PATCH/v1/short-links/{short_link_id}beta

Change a short link's message

Needs: Send WhatsApp messages; manage templates, quick messages and WhatsApp short links (messaging:write)
Plan: Any plan with API access
Limits: 60 a minute per key
Dry run: Yes — a full preview with ?dry_run=true
Undo: Send the old message back.

Changes the message a short link types for the customer. The link and its code stay the same, so links you shared and QR codes you printed keep working and now open the chat with the new message.

The QR image is generated again, as PNG, at a new URL. The number cannot change: create a new link instead.

Try it

Path

short_link_idrequired

The short link id.

Edit as JSON

messagerequiredstring

The new text: 1–140 characters, plain text (an emoji counts as 2).

Idempotency-Keyoptional — made for you if empty

Protects against doing it twice if you retry: a retry with the same key gets the first answer back instead of running again.

Test mode (dry run): nothing will change

Run liveTurns test mode off for this page only. It switches back when you leave the page.

curl -X PATCH 'https://mcp.wa-api.cloud/v1/short-links/sl-12?dry_run=true' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: $(uuidgen)" \
  -d '{
  "message": "Hi! I'\''d like to book a table"
}'

The code reads your key from $API_KEY.

Parameters

Parameters
Field	Type	What it is
short_link_idrequired	string \| integer · path	The short link id.

Body

Body fields
Field	Type	What it is
messagerequired	string	The new text: 1–140 characters, plain text (an emoji counts as 2).0–1000 characters

Headers

Headers
Field	Type	What it is
Authorizationrequired	header	`Bearer $API_KEY` — your API key.
Api-Version	header	The API version to use, e.g. `2026-10-01`. Default: the version your key is pinned to.one of: `2026-10-01` · pattern `^\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}$`
Idempotency-Key	header	Any unique string (8–128 characters). A retry with the same key returns the first answer instead of running twice. Kept 24 hours.pattern `^[A-Za-z0-9._:-]+$` · 8–128 characters

Response `200`

The short link with its new message.

Response fields
Field	Type	What it is
idrequired	string
coderequired	string	The code at the end of the link.
urlrequired	string	The click-to-chat link (https://wa.me/message/…). Share it, or print its QR code.
messagerequired	string or null	The text the customer finds already typed; they can edit it before sending.
qr_image_urlrequired	string or null	QR code image of the link, hosted by WhatsApp. The link can expire: download and keep your own copy for print.
qr_image_formatrequired	string or null	PNG or SVG; null when there is no image or its format is not known.one of: `PNG`, `SVG`
channelrequired	object or null	The WhatsApp number it belongs to.
idrequired	string	Workspace channel id (as `GET /v1/channels` lists it).
namerequired	string or null
phonerequired	string or null	The WhatsApp number the link opens a chat with.
created_atrequired	string or null
updated_atrequired	string or null
dry_run	boolean	`true` when this was a dry run: every check ran and nothing changed.

Errors

Errors are application/problem+json. Branch on code.

Status	Code	When
400	invalid_input	A field is missing or has the wrong format. `errors[]` points at each field. The message breaks a rule (the same ones as Create a short link).
401	unauthenticated	The Authorization header is missing, the key is unknown, expired or revoked.
403	entitlement_required	The workspace's plan does not include API access (`api_access`).
403	insufficient_scope	The key does not have the permission this operation needs.
404	not_found	No short link with this id in your workspace.
409	conflict	Also returned while a request with the same Idempotency-Key is still running.
429	rate_limited	The key or workspace went over its rate limit. Wait for `Retry-After` seconds.
502	upstream_error	WhatsApp refused the change (`reason: refused_by_whatsapp`).
503	upstream_unavailable	A service behind the API is briefly unavailable. Safe to retry with backoff.
504	timeout	The change did not finish in time. Retry with the same Idempotency-Key: it never runs twice.

Examples

Change the message

Request body

{
  "message": "Hi! I'd like to book a table"
}

Response 200

{
  "id": "sl-12",
  "code": "4PZQX7M2LCKHA1",
  "url": "https://wa.me/message/4PZQX7M2LCKHA1",
  "message": "Hi! I'd like to book a table",
  "qr_image_url": "https://scontent-bom5-2.xx.fbcdn.net/m1/v/t6/An9_qr4PZQX7M2LCKHA1?ccb=10-5&oe=66F00000",
  "qr_image_format": "PNG",
  "channel": {
    "id": "301",
    "name": "Main WhatsApp",
    "phone": "+1 555-555-0100"
  },
  "created_at": "2026-09-12T10:00:00.000Z",
  "updated_at": "2026-09-13T10:00:00.000Z"
}

Operation path

The same operation is also at POST /v1/ops/messaging_update_short_link, with every field in the JSON body.