Interactive Messages

Send and receive interactive messages with embedded forms, cards, and custom interactive elements using the CometChat React Native SDK.

Quick Reference - Send an interactive message and listen for it:

// Send an interactive message
const interactiveMessage = new CometChat.InteractiveMessage(
  "UID", CometChat.RECEIVER_TYPE.USER, "form", { title: "Survey", formFields: [] }
);
await CometChat.sendInteractiveMessage(interactiveMessage);

// Listen for incoming interactive messages
CometChat.addMessageListener("interactive-listener", new CometChat.MessageListener({
  onInteractiveMessageReceived: (msg) => console.log("Interactive:", msg),
  onInteractionGoalCompleted: (msg) => console.log("Goal completed:", msg),
}));

Available via: SDK | REST API | UI Kits

An InteractiveMessage is a specialized object that encapsulates an interactive unit within a chat message, such as an embedded form that users can fill out directly within the chat interface. This enhances user engagement by making the chat experience more interactive and responsive to user input.

InteractiveMessage

InteractiveMessage is a chat message with embedded interactive content. It can contain the following properties:

Parameter	Description
receiverId	The UID or GUID of the recipient	Required
receiverType	The type of the receiver to whom the message is to be sent i.e CometChat.RECEIVER_TYPE.USER (user) or CometChat.RECEIVER_TYPE.GROUP (group)	Required
messageType	The type of the message that needs to be sent	Required
interactiveData	A JSONObject holding structured data for the interactive element	Required
allowSenderInteraction	A boolean determining whether the message sender can interact with the message by default it is set to false
interactionGoal	An InteractionGoal object encapsulating the intended outcome of interacting with the InteractiveMessage by default it is set to none

Interaction

An Interaction represents a user action involved with an InteractiveMessage. It includes:

• elementId: An identifier for a specific interactive element.
• interactedAt: A timestamp indicating when the interaction occurred.

Mark as Interacted

This method marks a message as interacted by identifying it with the provided Id. It also logs the interactive element associated with the interaction.

JavaScript

CometChat.markAsInteracted(message?.getId(), elementId)
  .then((response) => {
    console.log("Mark As Interacted", response);
  })
  .catch((error) => {
    console.log("error while markAsInteracted", error);
  });

TypeScript

CometChat.markAsInteracted(message?.getId(), elementId)
  .then((response) => {
    console.log("Mark As Interacted", response);
  })
  .catch((error) => {
    console.log("error while markAsInteracted", error);
  });

Goal Completion

A key feature of InteractiveMessage is checking whether a user’s interactions with the message meet the defined InteractionGoal.

You would be tracking every interaction users perform on an InteractiveMessage (captured as Interaction objects) and comparing those with the defined InteractionGoal. The completion of a goal can vary depending on the goal type:

Goals	Description	Keys
Any Interaction	The goal is considered completed if there is at least one interaction.	CometChat.GoalType.ANY_ACTION
Any of Specific Interactions	The goal is achieved if any of the specified interactions occurred.	CometChat.GoalType.ANY_OF
All of Specific Interactions	The goal is completed when all specified interactions occur.	CometChat.GoalType.ALL_OF
None	The goal is never completed	CometChat.GoalType.NONE

This user interaction tracking mechanism provides a flexible and efficient way to monitor user engagement within an interactive chat session. By defining clear interaction goals and checking user interactions against these goals, you can manage user engagement and improve the overall chat experience in your CometChat-enabled application.

InteractionGoal The InteractionGoal represents the desired outcome of an interaction with an InteractiveMessage. It includes:

• elementIds: A list of identifiers for the interactive elements.
• type: The type of interaction goal from the CometChat.

Sending InteractiveMessages

The InteractiveMessage can be sent using the sendInteractiveMessage method of the CometChat class. The method requires an InteractiveMessage object and a CallbackListener for handling the response.

