Trigger: Message Read

The Message Read trigger (message.read) fires a workflow when Meta confirms the contact opened (blue double-check) a message you sent from a WhatsApp channel. It's useful for measuring real open rates and for follow-ups that only make sense once the customer has actually seen the content.

When it fires

It fires when Meta delivers a read status event for an outbound message — this can take seconds or minutes depending on when the contact opens WhatsApp.

Requirements

• A connected WhatsApp Cloud API channel.
• A prior outbound message (the contact must have read receipts enabled in their WhatsApp settings; if they've turned them off, this event never arrives).

Trigger configuration

• Channel type and Specific channel: scope the trigger to WhatsApp, or to one specific number.

Available variables

• $message.id — Internal message ID
• $message.external_id — Meta's wamid
• $message.read_at — Timestamp of when the contact read it
• Standard $conversation.* and $contact.* variables

Example

You send a payment reminder. A workflow triggered by message.read tags the contact "Reminder-seen", and a second workflow (triggered by tag.added, with a 24h delay) checks whether they still haven't paid and escalates to a human agent.

Tips

• Don't confuse this with Message Delivered (message.delivered): delivered means it reached the phone, read means they opened it.
• If your campaign needs to know the customer saw the message before escalating, this trigger is more precise than just measuring elapsed time.

Troubleshooting

If it never fires for certain contacts, they likely have read receipts disabled in their WhatsApp settings — in that case Meta never delivers the read event, and there's no way to force it.