Send video, audio, image, document

Endpoint for easy send media-file as message

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Last updated 12 days ago

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Send video, audio, image, document

Endpoint for easy send media-file as message

You can work with different types of files and it makes no difference what extension the document has. WhatsApp limits the sizes of files and its politics constantly changes and because of that we always recommend that you verify directly on WhatsApp’s website. In this you can find everything that you need to know about formatting and file sizing.

Your file must be provided in the required media parameter. There are four supported ways to do this:

Upload from file – Send the actual file content directly (e.g., using multipart/form-data). Read more here: How to send file from your local computer using the API;
Upload from URL – Provide a direct public URL to the file;
Upload as Base64 – Convert the file to Base64 and send it with a data: prefix;
Use media ID – Reuse a previously uploaded file by referencing its media_id . The file will be uploaded to the cloud and stored there for 30 days. Read more about it here: File expiration period;

Each method works with all media message endpoints — choose the one that best fits your workflow.

Sending media file by link

If you have a direct link to an image that is posted somewhere on the internet. It is important that it is the file that is accessible via the direct link.

Example:

{
  "to": "14045648921",
  "media": "https://filesamples.com/samples/image/jpeg/sample_640%C3%97426.jpeg"
}

Sending media file via Base64

In which case you will need to have a method in your application to convert the image to Base64. To make sure the conversion is successful, copy the generated base64 and paste it into your browser's address bar, if it is a valid image the browser will be able to display it, if the browser can't, check your method :)

IMPORTANT if you opt for a base64 before binary you will need to add the following expression data:image/png;base64, * your base64 code *

You can also manually recode the file and specify the result in your application. To do this, you can use our handy tool to encode any file into Base64 format:

How to generate Base64 in your code:

import base64
with open("file.png", "rb") as f:
    encoded = base64.b64encode(f.read()).decode('utf-8')

media = f"data:image/png;name=file.png;base64,{encoded}"

<?php
$filePath = 'file.png';
$mimeType = mime_content_type($filePath); // Automatically detect MIME type
$fileName = basename($filePath);
$base64 = base64_encode(file_get_contents($filePath));

$media = "data:{$mimeType};name={$fileName};base64,{$base64}";

// Resulting $media string can now be sent in the API request body
echo $media;

const fs = require('fs');
const base64 = fs.readFileSync('file.png', 'base64');
const media = `data:image/png;name=file.png;base64,${base64}`;

Sending media file from local

Want to send a file from your local computer using the API? Learn how to properly attach and send media using multipart/form-data — with ready-to-use examples in Python, PHP, Node.js, and cURL.

Read the full guide → How to send file from your local computer using the API

Sending by Media ID

Via MediaID, in this case after automatically uploading the file to the cloud, you will get a media ID that you can use in the future. Read more: File expiration period

Endpoint references:

Send Image (via URL / Base64 / upload to cloud)

Send Document (via URL / Base64 / upload to cloud)

Send Audio (via URL / Base64 / upload to cloud)

Send Voice

Send Video (via URL / Base64 / upload to cloud)

PreviousWhatsapp API send message GO (Golang)NextHow to send file from your local computer using the API

Last updated 12 days ago

Was this helpful?