Recurring Appointment Reminders on WhatsApp: Set Them Once

To send a WhatsApp reminder before every session of a recurring appointment, schedule the first session in WA Reminders, tick Repeatable Event, choose a Frequency such as weekly, and set an end date in Ends. WA Reminders then creates every session up to that date and sends each reminder from your own WhatsApp number at the time you chose.

You set it up once instead of once a week. The variables in your message show each session's own date and time, so the client always gets the right details.

Who recurring reminders are for

Any appointment that repeats on a fixed pattern:

• Weekly therapy or coaching sessions.
• Language, music or fitness classes.
• A course of physiotherapy sessions.
• Monthly check-ins with a nutritionist or trainer.
• A fortnightly salon appointment.
• A yearly check-up or service.

If your appointments don't follow a pattern, schedule them one at a time. The guide to scheduling WhatsApp appointment reminders covers that.

How to set up a recurring reminder

1. Click Schedule in the menu.
2. Fill in the form as for any reminder: the client's name in Message Title, your template in Pick a template to send as a message, the client in To, and how far ahead the message goes out in Send the message (for example 1 day before the time of the event).
3. In Time of event, enter the date and time of the first session. The repeat pattern starts from here.
4. Tick Repeatable Event. Two new fields appear.
5. Choose the Frequency (the options are explained below).
6. In Ends, pick the date of the last session to include.
7. If you want a second message for every session, tick Send a Follow Up Message and choose its timing and text. It's added to every session in the series.
8. Click Save.

Every session now shows up in your Reminders list, each with its own reminder.

The frequency options

The day of the week and the date in these options come from Time of event, so set that first. The menu then shows the actual day, for example "Weekly on Tuesday".

• Daily: every day, weekends included. Useful for a short daily treatment.
• Every Weekday, mon to fri: Monday to Friday, skipping weekends. Good for daily rehab sessions or after-school tutoring.
• Weekly on (day): the same day and time every week. The most common choice for therapy and classes.
• Semi-weekly, Fortnightly on (day): every two weeks on the same day.
• Monthly on (week and day): for example "Monthly on 2° Tuesday" means the second Tuesday of each month. Check the label before saving: the series follows exactly what it shows.
• Monthly on day number (date): the same date every month, for example the 15th. Not every month has a 29th, 30th or 31st, so if your first session is on one of those days, the following ones fall on the 28th.
• Yearly: the same date every year, for an annual check-up.

Setting the end date

Ends is required: every series has a last date. Pick the day of the final session you want a reminder for. For a course of 10 weekly sessions, that's the date of the tenth one.

How far ahead you can go depends on the frequency:

• Daily and Every Weekday, mon to fri: up to 1 year.
• Weekly on: up to 3 years.
• Semi-weekly, Fortnightly on: up to 6 years.
• Monthly on, Monthly on day number and Yearly: up to 12 years.

The date picker won't let you choose a later date. For an open-ended weekly client, a common habit is to set the end a few months out and schedule a new series when it runs out.

Examples by profession

• Psychologist: weekly session on Thursday at 6pm. Weekly on Thursday, reminder 1 day before the time of the event, ending at the end of the current treatment block.
• Physiotherapist: a client comes Monday, Wednesday and Friday. One series can't cover three different weekdays, so create three Weekly on series, one starting on each day. Save and Schedule another message keeps your template and timing between them.
• Language or music teacher: a weekly class, with the reminder 2 hours before the time of the event. If two or three students share the class, add them all to To with Add another recipient (up to four people per reminder). Each one gets the message in their own chat.
• Nutritionist: a monthly check-in on the first Monday, with Monthly on 1° Monday and the reminder 3 days before the time of the event.
• Beauty salon: a fortnightly appointment with Semi-weekly, Fortnightly on and a follow-up 2 hours after asking for a review.
• Dentist or vet: a yearly check-up with Yearly and the reminder 7 days before the time of the event, so the client has time to fit it in.

For the message itself, these WhatsApp appointment reminder templates include one written for recurring therapy sessions.

When a session changes

Each session in the series is its own reminder in your Reminders list. The sessions of a series can't be edited one by one, so changes are made by deleting and scheduling again. When you delete a session, the confirmation offers two buttons:

• Delete removes only that session. Use it when a client skips one week.
• Delete recurring removes that session and every later one in the series. Earlier sessions stay as they are.

So in practice:

• The client cancels one session: delete that session with Delete.
• One session moves to another day: delete it with Delete, then schedule a single reminder for the new time.
• The regular day or time changes for good, or the treatment ends early: open the first session that should change, choose Delete recurring, and if they're continuing, create a new series from the new date.

Frequently asked questions

Does each session count as a message?

Yes. Each session's reminder counts toward your plan's monthly message limit when it goes out, once per recipient. You can see how many you've sent this month in Settings.

Can I mix recurring and one-off reminders?

Yes. Both appear in the same Reminders list. Many professionals keep their regular clients in recurring series and schedule one-off reminders for everyone else, often in a five-minute end-of-day routine for tomorrow's appointments.

Set up your first series

If your regular clients come every week, setting up their reminders once can save you hours over a few months. For an overview of every way to send reminders, see WhatsApp appointment reminders. When you're ready, create your WA Reminders account. Plans start at 19 USD per month, with a 14-day money-back guarantee.