The WhatsApp green tick, and how to actually get it.
The green tick is granted by Meta on brand notability, not on spend, plan or provider. Here is what it is, what it is not, and how to give an application its best chance.
What the green tick actually is
The green tick, formally the Official Business Account badge, is a verification mark Meta places next to a business name on WhatsApp. It tells a recipient that Meta has confirmed this is a notable, authentic brand.
What it changes: your business name shows in the chat header and in the recipient's list even when they have not saved your number. Without it, an unsaved contact sees the phone number. That is the practical benefit, and for a consumer brand it is a real one.
What it does not change: your messaging limits, your delivery rates, your per-message cost, or what you are allowed to send. Those are governed by your quality rating and template categories, not by the badge.
Green tick and Business Verification are not the same thing
These get conflated constantly, including by providers who should know better.
| Business Verification | Green tick (Official Business Account) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it checks | That your business legally exists | That your brand is publicly notable |
| Evidence | Registration documents, a matching public presence | Press and third-party coverage |
| Required to send? | Effectively yes, it gates messaging limits | No, entirely optional |
| Outcome | Most legitimate businesses pass | Most applications are declined |
| Visible to customers | No | Yes, the badge |
Do Business Verification early, because it raises your messaging limits and everything else depends on it. Treat the green tick as a separate, later, optional application.
What Meta actually looks for
The criterion is notability, and Meta's own guidance is consistent about what that means: your brand being covered by others, not talked about by you.
Counts: coverage in established news outlets, being the subject of articles rather than mentioned in passing, a Wikipedia entry, and a substantial organic presence that exists independently of your advertising.
Does not count: paid placements and sponsored articles, press releases you distributed, your own social following, your ad spend, your revenue, how long you have been trading, or which provider you use. No BSP has influence over this decision, and any that claims to is selling you something it does not control.
How to apply
- Complete Business Verification first. It is a prerequisite, and it is the one you are likely to pass.
- Set your display name properly. It must match how the public knows the brand and comply with WhatsApp's display name policy. A name that reads like a keyword string will be rejected on its own.
- Gather your evidence. Three to five links to genuine third-party coverage, from outlets a reviewer will recognise, ideally about the brand rather than mentioning it.
- Apply through Business Manager for the WhatsApp Business Account. We will help you prepare and submit it.
- Expect to wait, and possibly to be declined. Decline is the common outcome and is not a reflection on your business. You can reapply, and the sensible time to do so is after genuine new coverage, not a month later with the same links.
If you are declined
Most businesses are, and the honest answer is that the fix is not a better application. It is more third-party coverage, which is a PR problem rather than a WhatsApp one.
What is worth doing in the meantime: set a clear display name and profile photo, complete your business profile with a description, address and website, and use templates that identify you in the first line. An unsaved recipient seeing a well-formed profile and a message that says who you are gets most of the trust benefit the badge would have provided.
A warning about paid green tick services
There is a market in India for services promising a guaranteed green tick for a fee. Nobody outside Meta can guarantee this outcome. At best you are paying someone to submit a form you could submit yourself; at worst you are paying for fabricated press coverage, which is a policy violation that can cost you the account you are trying to decorate.
Weflux helps you prepare and submit the application at no extra charge, and will tell you honestly when we think an application is not yet worth making.
Green tick questions
Related
- Embedded Signup for connecting your number
- WhatsApp Business API guide including Business Verification
- Message templates and display name rules
- Talk to us about your application
We will tell you honestly if it is worth applying.
Business Verification first, green tick when the coverage supports it. No fee either way.