How to Import WhatsApp Contacts into Inaiy

To import WhatsApp contacts into Inaiy, go to Contacts, click Import, upload a CSV or Excel file, match your columns to name, phone, email, country, and tags, choose what to do with numbers you already have, and click Start import. Inaiy adds the contacts in the background and shows how many were created, updated, skipped, or failed.

Once imported, contacts can be tagged, grouped into segments, and reached with campaigns, and their chats show up with names instead of bare numbers.

Who this is for and what you need first

This guide is for anyone moving a customer list into Inaiy from a spreadsheet, CRM, or another WhatsApp tool.

You need:

• A CSV or Excel file (.csv, .xlsx, .xls) of 2 MB or less, with column headers in the first row.
• A name and a phone number for every row. Phone numbers should include the country code, such as +91 98XXX XXXXX.
• Permission from these customers to message them on WhatsApp.

Before you upload, clean the file:

• Keep one contact per row and remove empty rows.
• Use the same phone format in every row. Spaces, dashes, and brackets are fine; Inaiy strips them.
• Remove numbers of people who asked not to be contacted.

A simple file looks like this:

Name,Phone,Email,Tags
Asha Rao,+91 98XXX XXXXX,asha@example.com,vip

Steps to import WhatsApp contacts

1. Open Contacts and click Import

Click Contacts under CRM. The list shows each contact's channel, identity, email, country, tags, and last activity. Click Import (callout 1).

Custom Fields (callout 2) is where you define extra fields, such as city or plan. The importer maps the five standard fields only, so fill custom fields after importing.

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2. Upload your file

The Import Contacts dialog shows four stages: Upload, Map columns, Preview, and Import. Click Choose file (callout 1) and pick your CSV or Excel file. Excel files are converted to CSV in your browser before upload.

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3. Map your columns

For each contact field, pick the matching column from your file. Name and Phone (callout 1) are required; Email, Country, and Tags are optional. Inaiy suggests a match when your headers use common names, such as "Phone" or "Mobile". Click Continue (callout 2).

For Tags, put several tags in one cell separated by commas, such as vip, wholesale. In a CSV, wrap that cell in quotes.

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4. Choose how to handle duplicates and start

The Preview step shows how many rows will be imported and the first few rows. Under Duplicate phone numbers (callout 1), choose:

• Skip duplicates: leave existing contacts unchanged.
• Update existing contacts: replace the name with the one in your file, fill in email and country where your file has them, and add the file's tags to the tags the contact already has.

Click Start import (callout 2).

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How to confirm it worked

1. The Import stage shows progress: processed, created, updated, skipped, and failed counts. The first few row errors are listed, such as "Row 4: Invalid phone number format".
2. Close the dialog. The count next to Active in the filters goes up by the number created.
3. Search for one imported contact, such as Asha Rao, and check the phone number, email, and tags.

Common mistakes

1. Numbers without a country code. A number like 98XXX XXXXX may be rejected or saved for the wrong country. Add the code, such as +91, to every number before you upload.
2. Numbers that belong to blocked contacts. Inaiy skips them on purpose and lists them as skipped rows, so a blocked person is never added back by an import.
3. Choosing Update when your file is older. Update replaces names and any email or country in the file, though it keeps existing tags. Use Skip duplicates if your Inaiy data is newer.

Related guides

• Group imported contacts with WhatsApp contact segments.
• Message them all at once with a WhatsApp broadcast campaign.
• See their chats with names in the WhatsApp shared inbox.