// the find
open-wa/wa-automate-nodejs
💬 🤖 The most reliable tool for chatbots with advanced features. Be sure to 🌟 this repository for updates!
A TypeScript toolkit that runs WhatsApp Web in a headless browser and exposes it as a local HTTP API, a bot runtime, a webhook source, or an MCP server for AI agents. It suits developers who need WhatsApp inside an existing service or agent workflow and accept that they are automating WhatsApp Web, which WhatsApp does not sanction.
- The browser is a pluggable driver. createClient takes a Puppeteer, Playwright, or Lightpanda driver, so the engine can be chosen per deployment without forking the runtime.
- One schema registry drives the HTTP routes, the generated Swagger and Postman specs, and the MCP tool list. The surfaces can't drift apart the way hand-maintained docs usually do.
- The MCP server refuses to start without an API key, and both tool discovery and tool execution require it. That is the right default for something that can send messages on someone's behalf.
- Easy API and SocketClient are split cleanly. Commands go over HTTP RPC, events come over SSE, and the bot is an ordinary Node process talking to a runtime it doesn't own.
- Account risk is the main cost, and the README says little about it beyond a use-at-your-own-risk notice. Automated WhatsApp Web sessions can be banned, and bulk or unsolicited messaging makes that worse. Read the rate-limit guide before anything customer-facing.
- The docs lag the code. The README says older v4 docs are still being reorganized, that the CLI's --webhook flag parses but registers nothing, and that some older flags may not exist in v5. Expect to read source to confirm flags.
- The Hippocratic License 1.1 is not OSI-approved, and its ethical-use terms can rule out use by some employers. Some features also sit behind a paid license key, so check which methods are gated before building on them.
- The monorepo carries a lot: a dashboard, a docs site, Chatwoot, Node-RED, S3 and Cloudflare integrations, and a plugin SDK. A single webhook bridge needs only a small slice of that, and the rest is maintenance you inherit if you depend on the package.