You connect Facebook Messenger and Instagram to Scale from Settings → Channels, each with one button: Continue with Facebook for a Facebook Page and Continue with Instagram for an Instagram professional account. Once a channel is connected, the Scale AI assistant replies to its messages automatically and every conversation appears in the same Inbox as WhatsApp. You sign in on Meta's own pages and never copy a token or an ID.
WhatsApp is connected separately; see How to connect WhatsApp Business to Scale.
What you need before connecting
How to connect Facebook Messenger
Open the Channels settings
Go to Settings → Channels and find the Messenger card. It reads Not connected.
Press Continue with Facebook
Scale shows Taking you to Facebook… and then opens Facebook's own authorization page in the same tab.
Log in and choose your Page
Sign in with the Facebook account that manages the Page, select the Page and approve every permission Facebook lists. Removing any of them stops the connection.
Pick the Page in Scale
Facebook returns you to Settings → Channels, where Scale lists your Pages under Choose the Page to connect. Press the Page you want within 15 minutes. A Page marked This Page cannot be connected cannot be selected.
Wait for the confirmation
The card shows Connecting… and then ✓ Connected and verified. Scale reports this only after Meta confirms that the Page's messages are delivered to Scale. The page then reloads and the card reads Connected & running with your Page name.
How to connect Instagram
Open the Channels settings
Go to Settings → Channels and find the Instagram card.
Press Continue with Instagram
Scale shows Taking you to Instagram… and then opens Instagram's own authorization page in the same tab.
Log in and allow access
Sign in to the professional account you want to connect and allow both requested permissions. One login authorizes exactly one account, so there is no list to choose from.
Check the card
Instagram returns you to Settings → Channels and Scale shows Instagram is connected and verified ✓. The card reads Connected & running with your username.
Finish a setup that stopped halfway
If the card reads Setup not finished, press Retry setup. Scale completes the message subscription with the authorization it already holds, without a second trip to Instagram. If that does not work, press Connect again.
Permissions Scale asks for
| Channel | Permission | What it is used for |
|---|---|---|
| Messenger | pages_show_list | Listing the Pages you manage so you can pick one |
| Messenger | pages_manage_metadata | Subscribing the Page so its messages are delivered to Scale |
| Messenger | pages_messaging | Receiving and sending messages as the Page |
| Messenger | business_management | Required by Meta alongside the Page permissions |
| instagram_business_basic | Reading the account's ID and username | |
| instagram_business_manage_messages | Receiving and sending direct messages and subscribing the account to messages |
Statuses and buttons on the channel card
| Status or button | What it means |
|---|---|
| Not connected | The channel is not connected; the card shows Continue with Facebook or Continue with Instagram |
| Connected & running with an Active pill | Meta confirmed that messages are delivered to Scale. The card shows the Page name or the username |
| Subscribed to: | A line listing the events Meta delivers to Scale for this channel; messages being on the list is what makes messages arrive |
| Setup not finished | Instagram only: the account was authorized but the message subscription did not complete. Use Retry setup or Connect again |
| Warning line under the status | The reason the last connection attempt or the last check failed, as Meta returned it |
| Verify connection | Checks with Meta that the authorization is still valid and the message subscription is still in place, then shows ✓ Connection healthy with the number of conversations on that channel. If the check fails, the card leaves the connected state and states the reason |
| Disconnect | Disconnects the channel after a confirmation prompt |
| Legacy note | The channel was connected earlier with a pasted token. It keeps working, and you can disconnect and reconnect with the button to simplify it; manual connection is no longer offered for new channels |
| Not configured on this installation | Shown instead of the connect button when the channel is not enabled; contact support |
What works on Messenger and Instagram compared with WhatsApp
| Feature | Messenger | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Automatic replies from the AI assistant | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Conversation in the Inbox with manual replies from your team | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Text messages | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Images | Yes, with a caption | Yes; the caption is sent as a separate message | Yes; the caption is sent as a separate message |
| Documents and files | Yes | Yes | No |
| Voice messages | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Message templates and campaigns | Yes | No | No |
| Product cards from a WhatsApp catalog | Yes | No; the product photo is sent instead | No; the product photo is sent instead |
| Messaging after the 24-hour window closes | With an approved template | Not possible until the customer writes | Not possible until the customer writes |
| Meta Ads conversion events | Yes | Not available yet | Not available yet |
What the customer sends on either channel arrives as it is: text, photos and voice messages that are passed to the AI assistant, and other attachments that are stored in the conversation as a file. A tap on a button or on a ready-made question in the chat counts as a customer message.
