A WhatsApp Business username is a unique handle, like mayacakes, that Meta maps to one connected phone number so people can find your business by name instead of a number. In Stravax Engage, any team member can view your number's username, but only an admin can claim or release one, and your number must already be connected.
It is a short, unique name tied one-to-one with a single WhatsApp business phone number. Once it is live, people can search for your business by that name inside WhatsApp instead of needing your phone number. Meta opened username reservations on 29 June 2026, so this is a newer part of a WhatsApp Business account rather than something every number has had from the start.
Stravax Engage gates this by role. Any user in your organization can view the current username and its status on a connected number, but only an admin can claim a new username or release an existing one. If you need a username changed and you are not an admin, ask someone on your team who has that access.
After a claim goes through, Meta returns one of two statuses:
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Reserved | The username is held for you but is not yet visible in WhatsApp search. It becomes visible once your region has rolled the feature out. |
| Approved | The username is live. People can find your business by that name in WhatsApp search. |
There is no action needed on your side while a username sits in reserved: it becomes approved automatically once Meta's rollout reaches your region.
Yes. Claiming a username depends on your WhatsApp number already being connected to Stravax Engage. If your number is not connected yet, the claim will not go through, so connect your number before trying to claim a username.
Claiming and releasing are the two actions available on a username. If you want a different handle than the one you currently hold, release your current username first, then claim the new one.