Sending Messages¶

The most common thing a bot does is say hello. With Api.sendMessage, that's one line — no chat_id unless you're deliberately sending somewhere else. The platform fills in the chat from wherever the command was triggered.

Bot.sendMessage is great for quick replies. Api.sendMessage is the full Telegram toolkit — formatting, silent sends, different chats, rich messages, the works.

What can you send?¶

Plain text, Markdown, HTML, rich structured content — all through Api.sendMessage or related methods. Pick your format with parse_mode:

Api.sendMessage({ text: "Hello." })

Most calls assume the current chat. Override with chat_id when you need to notify an admin channel or message someone from a background command.

How to use it¶

Formatted text¶

Telegram supports Markdown and HTML. Keep formatting simple — unclosed bold markers are the usual reason a message fails:

Api.sendMessage({
  text: "*Order confirmed.*\nTracking: `ABC-123`",
  parse_mode: "Markdown"
})

If a formatted message keeps erroring, strip the markup and add it back piece by piece. Telegram's parsers are picky.

Sending to a different chat¶

Api.sendMessage({
  chat_id: 123456789,
  text: "New signup from the website."
})

Only do this when the bot can actually post there — it's a group member, hasn't been blocked by the user, etc. Telegram rejects invalid targets, and by default that rejection lands in your error logs rather than crashing the command.

Silent sends¶

No buzz on the user's phone:

Api.sendMessage({
  text: "Background sync finished.",
  disable_notification: true
})

Handy for admin alerts in busy groups.

Try it — copy-paste examples¶

Simple reply¶

Api.sendMessage({ text: "Got your message!" })

Edit what you just sent¶

await the call when the next line needs to change the message:

let sent = await Api.sendMessage({ text: "Working..." })
await sent.editText("Finished.")

See Method Chaining for everything you can do with that returned object.

Hand off to another command¶

When the response matters but you don't want the rest of the logic here:

Api.getChat({ chat_id: chat.id, on_run: "afterGetChat" })

The afterGetChat command receives Telegram's response in options. Callbacks covers that pattern.

Rich messages (Bot API 10.1)¶

Structured content — tables, headings, nested lists, formulas, collapsible blocks:

Api.sendRichMessage({
  rich_message: {
    markdown: "# Order Summary\n\n| Item | Qty |\n| --- | --- |\n| Widget | 2 |"
  }
})

Pass content via markdown or html inside rich_message. For streaming partial rich content (AI replies), use Api.sendRichMessageDraft with a draft_id. Plain-text streaming: Api.sendMessageDraft.

Everything else Telegram supports¶

Api.sendMessage accepts any parameter the Telegram Bot API documents — reply markup, link previews, protected content, message threading in groups, the lot.

Important notes¶

• Use await and check res.ok when delivery failure would change your logic
• Case-sensitive: Api.sendMessage works, Api.sendmessage does not
• Cross-check parameters against the Telegram Bot API docs when in doubt