WhatsApp Business on a computer: how three people can reply from one number

You can open WhatsApp Business on a computer in a minute: go to web.whatsapp.com or install the WhatsApp desktop app, then open "Linked devices" on your phone and scan the QR code. One number then works on the phone and on up to four more devices. But when three people answer customers, a shared workspace with a separate login for each agent works better.

Below, step by step: how to run WhatsApp Business on a computer and on a second phone, what limits linked devices have, and how a team can work from one number without passing a phone around.

A familiar picture: a shop or salon with one business number that carries every enquiry. In the morning the administrator replies from the phone, in the afternoon the owner opens WhatsApp Web on a laptop, in the evening an agent uses the same number on another computer. A week later two people quote one customer different prices, a third customer gets no reply at all, and nobody can say who actually wrote to them.

How do you open WhatsApp Business on a computer?

Through the "Linked devices" feature: the phone with WhatsApp Business stays the main device, and the computer connects to it with a QR code. The computer does not need its own number or a separate sign-up.

1. On the computer, open web.whatsapp.com in a browser or launch the WhatsApp app for Windows or Mac. A QR code appears on the screen.
2. On the phone, open WhatsApp Business, then "Settings" (on Android, the three-dot menu) and "Linked devices".
3. Tap "Link a device" and confirm with your fingerprint, face or phone passcode.
4. Point the phone camera at the QR code on the computer screen. Your chats open on the computer within seconds.

If the camera will not read the code, you can choose to link with a phone number on the login screen: WhatsApp shows an 8-character code that you enter on the phone. A business account on the computer looks the same as a regular one, just with your labels, catalogue and quick replies.

How is WhatsApp Web different from the desktop app?

In features, hardly at all: both work as a linked device of your number. The difference is convenience: WhatsApp Web lives in a browser tab, while the app runs on its own, sends notifications and does not close with the browser.

WhatsApp Web is handy when you need to reply quickly from a shared or work computer where you cannot install anything. The app suits your own computer that you use every day: new message notifications will not get lost among tabs. In both cases, log out after working on a shared computer, otherwise the next person at that desk will see all your customer conversations.

Can you use WhatsApp Business on two phones?

Yes, but only one way: the second phone is linked to the first as a linked device. You cannot register one number as primary on two phones, because a new login with the SMS code signs the number out of the previous phone.

To connect a second phone, install WhatsApp Business on it, open the menu on the welcome screen and choose to link it to an existing account. The phone shows a QR code that you scan from the main phone under "Linked devices". After that the second phone gets the same chats and takes one of the linked device slots.

What limits do linked devices have?

Linked devices solve the task of reading and replying from a computer, but not the task of working as a team. The main limits are:

• no more than four linked devices can be connected to one phone at the same time;
• if the main phone is not used for a long time (WhatsApp names 14 days), linked devices are logged out;
• every device sees every chat: you cannot show an agent only some of the customers;
• everyone replies under one name, and the conversation does not show which employee wrote what;
• there is no assignment: two people can easily answer one customer while another customer waits;
• an employee who leaves stays in the account until you log their device out in the "Linked devices" list.

For an owner who replies sometimes from the phone and sometimes from a laptop, this is enough. Problems start when several people sit behind one number and the manager needs to know who replies, how fast and what they promise customers.

Why does one number get crowded when three people reply?

Because WhatsApp Business is designed as a messenger for one owner, not as a workspace for a team. Linked devices copy the same account, but they do not split the work between people.

In practice it looks like this. An agent opens a chat, reads the message and gets distracted: the customer sees the message as read with no answer, and colleagues think someone has taken it. Two people give one customer different delivery dates. The manager does not know how many enquiries came in today and how many are still unanswered. And if the number lives on an employee's personal phone and that person leaves, the conversation history and the customers leave too.

Another limit concerns broadcasts. Bulk sending from the app breaks WhatsApp rules, and the number can be banned. Why this happens is covered in our article "WhatsApp banned: what to do".

What options let a team reply from one number?

There are three levels: linked devices in WhatsApp Business itself, official WhatsApp with a shared workspace, and Coexistence mode, which connects the app on the phone to the workspace. The choice depends on how many people reply and whether you need the phone.

What we compare	WhatsApp Business linked devices	Official WhatsApp with a shared workspace	Coexistence: app plus workspace
How many people reply	Phone and up to 4 devices	The whole team, each with their own login	Phone and the whole team in the workspace
You can see who replied	No	Yes	Yes, replies from the phone are marked
Access to some chats only	No, everyone sees everything	Agents get only the channels they need	Agents get only the channels they need
App on the phone	Required, it is the main device	Not used	Stays and keeps working
Broadcasts to your customer base	Not allowed by the rules	Through approved templates	Through approved templates
Connection to a CRM	No	Yes	Yes

How regular WhatsApp, the WhatsApp Business app and the API differ is explained in detail in "WhatsApp Business vs regular WhatsApp and the API".

How does a shared team workspace work?

The number is connected not to an employee's phone but to the company workspace. Each agent logs in with their own email and password from a computer or phone and answers customers from the same number, while the manager sees every conversation.

In WazzaBee it works like this. The owner adds an employee in the "Team" section and ticks the channels that person handles: for example, WhatsApp only, without Telegram. The agent does not see the balance, the settings or other channels. Replies can be sent from a browser on a computer or from a phone: the dashboard opens at app.wazzabee.com and can be added to the home screen as an app with new message notifications. Three agent seats come with the channel, and each extra seat costs $6 per month.

If your team already works in Bitrix24 or amoCRM, WhatsApp can be connected right there, and agents reply from the CRM with no limit on seats. How to set this up is described in our articles on WhatsApp integration with Bitrix24 and, more broadly, on a CRM with WhatsApp for business.

What is Coexistence and who is it for?

Coexistence is an official Meta mode in which one number works at the same time in the WhatsApp Business app on the phone and in official WhatsApp in the workspace. The number stays the same, the app is not deleted, and the last 6 months of conversations move into the workspace.

The mode suits a number that customers have known for years when part of the team replies from the phone: an administrator at the front desk, a technician on a call-out. Other agents work from the workspace on a computer. A reply sent from the phone appears in the workspace marked "📱 from phone", so the manager knows who wrote to the customer and from where. One condition: open the app on the phone at least once every two weeks, otherwise the link may break.

Meta requirements and the connection steps are collected in "WhatsApp Coexistence: how to connect the WhatsApp Business app to a CRM".

How do you move from linked devices to working as a team?

Start with one question: do you need the phone in the setup? If the number is new or everyone already works at a computer, regular official WhatsApp will do. If the number has history and someone replies from the phone, choose Coexistence.

1. Count how many people answer customers and which channels each of them needs.
2. Choose the connection type: official WhatsApp without the app, or Coexistence with the app on the phone.
3. Sign up for WazzaBee and connect the number through Facebook: it takes 15 minutes.
4. Add employees in the "Team" section and give each one the channels they need.
5. Log out of extra computers in the "Linked devices" list on the phone so conversations do not stay on other people's devices.

A detailed walkthrough is in "How to connect official WhatsApp (WABA)", and terms and pricing are on the official WhatsApp page.