01
Quiet, instant push
Telegram pushes are fast and reliable. You hear about a check-in within a second of it landing.
All integrations
Mobile-first bot · personal use
A private bot, just for the family.
A tiny Telegram bot that quietly posts Mum's check-ins to your phone, your group chat, your wrist. Mobile-first, fast, free, no business approval. The bot is yours; we just speak to it.
Coordinator-only. Included in the £4.99 plan. Same day to set up.
GW
Getwello bot
last seen recently
Check-in
Mum has just checked in at 08:14
Mood: fine
Visit details for today?
James, 14:00 BST. Picking up the walking stick.
Why Telegram works for this
Mobile-first, free, private.
02
Bot stays yours
No business verification, no app store review, no third party in the middle. You own the bot and the secret.
03
Works abroad
Telegram works on networks where other apps are spotty. Useful if someone in the family lives abroad.
04
Free everywhere
No fees from Telegram, no charges from us. Free both ends.
POST https://api.telegram.org/bot<TOKEN>/sendMessage
{
"chat_id": -1001234567890,
"parse_mode": "Markdown",
"text": "*Mum has just checked in*\n_08:14 BST · Mood: fine_"
}One bot, every event
Tap @BotFather. Two minutes. Live.
Create a bot with @BotFather, drop the token into a tiny server that sits between us and Telegram, point your Getwello webhook at that server. The server translates events into chat messages and forwards them to whichever group or chat you configured.
- Bot speaks only when something happens.
- Messages support markdown for clean formatting.
- Group chats let the family see at once.
- Same bot can handle every event type.
How to set it up
The high level. Full walkthrough in the help guide.
- 01Step 1 of 4
Create the bot with @BotFather.
Open Telegram, message @BotFather, send /newbot. Pick a name (e.g. 'Mum check-in bot'). Copy the API token it gives you.
- 02Step 2 of 4
Create a private group and add the bot.
Make a new group, add the family members you want, add the bot. Note the group's chat_id (negative number, easiest to grab via @username_to_id_bot).
- 03Step 3 of 4
Set up the relay.
Use Zapier, n8n or a tiny Cloudflare Worker between Getwello and Telegram. Code is about 12 lines, in the help guide.
- 04Step 4 of 4
Create the Getwello webhook subscription.
Settings → Developer API → Webhooks. URL is your relay. Tick the events you want. Test. Watch the bot speak.
Frequently asked questions
Why Telegram rather than WhatsApp?
Telegram has a proper bot API that anyone can use without business verification. WhatsApp's Business API is heavily gated. For a quiet personal family use, Telegram is what we recommend.
Do I need to register the bot anywhere?
Yes, with @BotFather in Telegram. It's a one-minute chat: send /newbot, name it, get an API token. No verification, no fees, no approval queue.
Will the family see it?
Anyone you add to the chat with the bot will see the messages. For a private family group, create a Telegram group, add the bot, and the bot posts there.
Can the family reply via Telegram and have it post in the Family Room?
Yes, with a small server that polls the bot for new messages and forwards them to our POST /api/v1/family-room endpoint. More work but possible. v1 just does the one-way push.
Will it work outside the UK?
Telegram works almost everywhere. If a family member lives abroad, this is one of the most reliable channels to reach them.
Other integrations
Pair this with another.
Some families wire two or three at the same time. The webhook fans out, the API keys stay the same.
- n8nRun the relay self-hosted.
- PushoverPersonal push, priority levels.
- DiscordGroup chat alternative.
- SlackWork-style equivalent.
See every integration or jump to the Developer API overview.
Connect Getwello to Telegram.
Today.
Mint your first API key in two minutes. Coordinator-only. Included in the £4.99 family plan.
