> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.chatsyncs.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Connect Account (Embedded)
> Connect a WhatsApp number to ChatSyncs the fast way, through Meta's embedded signup popup — either a brand-new virtual number on the Cloud API, or your existing WhatsApp Business App via Coexistence (keeping the phone app working alongside ChatSyncs automation). Use this as the first path to try before falling back to manual setup.
**Connect Account → Connect WhatsApp** opens Meta's embedded signup popup — a guided flow
that talks to Meta for you in the background, so you don't have to create a Meta app or copy
any tokens yourself. It branches
into two different paths depending on what you're connecting:
* **Cloud API** — a fresh virtual number dedicated to ChatSyncs. Fastest to set up, but once
connected that number can no longer be used in the regular WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business app.
* **Coexistence** — your existing WhatsApp Business App number. You keep using the app on your
phone normally, while ChatSyncs also gets Cloud API access for automation.
Start here; only fall back to the [manual setup path](/learn/connect-whatsapp-manual) if
embedded signup won't work for your account.
## Before you start
* A Facebook account with access to the business.
* For **Cloud API**: a virtual phone number not already active on WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business
(if it was, delete that number from WhatsApp permanently and wait a few hours first).
* For **Coexistence**: your WhatsApp Business App already set up on your phone with the number
you want to connect.
* A **Meta Business Portfolio** — embedded signup can create one for you on the spot if you
don't have one yet (just a portfolio name, your first/last name, and a website).
## Path 1: Connect via Cloud API (new virtual number)
Go to **Connect Account**, under **Business Accounts** click **Connect WhatsApp**, then pick
the green **Embedded Onboarding (One Click)** card and click **Connect with Embed
Onboarding** (the blue **Create Your Own API Connection** card is the
[manual path](/learn/connect-whatsapp-manual)).
If you've already set up a product catalog and want to share its permissions, click
**Connect With Catalog** — otherwise click **Connect Without Catalog**. Either opens Meta's
popup.
Meta's popup opens. Log in if you aren't already, then click **Continue**.
Pick an existing portfolio from the dropdown, or click **Create a Business Portfolio** if
you don't have one — it only asks for a portfolio name, your first/last name, and a
website.
With the portfolio selected, open the **WhatsApp Business account** dropdown. If you're
setting this up for the first time you'll see two options — pick **Create a WhatsApp
Business account** (the second option, **Connect a WhatsApp Business App**, is the
Coexistence path covered below). Existing numbers already linked to something else show up
crossed out and can't be reused here.
Click **Next**, then fill in the **Name**, **Category**, and **Website** for the new asset
(Country and Time zone are carried over from your portfolio).
Choose **Add a new number** (the alternative, **Use a display name only**, uses a shared
Meta test number where people only ever see your display name — not a real number).
Enter your country and **phone number**, then the **WhatsApp Business display name** — this
is what customers see at the top of the chat on every message, so get it right. Choose
**Text message** or **Phone call** to receive your verification code, click **Next**, then
enter the code you receive.
Meta confirms the connection — click **Finish** to return to ChatSyncs, where the number
shows up under your connected Business Accounts.
Once a number is connected via Cloud API, it can no longer be used in the standard WhatsApp or
WhatsApp Business app on a phone. Use a dedicated business number — or use Coexistence below if
you need to keep using the app.
## Path 2: Connect via Coexistence (keep your WhatsApp Business App)
**Coexistence** links your existing WhatsApp Business App number to ChatSyncs — you keep
messaging normally from your phone, while ChatSyncs also gets Cloud API access to automate on
the same number.
Same starting point as Path 1: **Connect Account → Connect WhatsApp**, choose a catalog
permission option, then log in with Facebook and select your **Business Portfolio**.
This time pick the second option, **Connect a WhatsApp Business App**, instead of Create a
WhatsApp Business account (screenshot in Path 1, step 4, above).
Enter the phone number **already connected to your WhatsApp Business App** — not a new one.
Read the **Connect your existing WhatsApp Business App** notice — your account information
(phone number, contacts, chats, chat history) may be shared, and individual chats start being
managed through a secure Meta service. Click **Next**.
**"Unlink your number first" error?** This means the number is already linked to a
*different* platform/partner. Fix it in two places:
1. At [business.facebook.com](https://business.facebook.com), select your business
portfolio → **WhatsApp account** → select the account → **Partners** tab → find the
connected partner → **Manage** → remove access.
2. On your phone, open **WhatsApp Business app → Settings → Account → Business Platform** →
find the same partner → tap to disconnect.
Once both are disconnected, re-enter your number and continue.
The account name is pulled from your phone and **can't be changed** once setup is complete —
only the time zone is editable here. Click **Next**.
Review what ChatSyncs will be able to do — manage your business, manage your WhatsApp
accounts, manage/access conversations, and log events for that account to Meta — then
click **Confirm**.
Open **WhatsApp Business app** on your phone — you'll get a message from Meta titled
**Connect to the Business Platform**. Tap **Connect**.
A QR code appears — scan it with the same WhatsApp Business app to complete the link, then
click **Finish**.
Unlike Path 1, Coexistence lets you keep using the WhatsApp Business app on your phone exactly
as before — ChatSyncs runs alongside it rather than replacing it.
## Frequently asked
**Cloud API** connects a brand-new virtual number dedicated to ChatSyncs — once connected,
that number can't be used in the regular WhatsApp app anymore. **Coexistence** links your
*existing* WhatsApp Business App number instead, so you keep using the app on your phone
while ChatSyncs automates on the same number.
Your number is already linked to a different platform/partner. See [Disconnect Another
Partner From Your WhatsApp Number](/learn/disconnect-partner) for the full steps, then
re-enter your number.
Yes — that's the whole point of Coexistence. Cloud API-only connections are the ones that
lock the number out of the regular app.
No — the account name is set from your phone at connection time and can't be edited
afterward. Only the time zone stays editable on that screen.
No — embedded signup can create one for you inline during the flow. It only asks for a
portfolio name, your first/last name, and a website.
Use the [manual setup path](/learn/connect-whatsapp-manual) instead — it takes more steps
but gives full visibility into every credential.
