Building an Open-Source WhatsApp Customer Support Stack (n8n + Chatwoot + WAHA)

Most WhatsApp automation guides end with "sign up for this SaaS." This one doesn't. I'll walk you through setting up a fully self-hosted WhatsApp customer support system using three open-source tools — no per-message fees, no per-seat pricing, no vendor lock-in. The Stack Tool Role Replaces n8n Workflow automation Zapier, Make.com Chatwoot Customer support platform Intercom, Zendesk WAHA WhatsApp API (self-hosted) Twilio, 360dialog Total hosting cost: ~$50/month on a basic VPS (2GB RAM, 1 vCPU). Compare that to $200+/month for equivalent SaaS tools. Why This Combination Works Each tool does one thing well: WAHA connects to WhatsApp and exposes a REST API for sending/receiving messages. No Meta Business verification required, no per-message charges. Chatwoot gives your support team a proper inbox — conversation routing, canned responses, agent assignments, performance dashboards. Your team works in Chatwoot, not in WhatsApp directly. n8n ties everything together — routing logic, AI resp