The best tools for taking orders on WhatsApp:which one fits depending on who orders from you
If you have already decided to stop writing orders down by hand, the question left is what to use: the WhatsApp Business catalog, a store that sends the order to the chat, a messaging platform with bots, an app for your field reps or an AI agent connected to your ERP. This guide compares the five categories neutrally and helps you choose based on how you sell.
Which tool should you use to take orders on WhatsApp?
Use the one that matches who orders from you and what has to be checked before you confirm. If you sell to consumers, with few products and one price for everyone, the WhatsApp Business catalog or a store that sends the order to the chat is enough. If a team handles many chats at once, a messaging platform with bots. If your customers are businesses with price lists, credit terms and stock in an ERP, the choice is between digitizing your field reps with an app or adding an AI agent that takes the order on WhatsApp and enters it in the ERP.
The real difference between categories is where the order ends up: in a message someone has to read and retype, in an online store's dashboard, in an app the rep uses, or as a sales order in the ERP. The closer to the ERP it ends up, the less retyping and the fewer entry errors; the simpler your sale, the less you need that integration.
This page compares what to take orders with. How the flow works end to end, what data you need and how to measure it is covered in the guide to WhatsApp order taking with AI.
Eight options, from WhatsApp's built-in feature to an agent connected to the ERP
Each one was built for a different kind of business. They are listed from the simplest to the most integrated, not by preference.
WhatsApp Business catalog
Built-in WhatsApp feature · small shops and consumer sales
A feature of Meta's WhatsApp Business app. Each product is added with a photo, price, description and code, grouped into collections, and customers browse it without leaving the chat. With the cart they pick several products and send them as a single message; the business confirms the order and processes it on its own.
When it fits: businesses with a small catalog and one price for every customer, that get a few orders a day and can confirm and enter them by hand.
Pedix
Online catalog with WhatsApp ordering · neighborhood shops
Argentine platform that builds an online catalog with a cart for selling on WhatsApp. Customers browse the products, fill the cart and their details, and the order arrives in the shop's WhatsApp with all the information. It is aimed at neighborhood businesses such as corner stores, restaurants and local shops.
When it fits: neighborhood shops and restaurants that want a tidy catalog with a cart without building a full online store.
Take App
Simple store with WhatsApp orders · food service and wholesale
Platform founded in Singapore that creates a simple online store for selling on WhatsApp. The catalog works as the order form: customers open it from a link or a QR code, fill the cart, and the order arrives in the business's WhatsApp with the items, the address and the contact details, ready to confirm and collect payment. It presents itself as an order-taking app for restaurants and wholesale.
When it fits: restaurants and wholesale businesses that want orderly orders and online payment with little setup.
Tiendanube
Online store with WhatsApp selling · SMB e-commerce in Latin America
Latin American e-commerce platform (Nuvemshop in Brazil) for building and running an online store. For selling on WhatsApp it adds Chat Nube, an AI assistant connected to the store's dashboard: it checks stock, calculates shipping, builds the cart inside the conversation and alerts the team when it detects a complex case.
When it fits: brands and stores that already sell online to consumers and want to close on WhatsApp the sales that start with a question.
Wati
Messaging platform with bots · SMBs and service and sales teams
Platform built on the WhatsApp Business API and an official Meta Business Solution Provider (BSP). It brings together a shared team inbox, a no-code chatbot builder, campaigns and the product catalog inside WhatsApp, with integrations with Shopify and WooCommerce that sync the catalog and send every order status update.
When it fits: teams that handle many chats at once and want to automate replies, campaigns and order updates, especially if they sell on Shopify or WooCommerce.
Pepperi
Field sales and van sales app · manufacturers and distributors with reps on the road
B2B commerce platform with an order-taking app for the sales force: the rep shows the catalog, enters the order during the visit and keeps working offline. It adds a B2B portal where customers order on their own, retail execution and van sales, with integrations with ERPs such as SAP and NetSuite. The rep enters the order: it is not taken on WhatsApp.