In the Inbox, the channel filter with All channels, WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram appears once conversations from more than one channel exist. In the lead panel, Open profile appears for Instagram customers and Open in Meta inbox for Messenger customers. The assistant is the same on all three channels, with the same training and the same AI settings. Conversion tracking is covered in Meta Ads Conversion Tracking. Every stored message on any channel uses 1 message from your plan.
The 24-hour messaging window
Meta applies a standard 24-hour messaging window to Messenger and Instagram, the same length as on WhatsApp. The window is counted from the customer's last message, not from your last reply. While it is open, the assistant and your team can send normal messages.
Once 24 hours pass without a new message from the customer, Scale refuses a normal message from the Inbox before it reaches Meta and tells you that the message window has expired and the customer needs to message you again. If the customer has never written on that channel, the window has never opened and they must message you first.
The way back in differs by channel. On WhatsApp an approved template can be sent at any time and reopens the conversation. Messenger and Instagram have no templates, so nothing can be sent there until the customer writes again, which is also why campaigns are not sent on them.
How to disconnect a channel and what happens next
Open the channel card
Go to Settings → Channels and find the connected Messenger or Instagram card.
Press Disconnect
Press Disconnect and accept the prompt that asks Disconnect this channel? The assistant will stop replying there.
Check the card
The page reloads and the card goes back to Not connected with its connect button.
On disconnect, Scale asks Meta to stop delivering the Page's or account's messages and marks the channel as disconnected even if Meta does not confirm. From then on, a message that still arrives for that Page or account is not routed to your workspace, the assistant does not answer it, and a reply typed in the Inbox is refused because the channel is not connected. A reply the assistant was preparing at the moment you disconnected is not sent either. Your earlier conversations and leads stay in Scale.
To resume, connect the channel again. A workspace has one Facebook Page on Messenger and one Instagram account, so connecting a different Page or account replaces the previous one.
Common errors and how to fix them
| Message | Cause and fix |
|---|---|
| Connection cancelled. You can try again any time. | You closed Meta's window before approving. Start the connection again |
| All requested permissions are required before the assistant can reply | A permission was removed on Meta's screen. Try again and approve all of them |
| Your Facebook account does not manage any Page. | The Facebook account manages no Page. Create one or ask for an admin role on it, then try again |
| That connection attempt is no longer valid. Please start again. | More than 10 minutes passed since the attempt started, or it was already used. Press the connect button again |
| Your session changed during the connection. Please start again from the same browser. | The authorization finished in a different browser from the one that started it. Connect again from one browser |
| That Facebook Page is already connected to another Scale account. | The Page or the Instagram account is live in another Scale account. Disconnect it there, then connect it here |
| Insufficient permissions on that Page. | Your account is not an admin of the Page or a permission was not granted. Check your Page role and connect again |
| We could not read your Instagram account from Meta. | The account is not a professional one. Switch it to Business or Creator in the Instagram app, then try again |
| Meta rejected the stored token — it has most likely expired or been revoked. | Shown by Verify connection when the authorization expired or was removed in Meta. Connect the channel again |
| This is a problem on our side, not yours. | A fault on Scale's side, not in your account. Trying again does not help, so contact support |
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a Facebook Page to connect Instagram?
No. Instagram connects through Instagram's own business login with a professional account, either Business or Creator, and no Facebook Page is involved.
Can I connect more than one Page or Instagram account to the same workspace?
No. A workspace has one Facebook Page on Messenger and one Instagram account, and connecting another one replaces the previous one.
Can I send a campaign or a template on Messenger or Instagram?
No. Templates and campaigns are WhatsApp features. On Messenger and Instagram you can only reply within 24 hours of the customer's last message.
Does the AI assistant behave differently on these channels?
No. The same assistant, with the same training and settings, replies on all three channels. Only what each channel can carry differs, as the comparison table shows.
The card reads Connected & running but no messages arrive. What should I do?
Press Verify connection. Scale checks with Meta that the authorization is valid and the message subscription is in place, and shows the reason if it is not. If the check fails, connect the channel again or contact Scale support.
Do Messenger and Instagram messages count toward my plan?
Yes. Every stored message uses 1 message from the plan on any channel, incoming and outgoing alike.