> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.soneka.africa/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Soneka: The All-in-One WhatsApp Platform for Teams

> Soneka combines broadcasts, shared inbox, flow automation, AI agents, templates, and payments into one WhatsApp workspace. Pay per message, not per seat.

Welcome to **Soneka** **Africa**— the complete WhatsApp business platform for African teams and the agencies that serve them. This documentation walks you through every feature, screen, and integration, from connecting your first WhatsApp number to running bulk campaigns, building no-code chatbots, answering calls with AI, and reselling the platform to your own clients.

Built by Databit Limited in Nairobi, Kenya, Soneka is designed for teams that want to do real work on WhatsApp without stitching together five different tools. Everything lives in one workspace, shares the same contacts, and bills you for messages sent rather than the number of people on your team.

<Tip>
  Stuck at any point? Reach us at [connect@soneka.africa](mailto:connect@soneka.africa) or on WhatsApp at **+254 722 685 776** — you'll always get a real person, not a ticket queue.
</Tip>

## What is Soneka?

Soneka is a complete WhatsApp business platform you can run as your own workspace or resell to clients. It rolls five jobs — that most businesses buy as five separate tools — into a single product:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Shared Team Inbox" icon="inbox">
    One WhatsApp number worked by your whole team, with chat assignment, internal notes, and collision detection so two agents never reply at once.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Bulk Marketing" icon="bullhorn">
    Campaigns, template broadcasts, and scheduled sends that track delivery, reads, and failures for every recipient.
  </Card>

  <Card title="No-Code Automation" icon="diagram-project">
    A visual flow builder, auto-replies, keyword triggers, website chatbot widgets, and native WhatsApp Forms — no developer required.
  </Card>

  <Card title="AI Suite" icon="robot">
    Chat assistants trained on your own content, a voice assistant that answers phone calls, and searchable call logs with transcripts and recordings.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Multi-Client SaaS Layer" icon="layer-group">
    Isolated workspaces, subscription plans, \~30 payment gateways, free trials, coupons, wallet credits, per-plan feature controls, and full white-label branding.
  </Card>

  <Card title="One Bill, No Per-Seat Fees" icon="wallet">
    Add every teammate you want. You pay for messages, never headcount — costs stay predictable as your team grows.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

What makes Soneka so flexible is its **three interchangeable sending engines**. Every workspace connects WhatsApp through one of them — the **Unofficial API** (link a number by QR code), the official **WhatsApp Cloud API** from Meta, or **Twilio WhatsApp** — and the rest of the app (inbox, campaigns, flows, templates) adapts automatically. Start a client for free on the Unofficial API today and move them to the official Cloud API later, without changing how the app works.

Soneka is built for agencies, SaaS founders, and businesses who want to *sell* WhatsApp marketing and support as a service — not just use it. There are no per-seat fees, and your customer data never leaves the infrastructure you control.

## The Three Engines at a Glance

Choosing an engine is the first real decision you make for each workspace, so here is the honest trade-off. Soneka supports all three side by side — different workspaces on the same install can use different engines, and the platform admin decides which ones are offered.

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/soneka-africa/XXyrTGYVNgSvQUD1/images/image-3.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=XXyrTGYVNgSvQUD1&q=85&s=a30675b404dc507026b1024bb6dad5ff" alt="Image" width="1919" height="849" data-path="images/image-3.png" />
</Frame>

