WhatsApp Display Name Guideline

The WhatsApp Business display name is your business name that customers see on your WhatsApp Business profile.

When you add a new phone number to your WhatsApp Business account in the Meta Business Manager, you assign a display name to it. The display name is used to create a certificate that is required to register a WhatsApp Business Platform account.

Here’re how the WhatsApp account is shown on customers end before and after your WhatsApp Display name has been Approved.

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Previously, only verified badge holders could have their approved display name appear in chats with customers. From 2024, any business that has a record of high quality messaging, has passed the Display Name Review, upon meeting the necessary criteria, will have their display name automatically shown in the chat.

🔑 Here’re the keys to getting your WhatsApp display name approved:

✅ Compliance with policies (see WhatsApp Commerce and Business policies)

✅ Accurate and clear representation of your business

✅ Clear relationship with your business’s legal name and consistency with external branding

The table below outlines the detailed guidelines for WhatsApp display names.

Principle

Examples

Compliance with policies

A display name should not violate WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy. An example for a store that sells a variety of sporting goods: ✅ Accepted: Sarah's Sporting Goods Shop ❌ Not accepted: Sarah's Sporting Goods Shop - Guns Deparment Within your company, you may have separate WhatsApp Business accounts for different divisions; only those divisions that are compliant with WhatsApp’s Commerce policy may have a WhatsApp Business account.

Principle	Examples
Accurate and clear representation of your business	A display name should accurately represent: 1. A business or its service, product or department. 2. A test account or a demo account and it must maintain an association to the business. Examples of what is and isn’t acceptable are below: ✅ Accepted: Fresh Produce Boston ✅ Accepted: Fresh Produce Customer Service Department ✅ Accepted: Fresh Produce by Global Grocers Inc. ❌ Not accepted: Tom Ford Nike (unless the brand name is officially linked on external sources such as websites or social media pages) 💡 Note: If the display name uses a personal name, it should clearly indicate the nature of the business on external sources (For example, Tom Ford Chiropractor).
NOT be generic	A display name should NOT be: 1. A generic term：   ❌ Not accepted: Fashion 2. A generic geographic location   ❌ Not accepted: New York 3. Appearing to have verification, which can mislead customers to think your business has an endorsed status. Official or Verified shouldn’t be in the name. ❌ Not accepted: Fresh Produce Official Account ❌ Not accepted: Verified Minni’s Muffins
NOT reference Meta and related brands	A display name should not reference Meta or any of its family of apps. Examples of what is and isn’t acceptable are below: ❌ Not accepted: Minni’s Muffins - Meta ❌ Not accepted: Minni’s Muffins WhatsApp ❌ Not accepted: Minni’s Muffins Pop Up on Facebook
NOT Promoted	A display name should reflect the business’s name only. It shouldn’t have any advertising or promotional language. ❌ Not accepted: Sarah’s Sporting Goods – 20% off sale ❌ Not accepted: Sarah’s Sporting Goods: Best rated sporting goods store in Texas
NO website or email	A display name shouldn’t be formatted as a website or email. This helps to prevent phishing and maintain professionalism on our platforms. Examples of what isn’t acceptable are below: ❌ Not accepted: https://minnismuffins.net ❌ Not accepted: sarahssportinggoods.com ❌ Not accepted: [email protected]

Principle	Examples
Clear relationship with your business’s legal name	A display name must have a clear relationship with your business's legal name. For example: ✅ Accepted: Legal name of a charity mentioned on a non-profit organization's website ❌ Not accepted: Legal name of a charity not mentioned on any external websites If the relationship between your company and the brand is not obvious, indicate the relationship using “by [company name].” ✅ Accepted: Fruit Snacks by Fresh Produce (Note that in this example Fresh Produce is the parent company of the Fruit Snacks brand and their association is clearly mentioned on their external websites) ❌ Not accepted: Fruit Snacks (Fresh Produce owns the Fruit Snacks brand but their association is not mentioned on any external websites) If the display name represents a business that the company is working with (if the business is an agency, distributor, partner, or parent company), then the relationship between the business represented in the display name and end-client business must be evident and clear in your business website. 💡 For example, if Global Voyager signs up for WhatsApp and wants to use the display name Commercial Air, they must submit a link to a website page stating that Commercial Air is a subsidiary of Global Voyager.
Clear consistency with external branding	A display name must also have consistent branding with external sources, such as a company's website or marketing, or with the company’s verified legal name. Examples of what is and isn’t acceptable are below: ✅ Accepted: Fresh Produce Cold Pressed Juices (how it is branded on your website). ✅ Accepted: Fresh Produce Cold Pressed Juices Mexico. ✅ Accepted: Fresh Produce Juices - Jessica ✅ Accepted: Fresh Produce Juices ✅ Accepted: FP Cold Pressed Juices (you added an abbreviation to the company name) ✅ Accepted: FPCP Juices ✅ Accepted: XY Fresh Cold Pressed Juices Service New York ❌ Not accepted: Digital Cloud Solutions(this can't be found anywhere on external sources like on your website) ❌ Not accepted: Juice (this is a generic term)

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Please note that this feature is completely handled by Meta and it is being rolled out gradually. We do not have any information on whether it will be applied to businesses.

For more details, please follow Meta guideline here.

Shall you have any inquiry, please do not hesitate to contact us via [email protected]