--- title: "WeChat auto reply: how to set it up and what the limits are (2026)" description: "Set up WeChat auto reply on your Official Account. Learn the three reply types, keyword rules, templates and the limits to plan for." canonical: "https://sleekflow.io/blog/wechat-auto-reply" html_lang: "en" date_modified: "2026-10-30T02:46:19Z" og_title: "WeChat Auto Reply: Setup, Templates and Limits 2026" og_description: "Set up WeChat auto reply on your Official Account. Learn the three reply types, keyword rules, templates and the limits to plan for." og_image: "https://cdn.sanity.io/images/6zoovl1f/production/9162c846c03383d4b4a0818b5434172bad6003ee-1208x790.png" --- ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Article", "headline": "WeChat Auto Reply: Setup, Templates and Limits 2026", "description": "Set up WeChat auto reply on your Official Account. 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Someone follows your WeChat Official Account at 11 PM, asks whether you ship to Chengdu, and hears nothing until your team signs in the next morning. Auto reply covers that gap. Tencent reported [1,439 million monthly active users](https://www.tencent.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Tencent-Announces-2026-Second-Quarter-Results.pdf) of Weixin and WeChat combined at 30 Jun 2026, up 2% from a year earlier. Most first setups stumble in the same places: an unmapped menu number, and a default reply that leaves out when a person will answer. Below, we'll cover setup for each reply type, templates and the limits to plan around. ## What is a WeChat auto reply, and why does it matter? A WeChat auto reply is an automated message that an Official Account sends when someone follows it or writes to it. You write the message once and map it to a trigger, so a customer who writes outside office hours gets an answer and a clear next step instead of silence. A retailer might send a welcome coupon the moment someone follows, and a hotel might switch on an away message after 10 PM that states front desk hours and asks for a booking reference. ## What types of auto reply does WeChat offer? WeChat offers three native auto reply types, Followed Message, Keyword Auto Reply and Message Received Auto Reply, all found in the Auto Reply section of the Official Account console. A Followed Message greets new followers, a keyword reply answers a matched word, and a Message Received reply catches everything else. [Tencent's developer documentation](https://developers.weixin.qq.com/doc/subscription/en/api/notify/autoreplies/api_getcurrentautoreplyinfo.html) lists two keyword matching modes, contain (partial match) and equal (exact match), and two delivery modes, reply all and random one. Followed and default replies support text, image, voice and video, and keyword replies can also send articles. The console also caps how many keyword rules an account holds. [Tencent's support page](https://kf.qq.com/faq/120322fu63YV130422uuIrIr.html) sets the cap at 200 rules per account, with 10 keywords and 5 replies in each rule, so plan a large menu inside those limits. ### How do you set up a Followed Message? To set up a Followed Message, open Auto Reply in the Official Account console and select the Followed Message tab. Switch it on, choose a message type, enter the content and save, and every new follower then sees it first. A short structure works best: 1. A greeting with your brand name, in one line. 2. One line on what you do for them. 3. A numbered menu mapped to keyword rules, such as "Reply 1 for offers, 2 for support, 3 for store locations." 4. A soft close, such as "Or type your question and we'll read it." Before you save, check that every menu number has a matching keyword rule. If "Reply 2 for support" has no rule behind it, the user lands in your default reply, which reads as broken. ### How do you configure keyword replies? To configure a keyword reply, open the Keyword Auto Reply tab and add a rule. Name the rule, add keywords (one per line, not separated by commas), pick exact or partial matching, add the reply, choose reply all or random one, and save. These habits keep a menu working: - Lead with numbers, then add backups. Rule 1 might carry the keywords 1, offer and discount. - **Use exact match for numbers.** Partial match on "1" fires on any message containing the digit, including "I need this by the 1st". That creates a [support ticket](/blog/support-ticket) for yourself. - Show three to five menu items and keep the long tail of rules behind the scenes. - **Keep the tree shallow.