Hello Dev,

This article will guide you through some essential examples of integrating WhatsApp API with Laravel. You'll learn how to integrate WhatsApp API into your Laravel application, allowing you to send messages via WhatsApp. We'll explore a simple example demonstrating how to send WhatsApp messages to WhatsApp numbers using Laravel. Let's delve into the details.

Twilio stands out as a cloud communications platform offering a versatile API that enables developers to integrate voice, messaging, and video functionalities into their applications seamlessly. Renowned for its simplicity and scalability, Twilio supports various programming languages, making it an ideal choice for businesses seeking to enhance customer engagement and communication. Its API facilitates features like sending SMS, making voice calls, and implementing two-factor authentication, offering a robust solution for building innovative and interactive applications across diverse industries.

In this example, we'll utilize the "twilio/sdk" third-party package to send WhatsApp messages to users. Twilio provides a WhatsApp API that allows you to programmatically send messages and media to WhatsApp users. We'll create a simple form comprising a phone number input field and a message box. Then, we'll send a WhatsApp message to the provided number. Let's follow the steps outlined below:

Step for Laravel WhatsApp API Integration:

Step 1. Install Laravel 10

Step 2. Set up a Twilio Account

Step 3. Install the twilio/sdk Package

Step 4. Create Routes

Step 5. Create Controller

Step 6. Create Blade File

Step 7. Run the Laravel App

Let's proceed with the following steps:

To integrate WhatsApp API with Laravel for sending messages, you can follow these steps. This guide uses the Twilio SDK, which simplifies the process of sending WhatsApp messages from a Laravel application.

If you haven't already, create a new Laravel project:

composer create-project laravel/laravel example-app

Sign up for a Twilio account at Twilio and obtain your Account SID and Auth Token. You'll also need a Twilio WhatsApp number, which you can get from your Twilio Console.

TWILIO_SID=your_twilio_account_sid
TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN=your_twilio_auth_token
TWILIO_WHATSAPP_NUMBER=your_twilio_whatsapp_number

Install the Twilio SDK via Composer:

composer require twilio/sdk

In routes/web.php, add a route to trigger sending a WhatsApp message:

<?php
  
use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Route;
  
use App\Http\Controllers\WhatsAppController;
  
/*
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Web Routes
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
| Here is where you can register web routes for your application. These
| routes are loaded by the RouteServiceProvider within a group which
| contains the "web" middleware group. Now create something great!
|
*/
  
Route::get('whatsapp', [WhatsAppController::class, 'index']);
Route::post('whatsapp', [WhatsAppController::class, 'store'])->name('whatsapp.post');

Generate a new controller:

php artisan make:controller WhatsAppController

Edit WhatsAppController.php to include the logic for sending a WhatsApp message:

<?php
  
namespace App\Http\Controllers;
   
use Illuminate\Http\Request;
use Twilio\Rest\Client;
use Exception;
  
class WhatsAppController extends Controller
{
    /**
     * Write code on Method
     *
     * @return response()
     */
    public function index()
    {
        return view('whatsapp');
    }
  
    /**
     * Write code on Method
     *
     * @return response()
     */
    public function store(Request $request)
    {
        $twilioSid = env('TWILIO_SID');
        $twilioToken = env('TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN');
        $twilioWhatsAppNumber = env('TWILIO_WHATSAPP_NUMBER');
        $recipientNumber = $request->phone;
        $message = $request->message;
  
        try {
            $twilio = new Client($twilioSid, $twilioToken);
            $twilio->messages->create(
                $recipientNumber,
                [
                    "from" => "whatsapp:+". $twilioWhatsAppNumber,
                    "body" => $message,
                ]
            );
  
            return back()->with(['success' => 'WhatsApp message sent successfully!']);
        } catch (Exception $e) {
            return back()->with(['error' => $e->getMessage()]);
        }
    }
}

Here, we will create "whatsapp.blade.php" file with following code:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
    <title>How to Send Whatsapp Message Using Laravel? -- ItErrorSolution.com</title>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=edge">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
    <link href="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/bootstrap@5.0.2/dist/css/bootstrap.min.css" rel="stylesheet">
</head>
<body>
    <div class="container">
  
        <div class="row">
            <div class="col-md-9">
  
                <div class="card">
                  <div class="card-header">
                    <h2>How to Send Whatsapp Message Using Laravel? -- ItErrorSolution.com</h2>
                  </div>
                  <div class="card-body">
                    <form method="POST" action="{{ route('whatsapp.post') }}">
                
                        {{ csrf_field() }}
  
                        @if ($message = Session::get('success'))
                            <div class="alert alert-success alert-block">
                                <strong>{{ $message }}</strong>
                            </div>
                        @endif
  
                        @if ($message = Session::get('error'))
                            <div class="alert alert-danger alert-block">
                                <strong>{{ $message }}</strong>
                            </div>
                        @endif
                    
                        <div class="mb-3">
                            <label class="form-label" for="inputName">Phone:</label>
                            <input 
                                type="text" 
                                name="phone" 
                                id="inputName"
                                class="form-control @error('phone') is-invalid @enderror" 
                                placeholder="Phone Number">
              
                            @error('phone')
                                <span class="text-danger">{{ $message }}</span>
                            @enderror
                        </div>
  
                        <div class="mb-3">
                            <label class="form-label" for="inputName">Message:</label>
                            <textarea 
                                name="message" 
                                id="inputName"
                                class="form-control @error('message') is-invalid @enderror" 
                                placeholder="Enter Message"></textarea>
              
                            @error('message')
                                <span class="text-danger">{{ $message }}</span>
                            @enderror
                        </div>
                   
                        <div class="mb-3">
                            <button class="btn btn-success btn-submit">Send Message</button>
                        </div>
                    </form>
                  </div>
                </div>
            </div>
        </div>
    </div>
</body>
</html>

Now, to run the Laravel application, please type the following command and press enter:

php artisan serve

Now, open your web browser and enter the provided URL to view the output of the application.

http://localhost:8000/whatsapp

Thank you for your encouragement! If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to ask. I'm here to help!