Business App vs Cloud API: what you need before customers can reach your AI
EezieLead runs on the WhatsApp Cloud API, not the WhatsApp Business App. These are two different products from Meta, and this one difference decides what happens when you connect a number, so it's worth one minute now.
None of this stops you starting. You can sign up, build your AI and watch it answer without any of it. This page is about the step after that, when you want real customers reaching it.
The two products
The green WhatsApp Business App is the app you install on a phone and tap to reply by hand. The WhatsApp Cloud API is Meta's platform that lets software, like EezieLead, send and receive messages on your number automatically.
| Business App | Cloud API (EezieLead) | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | An app on one phone | Meta's cloud, connected to EezieLead |
| Can software auto-reply? | No, the app has no API, ever | Yes, that's the whole point |
| Who answers | You, by hand | AI first, you take over anytime |
| Manual broadcast/blast | Free, manual | Reaching people outside the 24h window needs an approved template |
What each one costs is a separate question, and the answer changes on 1 October 2026. See message costs.
Why it matters for you
If your number is brand new (not yet on any WhatsApp Business product), you can go straight to connecting your number.