Use your phone connection for WhatsApp Web

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Conversa Labs

Last updated on Aug 18, 2026

Overview

The Use my phone option routes a WhatsApp Web inbox's TCP connection through the selected device's Wi-Fi, 4G or 5G. The phone belongs only to your account, never joins a shared pool and is not exposed as a public proxy.

This feature is in a closed development pilot and is disabled by default. It has no SLA and is not approved for production until complete physical Android and iPhone testing is finished.

There are two ways to get the network ready. You connect a Tailscale account of your own from the wizard, or your operator enables their shared network for every account. Either way, the person who connects and pairs the phone is always an account administrator — never the operator.

Prerequisites

An account administrator role to create a WhatsApp Web inbox.
The Phone connection pilot enabled for your account.
A ready network: your own Tailscale account connected from the wizard, or your operator's shared network enabled for your account. Tailscale's Personal plan is free but allowed for non-commercial use only; business use starts on a paid plan, billed per person who joins the network — one per phone you enrol.
A compatible Android phone or iPhone with the official Tailscale app.
Access to the email address that will be used to sign in to Tailscale.
Stable Wi-Fi or mobile data. Prefer keeping the device connected to power.
The phone running the WhatsApp account is still needed for the normal Linked devices QR.

Step by step

Go to Settings → Inboxes → Add inbox → WhatsApp Web.

Select Use my phone as the connection source. When no network is ready yet, the wizard opens a three-step guide to connect your own Tailscale account — with the policy snippet and the OAuth scopes ready to copy — plus a Test connection button. Besides the OAuth client, enter your Tailscale personal access token: Tailscale publishes no OAuth scope covering invitations, so without the token enrolling a phone fails even when the connection test passes. The token expires in 90 days and has to be replaced. Exactly what to have at hand before opening the wizard:

Field	Where to get it
Network (tailnet)	Tailscale → Settings → General → Tailnet ID (the value for API calls, not the display name)
OAuth client ID and secret	Tailscale → Settings → Trust credentials (the page formerly called "OAuth clients")
Personal access token	Tailscale → Settings → Keys

When creating the OAuth client grant only devices:core, devices:routes and auth_keys, and select the tag the wizard shows. Do not grant users: nothing here uses it, and that scope includes user deletion.

Read and accept the network, data usage, battery, isolation and call limitation notices.
Enter the email you will use in Tailscale and click Create temporary link.
On the selected phone, scan the QR or open the temporary link. It is shown once and expires in five minutes; do not share it.
Install or open Tailscale, sign in with the same email and accept joining the specified network.
In the Tailscale app, open Exit Node and tap Run as exit node. Installing the app and signing in is not enough — sharing is a separate toggle, off by default. The path is the same on Android and iPhone: home screen → Exit Node → Run as exit node. If it shows Disabled next to the option, that is the current state; tapping is what turns it on. Without it the panel stays on "Phone on the network — connection sharing still off" forever. The five minutes are for opening the link: once the phone joins the network the deadline extends, so you have time to find this toggle without rushing.
Return to the wizard and wait for Phone connected. If more than one device is found, explicitly choose the phone you just enrolled.
Confirm Use for this inbox and finish creating the channel.
When the WhatsApp QR appears, open WhatsApp → Linked devices → Link a device and complete the normal pairing.

There are two different QR codes: the first enrolls the Tailscale network route; the second links the WhatsApp session. One does not replace the other.

Shortest path. If the phone is already on your Tailscale network, turn on Run as exit node before creating the temporary link. The wizard recognizes the phone that is already sharing and enrolls it directly — no list to choose from and no clock running.

Settings & options

One inbox per phone: this is the pilot's safe limit. The device remains reserved while the inbox has an active route.
Hold when offline: this is the default policy. If the phone or tunnel drops, the inbox is held and never silently switches to the server's direct connection.
Pause: makes the phone unavailable for new connections. An active route must be released first.
Resume: allows a new device check; it becomes available only when online and advertising the exit route.
Remove: revokes enrollment. You must repeat the enrollment before using the phone again.
Managed alternatives: Webshare, Bright Data or a custom endpoint approved by the operator are separate routes. The phone is never added to the commercial pool.
Changing the route after creation: on an existing inbox, open Settings → Inboxes → your inbox → Connection and use Change route to move to another proxy region or to another phone.
Leaving a phone route needs a new inbox: you can swap to a different phone, but you cannot move back from a phone to a managed proxy on the same inbox. The gateway only knows how to apply a phone route; removing one would require deleting the session, which unpairs WhatsApp. Create another inbox and pair again.

Use cases

Validate a real residential route through the connection owned by the person responsible for the number.
Test session behavior while switching between Wi-Fi and mobile data.
Keep the device and inbox isolated within one account during a supervised pilot.

Tips, limits & best practices

Keep Tailscale connected and allowed to work in the background.
Disable aggressive battery optimization for Tailscale when the operating system allows it, and keep the phone charging during long tests.
Traffic consumes the device's data plan. Check its allowance, roaming and carrier policies.
The public IP may change when switching between Wi-Fi and mobile data, because of CGNAT or by carrier policy.
The vendor states that a phone as an exit node is not performant. Tailscale documentation says running an exit node on Android "may be too slow for most cases" (userspace routing, no kernel optimization); iPhone shares the same userspace nature. Measure before promising performance to a customer, and keep the phone plugged in.
Messages, history and media use TCP connections. Voice and video calls are not supported and are blocked in this mode.
This feature does not prevent WhatsApp bans or turn the Web connection into an official Meta API.
Do not use another account's tailnet and do not share the temporary enrollment link.
Do not use this pilot in production before formal approval from Conversa Labs.

Troubleshooting

Use my phone is not visible: the pilot is not enabled for the account. Contact the platform operator.
The option is shown as unavailable: no network is ready yet. Open Use my phone and follow the three setup steps to connect your own Tailscale account, or ask your operator to enable their shared network.
The link or QR expired: return to the wizard and create another link. The five minutes are for opening the link on the phone; once the phone joins the network the deadline extends so you can turn on sharing. If the phone is already on the network, turn on sharing before creating the link.
The phone was not found: confirm that you signed in to Tailscale with the exact email provided, joined the correct network and kept the app connected.
The screen is waiting for an exit node: enable Run as exit node in Tailscale and click Check connection, or wait for the automatic check.
More than one phone appeared: compare the name and platform, then choose only the device you just enrolled.
The inbox is held/offline: keep the phone online, check Tailscale and the exit node, then refresh devices. The platform will not use a direct route while the phone is unavailable.
I cannot pause or remove the phone: first release the inbox that still has an active route through this device.
Calls do not work: this is a known limitation of the TCP pilot. Use another channel mode for calls.
Battery or data use increased: pause the route and review background use, the selected network and roaming before resuming.