When to add a contact manually
- You’re testing a campaign or template and need a single recipient.
- A new lead reached you by phone or email and you want to reach them on WhatsApp.
- You’re editing an existing contact to update details.
Open the add-contact screen

Field reference
| Field | Required | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Name | Required | Text | Up to 191 characters. Merged into templates at send time. |
| Last Name | Required | Text | Up to 191 characters. |
| Company | Optional | Text | Up to 191 characters. |
| Type | Required | Dropdown | lead or customer. |
| Optional | Must be a valid email. Unique within your workspace if provided. | ||
| Phone | Required | Text (E.164) | Must start with + and a country code. Unique within your workspace. |
| Website | Optional | URL | Up to 100 characters. |
| Description | Optional | Textarea | Up to 65,535 characters. |
| Country | Optional | Dropdown | — |
| City | Optional | Text | Up to 100 characters. |
| State | Optional | Text | Up to 100 characters. |
| ZIP | Optional | Text | Up to 15 characters. |
| Address | Optional | Textarea | Up to 500 characters. |
| Status | Required | Dropdown | Must be an existing status. See Statuses. |
| Source | Required | Dropdown | Must be an existing source. See Sources. |
| Assigned Agent | Optional | Dropdown | A staff user in your workspace. |
| Groups | Optional | Multi-select | Add the contact to any number of groups. See Groups. |
| Custom fields | Varies | Varies | Depends on the fields you’ve defined. See Custom Fields. |
Step-by-step
Enter the name
First and last name are both required. Enter them the way you want them to appear in messages —
Alex not alex.Enter the phone number
Type the full international number including
+ and country code. Double-check the country code — a wrong country code means the message never arrives.Enter the email (optional)
If you have it, add the email. Xobito does not send emails, but it’s useful for cross-referencing with your other tools.
Pick a status
Pick one status from the dropdown. If the list is empty, go to Contacts → Status first to create one.
Pick a source
Pick where this contact came from. If the list is empty, go to Contacts → Source first to create one.
Add to groups (optional)
Tick any groups the contact should belong to. You can change groups later at any time.
Fill in custom fields (if any)
If you’ve defined custom fields, they appear below the standard fields. Fill in the ones you have data for.
Success — the new contact appears in your contact list and is ready to receive messages.
Notes
The contact form has a dedicated Notes section where you can record context that isn’t covered by a standard field — call summaries, preferences, agreements, or internal reminders.Notes are plain text — no rich formatting, markdown, or attachments. For files, use your own document tool and paste a link into the note.
Editing an existing contact
Click 'Edit'
Update any field. If you change the phone number, make sure the new number is not already used by another contact.
Tips for clean data
Common errors and fixes
'Phone number format is invalid'
'Phone number format is invalid'
Check that you included the
+, a valid country code, and no spaces, dashes, or parentheses. Remove any leading zeros after the country code (British mobile numbers drop the leading 0).'Phone number already exists'
'Phone number already exists'
A contact with this number is already in your list. Open the existing contact and edit it instead.
'Email already exists'
'Email already exists'
If you provide an email, it must be unique within your workspace. Leave the email blank or use a different one.
Status or Source dropdown is empty
Status or Source dropdown is empty
You haven’t created any yet. Go to Contacts → Status and Contacts → Source to add the options you need, then return to the contact form.
Custom field shows a validation error
Custom field shows a validation error
Each custom field has its own type and rules — see Custom Fields for what each type accepts.
Next steps
Import from CSV
Add many contacts at once from a spreadsheet.
Create a group
Collect contacts together for targeted campaigns.
Create a template
Design the message you want to send these contacts.
Start a campaign
Broadcast to your new contacts.