WhatsApp Broadcast: How It Works, Limits, and How to Send One
A WhatsApp broadcast sends one message to many contacts as individual chats. Here is how to create one, the limits nobody tells you about, and what to use when you outgrow it.
What is a WhatsApp broadcast?
A WhatsApp broadcast sends one message to many contacts at once — but each person receives it as a normal private chat. Recipients cannot see each other, and replies come back to you one-to-one. That makes it feel personal, unlike a group where everyone sees everything.
It is built into both WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business as the "broadcast list" feature, and it is free. The catch is a set of limits that surprise most businesses the first time they use it.
How to send a broadcast (native app)
- Open WhatsApp → tap the menu (⋮ on Android) or Chats tab (iPhone)
- Choose "New broadcast"
- Select the contacts to include (they must be saved in your phone)
- Tap create, type your message and send — everyone gets it individually
The broadcast limits nobody mentions
The native broadcast list has three hard constraints:
- Limit of 256 contacts per broadcast list — bigger lists mean juggling multiple lists manually
- Delivery only to people who saved YOUR number — everyone else silently gets nothing
- No scheduling, no {name} personalisation, no delivery reporting, single number only
Why your broadcast is not delivered to some people
This is the most common complaint, and the cause is almost always the saved-number rule: if a contact never saved your number in their phone book, WhatsApp simply does not deliver your broadcast to them. There is no error message — it just never arrives. For a business list, where most customers have not saved you, that can mean the majority of the list receives nothing.
Broadcast vs group vs blast
A group is one shared room — everyone sees every message and each other’s numbers; wrong tool for marketing. A broadcast is private one-to-many but capped and dependent on being saved. A blast (via a sender tool) is one-to-many like a broadcast, but without the 256 cap or the saved-number rule — which is why businesses graduate to it. (We compare blast and broadcast in detail in a separate guide.)
When you outgrow the native broadcast
If your list is bigger than a few hundred contacts, or most of it has not saved your number, the native broadcast quietly stops doing its job. A tool like App365 sends to your imported list directly — saved or not — with templates and {name} personalisation, scheduling, multi-number support, safe pacing, and a report of sent, failed and success per campaign.
FAQ
What is the WhatsApp broadcast limit?
A native broadcast list holds up to 256 contacts. You can create multiple lists, but each must be managed manually and still only reaches people who saved your number.
Why did my broadcast not reach everyone?
Broadcast messages are only delivered to contacts who have saved your number in their phone. Anyone who has not saved you receives nothing, with no error shown.
Do broadcast recipients see each other?
No. Each recipient gets the message as a normal private chat and replies privately to you.
How do I broadcast to more than 256 contacts?
Use a blast tool. App365 sends to an imported list of any size — no 256 cap, no saved-number requirement — with pacing and daily limits to keep the number safe.
Is WhatsApp broadcast free?
Yes, the native broadcast list is free within its limits. Business tools that remove the limits are paid — App365 starts at RM1,200/year for one device.
Ready to put this into action?
App365 handles the blasting, warmup, auto-replies and opt-outs for you — built for Malaysian businesses.