|                           | Unofficial API                                                                | WhatsApp Cloud API (Meta)                                                                                     | Twilio WhatsApp                                                         |
| ------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **How it connects**       | Scan a QR code (or use a pairing code), just like WhatsApp Web.               | Connect a verified WhatsApp Business Account with your Meta details, or use Meta's one-click embedded signup. | Enter your Twilio account details and WhatsApp sender number.           |
| **Setup effort**          | Lowest — only minutes.                                                        | Highest — needs Meta business verification and a WhatsApp Business Account.                                   | Medium — needs a Twilio account and an approved (or test) sender.       |
| **Meta approval needed?** | No.                                                                           | Yes — a verified business and approved message templates.                                                     | Handled through Twilio's sign-up (Twilio manages the Meta side).        |
| **Ban risk**              | Highest — it links a number unofficially, so heavy sending can get it banned. | Lowest — official and policy-governed, with quality ratings.                                                  | Low — an official channel governed by Twilio and Meta policy.           |
| **Cost model**            | No per-message fee from Meta; you just run the helper service.                | Meta charges per conversation.                                                                                | Twilio charges per message.                                             |
| **Features**              | Free text, media, buttons, lists, polls.                                      | Everything official — templates, interactive messages, and native **WhatsApp Forms**.                         | Twilio's templates; interactive buttons and lists become numbered text. |
| **Best for**              | Fast starts, demos, and low-volume or internal numbers.                       | Brands that need trust, scale, and the verified green-tick path.                                              | Teams already standardised on Twilio.                                   |

<Info>
  **One active engine per workspace.** Each workspace uses a single engine at a time, and the **Devices** screen shows only the setup for that one. A few features — for example, native WhatsApp Forms — only work on the Cloud API, and the app handles this transparently so you never hit a dead end. See [Connect Your WhatsApp Number](/connect-whatsapp) for the full setup of each engine.
</Info>

## What Soneka Can Do

A grouped tour of the platform. Each area has its own detailed guide in the sidebar.

### Conversations & Team Inbox

* **Shared Team Inbox** with chat assignment, internal notes, snooze, tags, resolve, saved replies, and a Kanban board view.
* **Collision detection** (who's viewing and typing) so two agents never reply to the same chat at once, plus auto-assignment rules and response-time (SLA) timers.
* **1-to-1 chat** for direct messages, and an internal **Team Chat** with @mentions for your staff.

Full guide: [Team Inbox](/features/team-inbox).

### Marketing & Outreach

* **Campaigns** and template **Broadcasts** with sending-speed controls, per-recipient delivery / read / failed / queued tracking, and automatic retry.
* **Scheduled Messages** for one-off and recurring sends at the right local time, and trackable short links via the **Link Generator**.
* **Meta Ads** — build Click-to-WhatsApp ad campaigns without leaving Soneka.

Full guide: [Broadcasts](/features/broadcasts).

### Templates & Automation

* **WhatsApp Templates** — build, validate, and submit to Meta for approval, then send with personalized fields, carousels, headers, and buttons.
* **Flows** — a drag-and-drop visual builder for text, buttons, lists, conditions, delays, AI steps, Google Sheets/Docs/Forms, appointments, and store actions.
* **Auto Reply**, a website **Chatbot Widget**, and native **WhatsApp Forms** (Cloud API only).

Full guides: [Templates](/features/templates) · [Flow Builder](/features/flow-builder).

### AI Suite

* **AI Training** — teach chat assistants from web pages, plain text, and question-and-answer pairs to power the widget and auto-replies.
* **AI Call Assistant** — a voice assistant that answers phone calls and can run your tools during the call.
* **Call Logs** — transcripts, recordings, and a timeline of any tools invoked, for every voice call.

Full guide: [AI Agents](/features/ai-agents).

### Contacts & Data

* **Contacts & Groups** — import from a spreadsheet, tag, group, and search.
* **Attributes** — built-in and custom fields for personalizing templates and flows.
* **Analytics** and **Message History** — charts for delivery, reads, and conversions across campaigns and devices.

Full guide: [Attributes](/features/attributes).

### Multi-Client and Agency

* Isolated **workspaces** with role-based team access, subscription plans with \~30 feature switches, free trials, and a per-feature paywall.

Billing details: [Plans & Billing](/account/plans-billing).