** Two levels is usually as deep as people go before they ask for a person. ### How do you write a default Message Received reply? The default reply is the catch-all that fires when someone messages you and no keyword rule matches. Write it to confirm receipt, say when a person will answer, state your business hours with the time zone, and ask for details such as name and order number. Cross-border accounts often leave the time zone off, so write "9 AM to 6 PM GMT+8, Monday to Friday" in full. ## What are the best practices for auto-response messages? Write like a person and format for a phone, with short lines and numbered options. Promise a response time you can meet, such as "We reply within two hours, 9 AM to 6 PM GMT+8", because that tells the customer more than "we'll get back to you soon". Schedule away messages around China's public holidays, not your own calendar. The State Council's [2026 holiday notice](https://www.beijing.gov.cn/zhengce/zhengcefagui/202511/t20251104_4258873.html), issued on 4 Nov 2025, lists make-up working days on weekends, such as Saturday 14 Feb 2026. An away message keyed to "closed at weekends" is wrong on a make-up day, so check the official notice each year. ## What are some WeChat auto reply templates? These three templates cover the messages most Official Accounts need: a simple welcome, a menu welcome and an after-hours reply. Replace the square brackets with your own details, and ask local counsel before you publish coupon or data-request wording, because rules on promotions and personal data differ by market. ## How do you maintain and improve your auto replies? Test every change from a personal WeChat account by following your own Official Account and walking each menu path. Then audit every quarter, because prices, hours and links go stale, and an old coupon can outlive its offer. If two rules share a keyword, WeChat sends one of their replies at random, so keep a simple sheet of every keyword and the rule that owns it. ### How long can you reply to a customer on WeChat? Tencent's developer documentation lists two reply windows for customer service messages: - After a customer message, you have 48 hours and a cap of 5 messages. - After a follow, a QR code scan or a click on one of three qualifying custom menu types, you have one minute and a cap of three messages. ## How does SleekFlow work with WeChat? SleekFlow connects one verified WeChat Service Account to its [shared inbox](/inbox), so your team answers WeChat customers in the same place as [WhatsApp integration](/channels-integrations/whatsapp) and [Messenger integration](/channels-integrations/facebook) chats. Replies must go out within 48 hours of the customer's last message, with a cap of 5 messages in each window. SleekFlow's [Help Center](https://help.sleekflow.io/wechat/wechat-channel-overview) lists these limits (updated 13 Aug 2026): - **Service Accounts only.** You can connect one verified WeChat Service Account to each SleekFlow account, and Enterprise WeChat isn't supported. - Customer first. A business can't start a conversation, and each new customer message resets the 48-hour window. - Message types. You can send text, voice notes of 16 MB or less, payment links (these need the payment feature) and product catalog messages. You can receive text, voice notes and emojis. Location, contact messages, stickers and published articles aren't supported, and that list isn't exhaustive. - **Cost.** Tencent's overseas verification FAQ lists US$99 per review for overseas organizations, and the Help Center says sending and receiving messages through WeChat is free of charge. ### Will your native auto replies keep running after you connect? No. SleekFlow's [connection guide](https://help.sleekflow.io/wechat/connecting-wechat-official-to-sleekflow) has you turn on Message Push, and Tencent's documentation says that once it's enabled, the auto replies and custom menu set up in the Official Account platform stop working. The Help Center lists no auto reply feature for WeChat, so your team answers in the inbox after you connect. The guide (updated 15 Oct 2026) also says the custom menu can't be edited in WeChat unless you disconnect, so finish it first. Write down your current auto replies and menu before you connect. ## Where should you start with WeChat auto reply? Start with a welcome menu, one exact-match keyword rule for each number and a default reply that gives your hours and asks for an order number. Test every path from a personal account and audit quarterly, or visit the [WeChat integration page](/channels-integrations/wechat) to let your team answer WeChat customers in a shared inbox. ### Can I use WeChat auto reply on my personal WeChat account? Auto reply is an Official Account feature, set up in the Official Account console. If you want automated replies on WeChat, set up an Official Account. ### How many keywords can I set for WeChat keyword auto replies? Tencent's support page sets the cap at 200 keyword rules per account, with 10 keywords and 5 replies in each rule. ### What is the difference between a WeChat auto reply and a chatbot? An auto reply is rule-based: a trigger fires and a fixed message sends. A chatbot reads what the customer wrote, answers follow-up questions and can act on data, such as checking an order. On WeChat, anything that needs more than a fixed answer needs a chatbot or a person.