Here is an example of how to use it:

JavaScript

CometChat.sendInteractiveMessage(message)
  .then((message) => {
    console.log("message sent successfully", message.getSentAt());
  })
  .catch((error) => {
    console.log("error while sending message", { error });
  });

TypeScript

CometChat.sendInteractiveMessage(message)
  .then((message: CometChat.InteractiveMessage) => {
    console.log("message sent successfully", message.getSentAt());
  })
  .catch((error: CometChat.CometChatException) => {
    console.log("error while sending message", { error });
  });

Event Listeners

CometChat SDK provides event listeners to handle real-time events related to InteractiveMessage.

On InteractiveMessage Received

The onInteractiveMessageReceived event listener is triggered when an InteractiveMessage is received.

Here is an example:

JavaScript

CometChat.addMessageListener(
  "UNIQUE_LISTENER_ID",
  new CometChat.MessageListener({
    onInteractiveMessageReceived: (message) => {
      console.log("on Interactive Message Received", message);
    }
  })
);

TypeScript

CometChat.addMessageListener(
  "UNIQUE_LISTENER_ID",
  new CometChat.MessageListener({
    onInteractiveMessageReceived: (message: CometChat.InteractiveMessage) => {
      console.log("on Interactive Message Received", message);
    }
  })
);

On Interaction Goal Completed

The onInteractionGoalCompleted event listener is invoked when an interaction goal is achieved.

Here is an example:

JavaScript

CometChat.addMessageListener(
  "UNIQUE_LISTENER_ID",
  new CometChat.MessageListener({
    onInteractionGoalCompleted: (message) => {
      console.log("on Interaction Goal Completed", message);
    }
  })
);

TypeScript

CometChat.addMessageListener(
  "UNIQUE_LISTENER_ID",
  new CometChat.MessageListener({
    onInteractionGoalCompleted: (message: CometChat.InteractiveMessage) => {
      console.log("on Interaction Goal Completed", message);
    }
  })
);

These event listeners offer your application a way to provide real-time updates in response to incoming interactive messages and goal completions, contributing to a more dynamic and responsive user chat experience.

Listener Cleanup: Always remove message listeners when they are no longer needed. Remove the listener in componentWillUnmount() or the cleanup function of a useEffect hook to prevent memory leaks.

CometChat.removeMessageListener("UNIQUE_LISTENER_ID");

Usage

An InteractiveMessage is constructed with the receiver’s UID, the receiver type, the interactive type, and interactive data as a JSONObject. Once created, the InteractiveMessage can be sent using CometChat’s sendInteractiveMessage() method. Incoming InteractiveMessages can be received and processed via CometChat’s message listener framework.

Best Practices

• Use descriptive, unique listener IDs (e.g., "interactive-form-listener") to avoid conflicts with other listeners
• Always remove message listeners on component unmount to prevent memory leaks
• Set allowSenderInteraction to true only when the sender needs to interact with their own message (e.g., previewing a form)
• Define clear InteractionGoal types to accurately track user engagement with interactive elements
• Handle both onInteractiveMessageReceived and onInteractionGoalCompleted events to provide a complete interactive experience

Troubleshooting

• Interactive message not sending: Verify that interactiveData is a valid JSON object and all required fields (receiverId, receiverType, messageType) are set
• Not receiving interactive messages: Ensure the message listener is registered with onInteractiveMessageReceived and the user is logged in
• Goal not completing: Check that the InteractionGoal type matches the expected interactions — use ANY_ACTION for simple cases and ALL_OF only when every specified element must be interacted with
• markAsInteracted failing: Confirm that the message ID and element ID are valid and that the user has permission to interact with the message
• Duplicate events: Verify you are not registering the same listener ID multiple times without removing the previous one

Next Steps

Send a Message

Send text, media, custom, and interactive messages to users and groups

Receive Messages

Listen for real-time messages and fetch missed or unread messages

Message Structure

Understand message categories, types, and hierarchy including interactive messages

Messaging Overview

Explore the full range of CometChat messaging capabilities