---
title: "send a text message to a chat"
method: POST
path: "/instances/{id}/client/action/send-message"
tags: ["message"]
---

# send a text message to a chat

`POST /instances/{id}/client/action/send-message`

Send a text message to a chat. The chatId format varies depending on the chat type:
- Individual chat: {phone_number}@c.us (e.g. 50664083362@c.us)
- Group chat: {group_id}@g.us (e.g. 123456789-123456789@g.us)
- Channel/Newsletter: {channel_id}@newsletter (e.g. 123456789@newsletter)

## Path parameters

- `id` integer, required

## Request body

- object
  - `chatId` string, required — Chat ID <countrycode_short><usernumber>@c.us or @g.us for groups
  - `message` string, required — Text message to send. Can include @123456789 for group chats.
  - `mentions` string[] — Optional array of contact IDs to mention. Only works in group chats. Make sure to include @123456789 in the message text.
  - `replyToMessageId` string — Optional message ID to reply to. Format: {fromMe}_{chatId}_{messageId}
  - `previewLink` boolean — Whether to show link previews in the message. Defaults to true.
  - `firedandforget` boolean — Set to true to process the request asynchronously. Returns a reference UUID for polling via GET /instances/{id}/request/{reference}. Alias: faf

## Response `200`

Message sent successfully

- object
  - `status` 'success' | 'error'
  - `instanceId` string
  - `data` object
    - `_data` object
      - `id` object
        - `fromMe` boolean
        - `remote` string
        - `id` string
        - `_serialized` string
      - `body` string
      - `type` string
      - `t` integer
      - `from` object
      - `to` object
      - `ack` integer

## Other responses

- `401` — Unauthorized — invalid or missing bearer token
- `403` — Forbidden — insufficient permissions or account blocked
- `404` — Not found — instance does not exist or does not belong to you
- `409` — Conflict — instance is not ready
- `422` — Validation error — invalid or missing request parameters
- `429` — Too many requests — rate limit exceeded

---

[API](https://skmtc.net/waapi/apis/waapi-api.md) · [All operations](https://skmtc.net/waapi/apis/waapi-api/llms.txt) · [OpenAPI document](https://skmtc-service-staging.skmtc.workers.dev/v1/apis/waapi/waapi-api/revisions/1e2cc7c12090/schema)