How do I link a landline number to WhatsApp Business? The Call me code, step by step

Yes. The WhatsApp Business app lets you register a landline, and it's a sensible choice when the number on your shop sign, website and invoices is a fixed line. Customers who already have that number saved can message you straight away.

WhatsApp's registration page says you can register "a mobile phone or a landline (fixed) number that you own", and that you must be able to receive phone calls or SMS on it. The difference from a mobile is small. A landline can't get the SMS, so WhatsApp calls it and reads out the code.

The steps below are for the WhatsApp Business app. What is WhatsApp Business? explains the app and the paid platform if you're deciding between them.

Get these ready first, because registration stalls on them:

• A smartphone for the account. The landline is the number, but the app runs on a phone. A spare phone that stays in the office works well.
• Someone next to the landline to answer the call with the code.
• A number without an extension. WhatsApp's page says "Landline extension numbers can't be used to complete the registration process."
• A supported number. The same page lists VoIP, toll-free and universal access numbers, and numbers that charge callers extra, as ones that can't be registered. If your office line is VoIP, check with your phone provider what kind of number it is before you try.
• Call blocking switched off on the landline for the day. WhatsApp's page says you must have call-blocking settings disabled.

These steps follow WhatsApp's help centre as we read it on 28 September 2026, and the wording on your screen may differ a little between Android and iPhone.

1. Download the WhatsApp Business app on the phone you'll use for the account.
2. Open it and agree to the terms.
3. When it asks for your number, choose your country from the list. The country code fills in by itself.
4. Type the landline number without the 0 in front.
5. Tap Done. WhatsApp tries to send an SMS, which the landline won't receive.
6. Wait for the timer. Once it runs out, a Call me option appears. Tap it.
7. Answer the landline. An automated voice reads out a six-digit code.
8. Type the code into the app.
9. Fill in your business profile: name, category, hours, address and website.

The same page carries two warnings. If you guess the code you'll be locked out for a while, and you should never share the six-digit code with anyone. That covers a caller who says they're from WhatsApp.

Then switch on two-step verification. WhatsApp's two-step verification page says you can enable it and change the password from your account settings. On a shared office number, that password is what stops someone re-registering the number on another phone.

The app works the same as on a mobile, while the setup around it changes in five ways.

• The phone becomes the office phone. It holds the account, so it needs to stay charged, on Wi-Fi and somewhere safe. If it's lost, you'll need the landline again to re-register on a new phone.
• Re-registering needs someone at the desk, because every move to a new phone sends the code by call to the landline.
• A customer who taps the call button in WhatsApp reaches the app on the office phone, and your desk phone won't ring. Say in your profile whether you take WhatsApp calls.
• Customers see a fixed number they recognise, which tends to help trust. It also means your personal mobile stays personal.
• Your old chats don't move. A landline account starts empty, so tell regular customers the number now works on WhatsApp.

A quick way to tell everyone is a click-to-chat link on your website and email signature. The WhatsApp link generator makes one, with a QR code for the counter or your printed quotes.

A landline number is usually a shared number, so more than one person needs to answer it. The Business app lets you link other devices. Its linked devices page says "You can use up to four linked devices and one phone at a time", which means the office phone plus up to four computers or tablets.

That page also lists the catches. Linked devices "will log out if your phone is unused for over 14 days", and broadcast lists can't be created or viewed on linked devices. So the office phone has to stay in use, and broadcasts go out from the phone itself.

A few habits keep a shared number tidy:

• One owner per chat. Agree who takes which kind of message, and use labels so nobody answers the same customer twice.
• Initials on replies, or a rule on who replies, so customers know who they're talking to.
• A greeting and an away message, so enquiries out of hours get an answer that says when a person will reply. Answering leads at night covers replying first when nobody's at the desk.
• A daily check of anything unanswered before everyone goes home.

Past four people, or when you need to see who's waiting and hand chats between people, a shared team inbox helps. WhatsApp Business multiple users compares the ways a team can share one number, and the paid platform is one of them.

A landline works for most small shops and offices. It's less suited if nobody sits near the landline, if your line is VoIP and WhatsApp won't accept it, or if you need many agents on one number. Then a separate mobile number for the business is simpler, and teams sending at volume look at the WhatsApp Business Platform through a provider.

1. Check your landline has no extension and isn't VoIP, toll-free or a number that charges callers extra.
2. Set aside a phone for the account and put someone by the landline.
3. Register with Call me, then switch on two-step verification.
4. Fill in the profile and set a greeting and away message.
5. Link the computers your team will answer from, and agree who owns which chats.

• WhatsApp Help Center, How to register for the WhatsApp Business app, read 28 September 2026
• WhatsApp Help Center, About linked devices on the WhatsApp Business app, read 28 September 2026
• WhatsApp Help Center, How to manage two-step verification settings, read 28 September 2026