wacli (WhatsApp CLI)

Use wacli via exec.

Safety / permission

• Treat sending as an external, privacy-sensitive action.
• Only send when the user explicitly provided (a) recipient and (b) message/file content and asked to send.
• If any detail is missing/ambiguous (wrong number, unclear chat, not sure which attachment), ask one clarifying question before sending.

Quick checks

• Verify install:
• wacli version
• If missing, suggest:
• brew install steipete/tap/wacli

Auth + sync (required before sending)

• Login (shows QR) and bootstrap initial sync:
• wacli auth
• Keep syncing in the background (recommended so messages/IDs resolve):
• wacli sync --follow
• Diagnostics:
• wacli doctor

Send a WhatsApp message

Text:

• wacli send text --to --message ""

Quoted reply (needs message id, usually from messages list/search/show/context):

• wacli send text --to --message "" --reply-to

React:

• wacli send react --to --id [--reaction ""]

Send a file

• wacli send file --to --file [--caption ""] [--filename ] [--mime ]

Finding chats / message ids

• Search messages:
• wacli messages search ""
• List recent messages (for a known chat JID):
• wacli messages list --chat --asc --limit 50
• Show context around a message:
• wacli messages context --chat --id
• Find chats/groups:
• wacli chats list --query "" --limit 50
• wacli groups list --query "" --limit 50

Store location (FYI)

• Default store is ~/.wacli on macOS; override with --store DIR or WACLI_STORE_DIR.