## Start Here: Your First 15 Minutes

If you're brand new, follow this path top to bottom. Each step links to its full guide.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create your workspace">
    Sign up at [soneka.africa/register](https://soneka.africa/register) — no credit card required. Your 14-day free trial starts immediately with full access to every feature.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Connect a channel">
    Open the **Devices** screen and pick an engine. The fastest is the Unofficial API: scan a QR code to link a number. Full steps for all three engines are in [Connect Your WhatsApp Number](/connect-whatsapp).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Send your first message">
    Go to **Chat**, pick the connected device, enter a number you personally control, and send. Watch the status move to *delivered* or *read* — that confirms everything is wired up correctly.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Then explore">
    Import your [Contacts](/features/attributes), build a [Template](/features/templates), run a [Broadcast](/features/broadcasts), or wire up a [Flow](/features/flow-builder). To understand caps and gating, read [Plans & Billing](/account/plans-billing).
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Warning>
  **Testing tip:** Always test sends against a number you personally control — never enrol a real audience just to "see if it works". On the Unofficial API especially, aggressive sending to cold numbers is the fastest path to a WhatsApp ban.
</Warning>

## Who Soneka Is For

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Marketing agencies" icon="chart-line">
    Run WhatsApp marketing for many clients, each in an isolated workspace, billed on a plan you control.
  </Card>

  <Card title="SaaS founders" icon="rocket">
    Launch a WhatsApp marketing and support SaaS out of the box — plans, payments, trials, and feature gating are already built.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Sales & support teams" icon="headset">
    Share one number across the whole team with routing, internal notes, SLA timers, and collision detection.
  </Card>

  <Card title="E-commerce stores" icon="bag-shopping">
    Send order updates, recover abandoned carts, and answer buyers in real time — with Shopify and WooCommerce integrations.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Developers & resellers" icon="code">
    White-label the platform, customize it, and resell access on your own infrastructure and pricing.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Fintech & regulated industries" icon="building-columns">
    Automate onboarding, payment reminders, and support triage across regulated workflows with role-based access and a full audit log.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## How Soneka Is Different

The WhatsApp business software market is crowded, and many platforms look similar on a comparison page. Here's what actually distinguishes Soneka in day-to-day use.

<Accordion title="Versus AiSensy">
  AiSensy focuses heavily on broadcast campaigns and charges per seat for inbox access. Soneka includes a full shared inbox on every plan, and you pay for message volume rather than headcount — which keeps costs predictable as your team grows.
</Accordion>

<Accordion title="Versus Wati">
  Wati is a solid inbox tool but its automation builder is shallow and its AI features are limited. Soneka's Flow Builder supports branching logic, external API calls, and native AI Agent nodes in the same canvas. You don't need a separate automation platform.
</Accordion>

<Accordion title="Versus Interakt">
  Interakt's catalog and payment features are well-regarded, but the product is tightly coupled to the Indian market (UPI, Razorpay). Soneka is built for Africa-first — M-Pesa, Airtel Money, and local payment rails are first-class citizens alongside Visa, MasterCard, and AmEx.
</Accordion>

<Accordion title="Versus Gupshup">
  Gupshup is an enterprise BSP with deep API coverage but a steep learning curve and a sales-heavy buying process. Soneka offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card, self-serve onboarding in under four minutes, and a real human on support — not a ticket queue.
</Accordion>

## Five Things Worth Knowing Before You Sign Up

* **Pay for messages, not seats.** Add every agent on your team. Your bill is based on message volume, not headcount.
* **Everything talks to everything.** A contact captured by a CTWA ad can be enrolled in a Flow, handled by an AI Agent, and then assigned to a human agent — without any manual data wiring.
* **Support is a real person.** Reach the team at [connect@soneka.africa](mailto:connect@soneka.africa) or WhatsApp +254 722 685 776. You won't get a bot.
* **Weekly deploys.** Soneka ships new features every week. The changelog is public and the roadmap is customer-driven.
* **No dark patterns.** No lock-in contracts, no surprise overages, no "contact sales" walls on pricing. You can cancel, downgrade, or export your data at any time.

<Note>
  Soneka is built on the official WhatsApp Business API (Meta), Twilio, and an unofficial QR-based connection for testing. Your production number should always use the Cloud API or Twilio path for reliability and compliance.
</Note>

## Ready to get started?

The fastest way to understand Soneka is to use it. Your first workspace is free for 14 days — no credit card, no sales call.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Quickstart guide" icon="rocket" href="/quickstart">
    Create your workspace, connect a number, and send your first message in under four minutes.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Connect WhatsApp" icon="whatsapp" href="/connect-whatsapp">
    Choose the right connection method for your number and follow the step-by-step setup guide.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>