Most first-time online sellers in India already have customers messaging them on WhatsApp before they ever build a proper website. The problem is that a normal WhatsApp chat has no product list, no order tracking, and no way to take a payment link without switching to five different apps. Setting up an actual WhatsApp shop fixes that, and for most sellers in a Tier-2 city like Surat or Bengaluru, it takes under an hour with the free app alone.
This guide walks through the exact steps to set up a WhatsApp shop in India in 2026: switching to the Business app, building a catalogue within Meta’s current limits, turning on automated replies, and knowing when to move to a paid automation tool like AiSensy, Interakt, or Wati. It is written for sellers who are starting from a personal WhatsApp number and want a working shop by the end of the day.
Quick Verdict
Start with the free WhatsApp Business App. It covers catalogue, quick replies, and basic automation at zero cost. Once you are handling more chats than one person can answer, move to AiSensy, which has the lowest starting price of the paid tools in India. If you need Instagram plus WhatsApp in one inbox from day one, look at Interakt instead.
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WhatsApp Shop Tools Compared
| Tool | Best For | Price (₹/month) | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| WhatsApp Business App | Solo sellers just starting out | ₹0 | 4/5 |
| AiSensy | Cheapest paid automation with native INR billing | ₹0 to ₹1,500 | 4.2/5 |
| Interakt | Sellers who also sell through Instagram | ~₹4,600 (Growth, $55/mo) | 4/5 |
| Wati | Small teams needing multiple agent seats | ₹2,499 | 3.8/5 |
Step 1: Switch to the WhatsApp Business App
Download WhatsApp Business free from the Play Store or App Store and register with a number that is not already active on personal WhatsApp, since the two cannot share a SIM. During setup, fill in your Business Profile: shop name, category, address if you have a physical location, and working hours. This profile is what a customer sees before they message you, so a Jaipur handicrafts seller should list the actual product category rather than leaving it as “Retail,” which Meta shows by default and which does nothing for trust.
Step 2: Build Your Product Catalogue
Inside Business Settings, open Catalogue and add products one at a time: photo, name, price in rupees, and a short description. As of 2026, Meta allows up to 500 products per WhatsApp Business Account, with only one catalogue per account, so plan your categories before you start uploading if you sell more than a handful of items. Once the catalogue has products, you can send a customer your full shop link in one tap instead of typing out prices individually for every chat, which is the single biggest time-saver of the whole setup.
Step 3: Turn On Quick Replies and Automated Messages
Under Business Tools, set up a Greeting Message for new chats and an Away Message for outside working hours. Quick Replies let you save answers to the questions you get every day, such as return policy or shipping time to a specific state, and send them with a single “/” shortcut instead of typing the same answer for the twentieth time that week. This free tier of automation already removes most of the repetitive typing that burns out solo sellers during a sale.
Step 4: Move to a Paid Tool When You Outgrow the Free App
The free app has no team inbox, so if two people try to reply from the same account, only one device stays logged in at a time. Once that becomes the bottleneck, a paid automation layer takes over.
AiSensy: The Budget Pick
AiSensy runs a genuine Free Forever plan at ₹0, then Basic at ₹1,500 a month and Pro at ₹3,200, all billed natively in INR with no forex conversion. Every plan includes 1 owner plus 5 agents at no extra cost, with additional seats at ₹750 a month each, per AiSensy’s published pricing. It charges no markup over Meta’s own per-message rates, which keeps the real monthly bill more predictable than some rivals. The catch is that its catalogue and checkout-bot features are less polished than Interakt’s, so a seller who wants a slicker customer-facing flow may still prefer to pay more elsewhere.
Interakt: Best for Instagram Plus WhatsApp
Interakt’s Growth plan starts at $55 a month, close to ₹4,600, and Advanced at $69, near ₹5,780. Both include WhatsApp and Instagram in a single inbox, a checkout bot, order management, and native WhatsApp Pay support. That combination suits a seller who already runs an Instagram shop and wants the two channels merged, but it costs roughly three times AiSensy’s Basic plan for a solo seller who does not need Instagram integration yet.
Wati: For Teams That Need More Seats
Wati’s Growth plan is ₹2,499 a month but caps out at 3 users with no option to add more, while Pro at ₹5,999 includes 5 users and lets you add extra seats at ₹1,299 each. It also applies a 15 to 20 percent markup over Meta’s own conversation rates, according to independent pricing breakdowns, so the real monthly cost runs higher than the sticker price once you factor in actual message volume.
Who Should Skip This
If you are testing a product idea with fewer than 10 orders a week, skip the paid tools entirely and run the free WhatsApp Business App for a few months first. The catalogue and quick replies already cover a low-volume shop, and paying ₹1,500 or more a month before you have proven demand just eats into a margin you have not earned yet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the WhatsApp Business App enough to run a small online shop in India?
Yes, for a solo seller handling a moderate number of chats. It includes a free catalogue for up to 500 products, quick replies, and automated greeting and away messages. You only need a paid tool once one person can no longer keep up with the chat volume.
How many products can I add to my WhatsApp catalogue?
Meta’s current limit as of 2026 is 500 products per WhatsApp Business Account, with only one catalogue allowed per account. Plan your product categories before bulk uploading if you are close to that number.
Which is cheaper for a WhatsApp shop in India, AiSensy or Interakt?
AiSensy is cheaper at the entry level, with a genuine free plan and a ₹1,500 Basic tier billed in INR. Interakt starts around ₹4,600 a month but adds Instagram integration and native WhatsApp Pay, which AiSensy’s lower tiers do not match.
Do I need a separate phone number for WhatsApp Business?
Yes. A number already active on personal WhatsApp cannot also run WhatsApp Business at the same time. Use a spare SIM or a number not currently registered on any WhatsApp account.
Our Recommendation
Set up the free WhatsApp Business App first and run it for at least a month before paying for anything. Once the chat volume outgrows one person for real, AiSensy is the cheapest sensible upgrade for a solo Indian seller, and Interakt is worth the extra cost only if Instagram is already a real sales channel for you.
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