When it fits: manufacturers and distributors with reps on the road that want to digitize the field rep's visit or route delivery with van sales.
Yalo
AI agents for sales · consumer goods and traditional trade
AI-agent sales platform headquartered in Mexico City and focused on emerging markets. Its agents work over WhatsApp, apps, web and voice; in traditional trade they take orders from small stores, suggest products, apply promotions and hand off to a person when the case calls for it.
When it fits: consumer goods manufacturers and distributors that sell to thousands of small stores and want to digitize order taking.
Sellium (Vantegrate)
Turnkey AI sales agent · B2B with ERP and Salesforce
Vantegrate's AI agent for WhatsApp sales, running on the official API. It takes the order however it arrives (text, voice note or a photo of a list), checks it against the catalog, the stock and the price list for each customer in the ERP, confirms the summary and enters the sales order, with the conversation recorded in Salesforce. It is delivered configured and can be added to Tiendanube or Wati through their APIs.
When it fits: mid-sized and large manufacturers and distributors in Latin America that sell to businesses with price lists, stock and credit terms in an ERP, and want WhatsApp orders to reach the system without anyone retyping them.
Explore SelliumThe descriptions are based on each company's public information (official websites, help centers and press) and aim to be neutral; the order goes from the simplest tool to the most integrated and is not a ranking. We do not include prices: they depend on volume and change often. Vantegrate develops Sellium, which connects to Tiendanube and Wati through their APIs. This page uses no affiliate links.
Five categories, five ways to close an order
Each column is a type of tool, not a brand. Platforms differ within each one; the table helps you place what you are comparing before you book demos.
| Criterion | WhatsApp catalog | Online store or catalog | Messaging with bots | Field sales app | AI sales agent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Examples in this guide | WhatsApp Business catalog and cart | Pedix, Take App, Tiendanube | Wati | Pepperi | Yalo, Sellium |
| Who takes the order | The customer builds the cart and a person confirms it | The customer, on a page with a cart | A flow bot or a person from the inbox | The rep, during the visit or on the route | An AI agent, in a free-form conversation |
| How the customer orders | Picking products from the catalog inside the chat | Picking products on a link outside the chat | Following menus or writing to the team | Through the rep, in person or by phone | The way they write to their sales rep: text, voice note or a list |
| Prices and stock | The price set on each product, the same for everyone | The store's; stock depends on the platform | Those of the catalog or the connected store | The price lists and stock pulled from the ERP | Depends on the provider; Sellium checks each customer's price list and the stock in the ERP |
| Where the order ends up | In a message someone enters by hand | In the store's dashboard or in a WhatsApp message | In the inbox, the connected store or the CRM | In the ERP, through the app's integration | Depends on the provider; Sellium enters it as a sales order in the ERP |
| Who runs it | The owner or the sales team | The business, with little setup | Your team builds the flows and handles the chats | The sales force and the commercial team | Vantegrate configures Sellium; your team handles the exceptions |
Summary by type of tool, not by individual brand. Each product's features change often: check the current ones on each provider's website before deciding.
Five questions before you choose
There is no best tool in the abstract. Answer these five questions with your team and bring the answers to your demos, along with the AI sales agent checklist.
Who orders from you
A consumer who buys once does not order the way a corner store that restocks every week does. If your customers are businesses, they order by product code, in bulk and on their own commercial terms, and that changes which tool works.
What has to be checked before confirming
If the price is the same for everyone and you rarely run out of stock, a catalog is enough. If every customer has their own price list, minimum order and credit limit, the tool has to check the ERP before confirming, or the mistake shows up on the invoice.
Where the order has to end up
In every demo, ask where the order lands when the customer says yes. If someone has to retype it in the ERP, the retyping is still there in another form. How the channel connects to the system is covered in WhatsApp and ERP.
How your customers write
Some customers pick from a catalog with no trouble; others send a voice note or a photo of a list. A menu bot or a form asks them to change the way they order; an AI agent understands it. The difference is covered in chatbot vs. AI agent.
