How to Launch a Telegram Bot for Free: Deep Links, Limits and Discovery
A Telegram bot can go live the moment you create it with @BotFather and connect your server, because Telegram’s bot documentation describes no store review step. The launch work is discovery: give people a link that opens the bot, tag that link per source, set the command list and description, and respect the message limits when you start messaging people.
Does a Telegram bot need approval before launch?
Not according to Telegram’s own bot pages, which we read on 13 November 2026. They describe setting up a bot account with @BotFather, connecting it to a backend through the Bot API and going from there, and they say the platform is free for users and developers. We found no review queue in those pages, so check the current terms yourself, but plan as if no gatekeeper stands between you and your first user.
That makes the launch the reverse of an app-store launch. There is nothing to wait on, so there is also nothing that puts you in front of strangers. A bot has no storefront; it spreads through links, groups and channels. Everything below is about making that spread easy to start and easy to measure.
What should you set up before sharing the link?
- A username that says the job. A bot’s username is its address (
t.me/your_bot), so choose it as carefully as a domain name. - A description and short bio written in @BotFather, because they are what a person reads before pressing Start.
- A command list set in @BotFather so the menu appears after typing a slash. Keep
/start,/helpand/settingsworking, as the platform’s guidance recommends. - A first message that does one thing. Whoever opens the bot should see a single obvious next step, not a menu of eleven commands.
- A second bot for testing. Telegram suggests running a separate instance on a different bot account, so experiments never touch real users.
How do you track where users come from?
Telegram’s deep links carry a start parameter of up to 64 characters. A link like https://t.me/your_bot?start=newsletter hands your bot the text “newsletter” when the person presses Start. Use one value per source, and store it with the new user. A second form, startgroup, prompts someone to add the bot to a group and passes a value the same way.
| Where you share it | Link parameter | What you will learn |
|---|---|---|
| Your own channel | start=channel | How much your existing readers convert |
| A relevant group, with permission | start=group-a | Whether that community fits |
| The free launch page | start=launchboard | What a listing sends |
| A friend’s newsletter | start=nl-friend | Whether borrowed audiences work |
The same idea as a UTM tag, built into the platform. The UTM tagging checklist explains the habit for web links.
What limits catch a bot at launch?
Telegram’s bot FAQ gives guidance that matters the day your list grows. Read on 13 November 2026, it says to avoid more than one message per second in a single chat, that a bot cannot send more than 20 messages a minute in a group, and that bulk notifications are capped at about 30 messages a second unless the bot enables paid broadcasts, with a higher ceiling and a per-message cost in Stars above the free amount. Exceeding the limits returns errors.
The practical rule: queue your outgoing messages and spread a first broadcast over minutes. In groups, privacy mode is on by default, so a bot only sees commands and replies to it unless it is an admin or you switch the mode off. Leave it on unless the bot truly needs to read everything, which also helps with trust: people are warier of a bot that reads a whole group.
Where does a bot find its first people?
Go where the job lives. A bot that posts price drops belongs in channels about shopping and deals; a study-timer bot belongs in student groups. Ask the admins first, and offer something useful, such as a one-off post that shows the bot doing its task in front of the group. A flat advertisement is the quickest way to be muted.
Telegram’s own pages list a feature for promotion, affiliate programs run through bots, with custom revenue sharing; that is a paid-growth tool and not a launch step, so leave it until the bot is retaining people. Outside Telegram, give the bot a page of its own through the free launch form, where the link is an ordinary followed one. The Telegram bot places page lists directories and communities, and the board’s communication ideas are a source of bot concepts.
What does a two-week plan look like?
- Days 1 to 3: finish the first-message flow and the command list, and test with a second bot instance.
- Days 4 to 7: invite ten people you know to press Start from a tagged link; watch where they stop.
- Days 8 to 10: post in two relevant groups with admin permission.
- Day 11: publish the web page and the free board listing, linking the tagged bot link.
- Days 12 to 14: compare sources, send nothing to the whole list until you have queued the broadcast.
For more on turning a first handful of users into a hundred, see the first 100 users playbook.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to pay to publish a Telegram bot?
Telegram’s bot page describes the platform as free for both users and developers, and bot messages to users carry no cost by default within its limits. Paid broadcasts and Stars-based payments are optional extras. You will still pay for your own hosting, and you should read the current terms before relying on this.
How do I get people to find my Telegram bot?
Share a link that opens it, since a bot has no storefront. Post that link in channels and groups where the job already comes up, with the admin’s permission, and list the bot on your own web page. Use a different start parameter for each place so you can see which one sends users who stay.
Why does my bot not see messages in a group?
Privacy mode is on by default, so a bot receives only commands and direct replies, unless it was added as an admin or the mode is turned off in @BotFather. Telegram recommends turning it off only when the bot cannot work otherwise, and adding the bot again for the change to apply.
Can a Telegram bot take payments?
Yes. Telegram’s bot page says bots can sell goods and services, with Stars for digital products and third-party providers for physical goods through Mini Apps. Payments need more setup and more care with refunds and support, so launch the free version first and add payment after people use it.
Written by Post your build ideas with AI assistance and edited for this site. Where a page names another product, the facts came from that product’s own pages on the date shown above; terms change, so check them before you rely on them. About the publisher.