> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.watx.in/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Inbox

> One queue for WhatsApp, Instagram and website chats — how the three panes, the filters and the live updates work.

The Inbox is where your team reads and answers everything customers send you. WhatsApp messages, Instagram DMs and website chats land in the same list, against the same contacts, with the channel marked on every row.

## The three panes

<Steps>
  <Step title="The conversation list">
    Every conversation in the workspace, newest activity first. Search, filters and the per-row actions menu live here.
  </Step>

  <Step title="The thread">
    The messages themselves, plus the header controls — status, owner, AI pause — and the composer.
  </Step>

  <Step title="The contact panel">
    Tags, segments, open deals and notes for whoever you are talking to. On desktop you can hide it with the panel button in the thread header; the choice is remembered on that device.
  </Step>
</Steps>

On a phone the list and the thread take turns: opening a conversation replaces the list, and **Back to conversations** returns to it. The contact panel is desktop only.

## Search and filters

The search box matches on the contact's name, phone number, Instagram handle and the text of the last message. It searches the conversations already loaded into the list, so scroll further back before concluding an old thread is missing.

Four filter menus sit under the search box and stack together — "unread Instagram conversations tagged vip" is one combination of three of them.

| Menu    | Options                                                                                              |
| ------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Status  | **All**, **Unread**, **Open**, **Pending**, **Closed**                                               |
| Channel | **All channels**, **WhatsApp**, **Instagram**, **Web**                                               |
| Tags    | Any tag in the workspace. A conversation matches if the contact carries **any** of the tags you tick |
| Company | One company, taken from the companies on the loaded conversations                                    |

The Tags and Company menus only appear when the workspace has tags, or when a loaded contact has a company. Active tag and company filters show as removable chips with a **Clear all** next to them.

## What a row tells you

* **The channel** — a small WhatsApp, Instagram or globe glyph on the corner of the avatar. Every row carries one, so you know which platform you are about to reply on before you click.
* **Unread count** — a badge. Only messages from the customer count towards it; your own replies and AI replies never do.
* **Status** — a coloured dot: open, pending or closed.
* **A teammate is in here** — a small people glyph when somebody else has that conversation open. See [Working a conversation](/inbox/conversations).
* **Time** — how long ago the last message was.

The list loads 30 conversations at a time and fetches the next page as you scroll. When you reach the end it says **All conversations loaded**.

## Live updates

The Inbox is realtime: new messages, status changes and assignments appear without a refresh, on everyone's screen. On WhatsApp, delivery and read receipts come back from Meta and update the ticks on your sent messages in place.

If the live connection drops, a strip appears above the panes — *"Live updates are disconnected — new messages may not appear. Reconnecting…"*. It reconnects by itself. The refresh button in the thread header forces a refetch of both panes at any time.

<Note>
  Coming back to a tab you left open for a while refetches quietly, keeping the rows on screen rather than blanking them. A quick switch to another tab and back does not refetch at all — nothing is missed on a short absence.
</Note>

A separate banner appears when WhatsApp is not connected for the workspace: *"WhatsApp® is not connected. Go to Settings to connect your account."*

## Where to next

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Working a conversation" icon="user-check" href="/inbox/conversations">
    Assign it, change its status, add notes and tags, triage from the list.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Sending messages" icon="paper-plane" href="/inbox/sending">
    Text, media, voice notes, reactions, templates, products and payment links.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Canned replies" icon="bolt" href="/inbox/canned-replies">
    Saved answers your team drops in by typing a shortcut.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Notifications" icon="bell" href="/inbox/notifications">
    What alerts you, where, and the sound and desktop options.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>