WhatsApp error 131049: marketing message not delivered

WhatsApp error 131049: Meta held back your marketing template to keep engagement healthy. The per-user limit, and when to resend without making it worse.

WhatsApp error 131049 means Meta chose not to deliver a marketing template to this recipient, most often because they reached their marketing message limit for now. It is neither a bug nor a penalty on your number. Wait at least 24 hours before trying that recipient again, unless they have a US number: there, waiting does not help.

What does error 131049 mean?

"This message was not delivered to maintain healthy ecosystem engagement." — Meta, Cloud API error codes

Meta adds: "If you do receive this error code and suspect it is due to the limit, wait at least 24 hours before resending the template message." The limit in question is the per-user marketing template message limit (Meta, Per-user marketing template message limits):

WhatsApp may limit how many marketing templates a person receives from any business over a period, when they are less likely to engage with them.
The limit adapts to each person: their recent marketing read rate, and how many messages they already have in their inbox from friends, family and businesses.
Every delivered marketing template counts. If the person replies, a 24-hour customer service window opens, and marketing messages sent within that window do not count.
Resending several times within 24 hours to someone who reached their limit can make that recipient unreachable for up to another 24 hours, with the same 131049. Your other recipients are not affected.
The limit is not active for messages sent from a number in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, Japan or South Korea, nor to a user in those countries.

Why do my US recipients always fail?

Because Meta no longer delivers any marketing template to them. On the same page:

"WhatsApp does not currently deliver marketing template messages to WhatsApp users with United States phone numbers (numbers composed of a +1 dialing code and a US area code)."

This is not the per-user limit: the block does not lift after 24 hours, and Meta announces no end date. Meta only says "an error", without a code; integrators report it as 131049, in place since April 1, 2025 (Message Central). Only US area codes are concerned, not every +1 number.

Remove those numbers from your MARKETING campaigns. In a campaign, a 131049 received on the call leaves the recipient pending: a US number will stay there on every relaunch.
Use another kind of message: a UTILITY or AUTHENTICATION template when the content fits (those categories are not affected, according to the same source), or a reply inside the 24-hour service window a customer message opens.
Do not reschedule them every 24 hours: every send Meta accepts before failing it counts against your Genuka WA subscription quota.

When does error 131049 happen?

It only concerns MARKETING templates, and it arrives on the status webhook: Meta says so explicitly, the failure is reported by the messages webhook with status failed. Here is Meta's own example, as Genuka WA forwards it to you in data:

message_status webhook (excerpt)

{
  "type": "message_status",
  "field": "messages",
  "data": {
    "id": "wamid.HBgLMTY1MDM4Nzk0MzkVAgARGBI0QUQ2MjA4NEYyRkExNjMyREUA",
    "status": "failed",
    "timestamp": "1751142888",
    "recipient_id": "16505551234",
    "errors": [
      {
        "code": 131049,
        "title": "This message was not delivered to maintain healthy ecosystem engagement.",
        "message": "This message was not delivered to maintain healthy ecosystem engagement.",
        "error_data": {
          "details": "In order to maintain a healthy ecosystem engagement, the message failed to be delivered."
        },
        "href": "/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/support/error-codes"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Where do you see it in Genuka WA?

Channel	What you get
`message_status` webhook	`data.status: "failed"`, `data.errors[0].code: 131049`
Campaign, failure reported by webhook	The recipient turns `failed`, with Meta's message in `errorMessage`
Campaign, refused on the call	The recipient stays `pending`: it is not counted as failed, and a new launch picks it up
`POST /api/v1/messages` response, when Meta refuses on the call	`400`, `"error": "send_recipient_throttled"`, `meta.code: 131049`

Genuka WA classifies this code as recipient_throttled: the message is fine, the recipient is fine, the timing is wrong. It is never retried right away, since that would only extend the block.

How do I fix error 131049?

Send nothing for 24 hours. It is Meta's only instruction, and the one most often ignored: an immediate resend does not go through and can extend the block.

Set those recipients aside. From the webhook, store the number and the time of the failure. GET /api/v1/campaigns/{id}/recipients?status=failed&limit=1000 also gives you the list on the campaign side, capped at 1,000 rows with no pagination: beyond that, rely on what you stored from the webhook.

Try them again later, in a new campaign, at least 24 hours after the failure, without the US numbers. A campaign that was already launched only resends its recipients that are still pending.

import { parsePhoneNumberFromString } from "libphonenumber-js";

const RETRY_AFTER_MS = 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000;

// Called by your webhook route, once the signature is verified.
export async function onMessageStatus(event: {
  type: string;
  data: { status: string; recipient_id: string; errors?: { code: number }[] };
}) {
  if (event.type !== "message_status" || event.data.status !== "failed") return;
  if (!event.data.errors?.some((error) => error.code === 131049)) return;

  // A US number will not receive marketing in 24 hours either: take it out of your campaigns.
  if (parsePhoneNumberFromString(`+${event.data.recipient_id}`)?.country === "US") {
    await db.marketingExclusion.upsert({ waId: event.data.recipient_id, reason: "us_marketing" });
    return;
  }

  // Your storage: a "retry later" table with the earliest time a resend is allowed.
  await db.marketingRetry.upsert({
    waId: event.data.recipient_id,
    notBefore: new Date(Date.now() + RETRY_AFTER_MS),
  });
}

How do I prevent error 131049?

Target people who read. The limit follows each recipient's recent read rate: a list of active customers does better than your whole file.
Invite replies. A reply opens a 24-hour window in which your marketing messages no longer count against the limit.
Space out campaigns to the same people, and drop from your lists those who keep collecting 131049.
Measure delivery on webhooks, not on accepted sends: a marketing campaign can show 100% accepted and a share of 131049 on arrival.

131050: the person stopped your marketing messages; never resend.
131048: your number is restricted because of spam reports, not a single recipient.
131026: the recipient cannot receive anything at all.

FAQ

Does error 131049 penalize my number?

No. Meta states that the block caused by excessive resends does not affect your ability to send marketing messages to other users. It is a per-recipient limit.

Are utility and authentication templates affected?

The limit Meta describes applies to marketing templates. A login code or an order confirmation in an AUTHENTICATION or UTILITY template is not subject to it.

How long does the limit last?

Meta gives no fixed duration: the limit adapts to each person's engagement. The rule is not to resend before at least 24 hours.

Why do some of my European recipients never get 131049?

Because the limit is not active for users in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, Japan and South Korea, nor for messages sent from a number in those countries.

Is a marketing template that failed with 131049 billed?

Not by Meta, which only charges for a template message when it is delivered (Meta, Pricing). On the Genuka WA side, the send Meta accepted has already counted against your subscription quota: resending too early costs a message of quota and delivers nothing.