WhatsApp Business catalog: how to create it and sell

The WhatsApp Business catalog turns your conversation into a real storefront: your customers browse your products, see the prices, and order without ever leaving the chat. It's the tool that takes WhatsApp from a simple messenger to a mini-shop — and it's 100% free. In this guide, you'll see how to create your WhatsApp catalog step by step, present your products so they make people want to buy, share it at the right moment in the conversation, and above all sell with the WhatsApp catalog instead of leaving it to gather dust.

What is the WhatsApp catalog for?

The catalog is a storefront built into your WhatsApp Business profile. Each item has a visual, a name, a price, a description, and, if you want, a link. Instead of sending ten photos and repeating the prices to each new customer, you share your catalog once: the prospect browses, clicks on what interests them, and starts the conversation on a specific product. It's a huge time saver and a much more professional experience — the customer feels like they're walking into a shop, not digging through a photo gallery. And since it lives in your profile, you reuse it in every new conversation without redoing a thing: you build your storefront once, and it serves you endlessly.

WhatsApp catalog: what you can put in it

You're not limited to physical products. The catalog welcomes just as well:

• Products — shop items, with photo and price.
• Services — offerings, packages, subscriptions.
• Offers — bundles, plans, options.

Each item can show a fixed price, a range, or no price if you'd rather discuss it. You can also add a link to your website to finalize the order there. Note: Meta reviews added items against its commerce policies, and a product that doesn't comply with those policies can be rejected.

Create your WhatsApp Business catalog step by step

Setting up your catalog takes a few minutes:

• 1. Open the settings — in WhatsApp Business, go to Settings → Business tools → Catalog.
• 2. Add an item — tap "Add a product or service".
• 3. Add photos — one to several sharp images per item.
• 4. Enter the name and price — clear and accurate.
• 5. Write the description — benefit-oriented, not just a spec sheet.
• 6. Add a link (optional) — to your order or payment page.
• 7. Save — then repeat for each product.

Once published, your catalog is accessible from your profile and via the shop icon at the top of your conversations.

Present your products well (photos, descriptions, prices)

A catalog is a miniature sales page — each item has to convince on its own. Three rules:

• Sharp visuals — well lit, well framed, on a simple background. The photo is what sparks the desire… or kills it.
• Benefit-oriented descriptions — say what the product delivers, not just what it is. "Keeps your coffee hot for 6 hours" rather than "350ml stainless steel mug".
• Visible prices — hiding the price scares people off. Show it, or at least give a range.

Also mind the order: put your best-sellers at the top, they're the ones that trigger the first click.

Organize your catalog into collections

As soon as you have more than a few items, group them into collections (for example "New", "Courses", "Accessories"). The customer finds their way faster and you can share a targeted collection depending on the conversation. A tidy catalog gets browsed; a messy catalog gets closed.

The mistakes that sink a catalog

A poorly kept catalog scares people off instead of selling. The most common pitfalls:

• Blurry or mismatched photos — an amateur visual discredits everything else, even a great product.
• No price shown — the customer won't message to ask, they simply move to the competitor who does show it.
• Purely technical descriptions — a list of specs doesn't create desire; translate each line into a concrete benefit.
• A catalog that's never updated — an out-of-stock item or an old price breaks trust in a second.
• No call to action — say clearly what to do ("Message me to order"), don't leave the customer guessing.

Share your catalog and a product in the conversation

The whole point of the catalog is to use it at the right moment. Two ways to share it: send the whole catalog when a prospect is discovering your offer, or send a specific item when the conversation is about it ("Here's exactly the pack I was telling you about"). You can also distribute your catalog outside WhatsApp with a WhatsApp link : one click from your Instagram bio or your website opens the conversation, and you pick up on the product. Our guide to the clickable link shows how, and our WhatsApp message generator helps you write the message that goes with the product.

Selling with the WhatsApp catalog: the structure of a sale

The catalog isn't magic: it triggers questions, and it's up to you to close. The sequence that works:

• 1. Share — the catalog or the relevant item.
• 2. Reply — to the questions (size, timing, stock, payment) without keeping people waiting.
• 3. Reassure — clear the objections (delivery, warranty, reviews).
• 4. Close — propose a single action: "Shall I prepare the order?".
• 5. Follow up — if the person hesitates, come back at day 1 with an argument.

To go further on the conversation itself, see our guide to selling on WhatsApp and our message templates to sell.

The catalog depending on your profession

• Shop / e-commerce — your full catalog, best-sellers up top, links to the payment page.
• Coach / infopreneur — your offers and courses as "items", with the benefit in the description.
• Restaurant / local — your menu or set offers, prices shown, to order in DMs.
• Freelancer / creator — your packaged services (logo, website, editing) with a starting price.

Is the WhatsApp catalog free?

Yes, completely. The catalog is part of the WhatsApp Business app, which is itself free. You can add as many items as you want, with photos, prices, and descriptions, with no subscription. If you're just starting on the app, our guide to getting started with WhatsApp Business shows you the full setup.

Can you pay directly inside WhatsApp?

It depends on your country: payment built into WhatsApp is only available in certain markets. Everywhere else, the method that works is simple: the customer chooses from your catalog, you confirm the order in the conversation, then you send a payment link (your usual tool) or take payment through your regular method. The catalog is there to present and trigger the sale; collecting the money happens through your payment channel. Concretely, the trio that works everywhere stays the same: the catalog to show, the conversation to reassure, the payment link to collect. You keep control of both the relationship and your sales data.

A catalog that generates requests… who handles them?

A good catalog has a side effect: it makes questions pour in. "Is it available?", "How much with delivery?", "Do you have my size?" — and every question without a fast reply is a sale that evaporates. Settyn replies to every request on your catalog in under 30 seconds, 24/7: the AI informs, qualifies the prospect, follows up with the undecided, and proposes a slot or finalizes the order — on WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, and Telegram, via the official Meta APIs, with human takeover in one click whenever you want to take the conversation back. The result: your catalog works for you even while you sleep. Settyn starts from €97/month, with 3 free days and no commitment — enough to see the effect on your sales without any risk.