message": "Success",
  "results": {
    "message_id": "3EB0B430B6F8F1D0E053AC120E0A9E5C",
    "status": "Contact sent successfully"
  }
}

Use Cases

Customer Support

Share support contact information with customers:

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-Device-Id: my-device" \
  -d '{
    "phone": "[email protected]",
    "contact_name": "Customer Support - 24/7",
    "contact_phone": "6281234567890"
  }'

Sales & Business Development

Introduce team members or sales representatives:

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-Device-Id: my-device" \
  -d '{
    "phone": "[email protected]",
    "contact_name": "Michael Chen - Sales Manager",
    "contact_phone": "6289876543210"
  }'

Referrals & Networking

Connect people by sharing contact information:

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-Device-Id: my-device" \
  -d '{
    "phone": "[email protected]",
    "contact_name": "Dr. Emily Roberts - Dentist",
    "contact_phone": "6285551234567"
  }'

Event Coordination

Share event organizer or venue contact:

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-Device-Id: my-device" \
  -d '{
    "phone": "[email protected]",
    "contact_name": "Event Coordinator - Annual Conference",
    "contact_phone": "6281234567890"
  }'

Emergency Contacts

Distribute emergency or important contact information:

curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-Device-Id: my-device" \
  -d '{
    "phone": "[email protected]",
    "contact_name": "Emergency Hotline",
    "contact_phone": "112"
  }'

Contact Card Display

WhatsApp displays contact cards with:

Contact Name: Displayed prominently at the top
Phone Number: Formatted based on recipient’s locale
WhatsApp Status: Shows if contact is on WhatsApp
Action Buttons:
- “Add to Contacts” button
- “Message” button (if contact is on WhatsApp)
- “Call” button

Phone Number Formatting

Proper phone number formatting is critical for contact cards to work correctly.

Correct Format

Recipient Phone (phone):

{country_code}{number}@s.whatsapp.net
Example: [email protected]

Contact Phone (contact_phone):

{country_code}{number}
Example: 6289685024992

Country Codes

Always include the country code without the ”+” symbol:

Indonesia: 62
United States: 1
United Kingdom: 44
India: 91
Singapore: 65
Australia: 61

Examples

// ✅ Correct
{
  "phone": "[email protected]",
  "contact_phone": "6289685024992"
}

// ❌ Incorrect - Missing country code
{
  "phone": "[email protected]",
  "contact_phone": "89685024992"
}

// ❌ Incorrect - Extra characters
{
  "phone": "[email protected]",
  "contact_phone": "+62 898 6502 4992"
}

Best Practices

Descriptive Names
- Include role or department: “John Doe - Sales”
- Add company name: “Support - Acme Corp”
- Specify purpose: “Emergency Contact”
Verify Phone Numbers
- Double-check country codes
- Remove spaces and special characters
- Validate number format before sending
Context Matters
- Send contact cards with explanatory text message
- Explain who the contact is and why you’re sharing
- Follow up to ensure recipient saved the contact
Privacy Considerations
- Get permission before sharing someone’s contact
- Use disappearing messages for sensitive contacts
- Be mindful of data protection regulations
Group Sharing
- Explain relationship when sharing in groups
- Consider if all group members need the contact
- Respect privacy preferences

Automation Ideas

Welcome Message with Support Contact

# Send welcome message first
curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/message \
  -d '{"phone": "...", "message": "Welcome! Here's our support contact:"}'

# Then send contact card
curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact \
  -d '{"phone": "...", "contact_name": "Support Team", "contact_phone": "..."}'

Sales Lead Assignment

# Assign sales rep contact to new lead
curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact \
  -d '{
    "phone": "{{lead_phone}}@s.whatsapp.net",
    "contact_name": "{{rep_name}} - Your Sales Rep",
    "contact_phone": "{{rep_phone}}"
  }'

Event Registration Confirmation

# Send organizer contact after registration
curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact \
  -d '{
    "phone": "{{attendee_phone}}@s.whatsapp.net",
    "contact_name": "Event Coordinator",
    "contact_phone": "{{coordinator_phone}}"
  }'

Limitations

WhatsApp contact cards have some inherent limitations.

Single Contact: Can only send one contact per message
Basic Info: Only name and phone number supported
No Email: Email addresses not included in contact cards
No Address: Physical addresses not supported
No Organization: Company/organization field not available
No Notes: Cannot add notes or additional context

Advanced Tips

Multiple Contacts

To share multiple contacts, send them in separate messages:

# Contact 1
curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact -d '{...}'

# Contact 2
curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact -d '{...}'

Rich Context

Combine with text messages for context:

# 1. Send explanatory message
curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/message \
  -d '{"phone": "...", "message": "Meet our team:"}'  

# 2. Send contact
curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/contact -d '{...}'

# 3. Send follow-up
curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/send/message \
  -d '{"phone": "...", "message": "Feel free to reach out anytime!"}'

Error Responses

400

Bad Request

Common causes:

Invalid phone number format
Missing required fields (contact_name or contact_phone)
Invalid contact_phone format (contains special characters)
Missing country code in phone numbers

500

Internal Server Error

Common causes:

Device not connected
Network connectivity issues
WhatsApp service temporarily unavailable

Troubleshooting

Contact Not Appearing Correctly

Verify phone number includes country code
Remove all special characters from contact_phone
Check contact_name is not empty
Ensure proper JSON formatting

”Add to Contacts” Not Working

Check recipient’s device compatibility
Verify contact_phone format is correct
Ensure recipient has permission to add contacts
Try with a different phone number

Contact Shows as Invalid

Verify country code is correct
Check phone number is active
Remove spaces from contact_phone
Validate number length for country

Send Text - Send text messages
Send Link - Send links with preview
Send Location - Share location information
User Info - Get user information

Overview

Device Management

Connection

User

Messaging

Message Operations

Chats

Groups

Newsletters

​Endpoint

​Headers

​Request Body

​Response

​Code Examples

​Response Example

​Use Cases

​Customer Support

​Sales & Business Development

​Referrals & Networking

​Event Coordination

​Emergency Contacts

​Contact Card Display

​Phone Number Formatting

​Correct Format

​Country Codes

​Examples

​Best Practices

​Automation Ideas

​Welcome Message with Support Contact

​Sales Lead Assignment

​Event Registration Confirmation

​Limitations

​Advanced Tips

​Multiple Contacts

​Rich Context

​Error Responses

​Troubleshooting

​Contact Not Appearing Correctly

​”Add to Contacts” Not Working

​Contact Shows as Invalid

​Related Endpoints

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Endpoint

Headers

Request Body

Response

Code Examples

Response Example

Use Cases

Customer Support

Sales & Business Development

Referrals & Networking

Event Coordination

Emergency Contacts

Contact Card Display

Phone Number Formatting

Correct Format

Country Codes

Examples

Best Practices

Automation Ideas

Welcome Message with Support Contact

Sales Lead Assignment

Event Registration Confirmation

Limitations

Advanced Tips

Multiple Contacts

Rich Context

Error Responses

Troubleshooting

Contact Not Appearing Correctly

”Add to Contacts” Not Working

Contact Shows as Invalid

Related Endpoints