Who will maintain it
Simple tools are set up in a short while; integrated ones need a discovery phase and someone who knows the commercial rules. Be honest about how many internal hours you can give it, or compare the self-service and managed models.
Where Sellium fits: not in every case. If you sell to consumers with a small catalog, the WhatsApp catalog or a store such as Pedix, Take App or Tiendanube will do the job with less effort. Sellium makes sense when you sell to shops or companies, with price lists, stock and credit terms in an ERP, and the WhatsApp order has to reach the system without anyone retyping it. If you already use Tiendanube or Wati, it connects through their APIs.
Three figures to decide where the order should end up
Figures with a published source on how companies prefer to buy, where sales reps' time goes and what holds AI back. None of them is a result of Sellium or of the tools on this list.
70%
Of sales reps' time goes to tasks other than selling, such as administrative work
95%
Of IT leaders say integration is a hurdle to implementing AI effectively
Caveats: the Gartner figure comes from a survey of 632 B2B buyers, and the same survey shows that for decisions that need context they prefer to talk to a sales rep. The Salesforce figure measures sales reps' time in general, not field reps in particular. The MuleSoft figure comes from a survey of 1,050 IT leaders and measures integration in general, not order-taking tools.
Frequently asked questions about WhatsApp order-taking tools
What sales and IT teams ask once they have decided to automate orders and are comparing options.
What is the best software for taking orders on WhatsApp?
What is the best software for taking orders on WhatsApp?
It depends on who you sell to and where the order has to end up. For a few consumer orders, the WhatsApp Business catalog or a store with WhatsApp ordering, such as Pedix, Take App or Tiendanube; for a team that handles many chats, a messaging platform with bots such as Wati; to digitize your field reps, an app such as Pepperi; and to get a business customer's order into the ERP without retyping, an AI sales agent such as Yalo or Sellium.
Is the WhatsApp Business catalog enough to take orders?
Is the WhatsApp Business catalog enough to take orders?
It is enough when the catalog is small, the price is the same for everyone and orders are few. The customer builds the cart and sends it as a message, but confirming and entering it is still manual: someone checks the stock, adjusts the price if needed and enters it in the system. When that step becomes the bottleneck, a tool connected to the ERP makes sense.
What is the difference between an ordering bot and an AI agent?
What is the difference between an ordering bot and an AI agent?
An ordering bot follows a menu: the customer picks numbered options or fills in a form one product at a time. An AI agent understands the order the way the customer writes it, in a loose message, a voice note or a list, and asks only for what is missing. With orders of many items the difference matters; the details are in chatbot vs. AI agent.
Can WhatsApp order taking be connected to the ERP?
Can WhatsApp order taking be connected to the ERP?
Yes, but not every tool does it. Some leave the order in a message or a dashboard; others read stock and prices and create the sales order in the ERP. Sellium connects to SAP, Oracle, Tango, Odoo, NetSuite and other ERPs; if yours does not expose an API, how to connect it is worked out during discovery. More detail in WhatsApp and ERP.
Does an AI agent replace field sales reps?
Does an AI agent replace field sales reps?
Not necessarily. The field rep is still key for the visit, the negotiation and the point of sale; the agent takes the restocking orders between visits and the ones that come in after hours. Many distributors combine both: an app for the visit and WhatsApp for everything that happens between one visit and the next.
How much does Sellium cost for taking orders on WhatsApp?
How much does Sellium cost for taking orders on WhatsApp?
Sellium is priced with an initial implementation quoted per company and a monthly subscription with expandable AI credits, with no lock-in. You pay for WhatsApp messages directly to Meta, with your own account and no Vantegrate margin. The figure depends on your order volume and the systems to connect: request a quote.
What should you take your orders with?
Tell us who orders from you, how many orders come in on WhatsApp and which ERP you use. We will tell you frankly whether a catalog or a store is enough, or whether an agent connected to the ERP makes sense.