Can I Test Before Connecting My WhatsApp Number?
Yes. You can configure everything before connecting your number — every automation you set up is saved as a draft and goes live the moment the channel connects.
Last updated on
Yes. You can configure everything before connecting your number — every automation you set up is saved as a draft and goes live the moment the channel connects. And you can try the behavior right away in the Test chat, no number required.
What you can set up in advance
- Enable and configure the WhatsApp automations — direct messages, ads that click to WhatsApp, posts that click to WhatsApp — including the Additional instructions that shape how the AI talks
- Fill in your Knowledge Base — About Company, Catalog, and FAQ
- Prepare Switch to human rules for when the AI should pass conversations to your team
- Set up Calendar — reminders can even be sent from Chatfuel's own WhatsApp number, so no connection is needed for that
You can do all of this in the dashboard or by asking the AI Co-Worker in chat — both work the same before and after the number connects.
Try it in the Test chat
Every automation has a Test chat — a sidebar that simulates a conversation with exactly that automation's settings, using your real Knowledge Base and catalog.
- Go to Fuely AI → Automations.
- Open the automation you want to try — WhatsApp direct messages, an ad rule, or Main bot.
- Open the Test chat sidebar and write as if you were the customer.
Run through typical scenarios — booking a service, asking a FAQ question, requesting a human agent — and see exactly how the AI responds before anything is live.
What requires a connected number
Actual live conversations — real incoming and outgoing messages with customers on your own business number — need a connected WhatsApp number.
Bottom line
Build, test, and refine your setup in the Test chat. Once everything works the way you want, connect your number — the drafts go live on their own.