Show or hide your online status in WhatsApp on Android

Your last seen and online status tell people in WhatsApp when you’re using the app and when you last used it.

When they’re shown, people can see that you’re online while you have WhatsApp open, and the time you last used it once you’ve closed it. When they’re hidden, people see neither, and you can’t see their last seen or online status either.

You can show your last seen to everyone, to your contacts or to nobody, and show your online status to everyone or only to the people who see your last seen.

Choose who sees your last seen

You can let people see when you last used WhatsApp, or hide it from some of them or from everyone if you don’t want them to know.

  1. Go to the WhatsApp app on your phone.
  2. Tap the More options button, then tap Settings.
  3. Tap Privacy, then tap Last seen and online.
  4. Select one of the following:
    • Everyone
    • My contacts
    • My contacts except…
    • Nobody

Note: With Everyone, only people you’ve called or messaged and people you’ve saved as contacts see your last seen and online status. Who sees your last seen doesn’t change who sees when you’re online. (See Choose who sees when you’re online, below.)

Choose who sees when you’re online

You can let everyone see when you have WhatsApp open, or only the people who can see your last seen.

  1. Go to the WhatsApp app on your phone.
  2. Tap the More options button, then tap Settings.
  3. Tap Privacy, then tap Last seen and online.
  4. Under Who can see when I’m online, select one of the following:
    • Everyone
    • Same as last seen

Note: With Everyone, you’re also counted in the number of people online in each group you’re in.

Turn read receipts on or off

You can turn on read receipts so people know when you’ve read their messages, or turn them off so they don’t.

  1. Go to the WhatsApp app on your phone.
  2. Tap the More options button, then tap Settings.
  3. Tap Privacy.
  4. Turn Read receipts on or off.

Note: Read receipts are always sent in group chats, and people can still see when you’ve played their voice message. With read receipts off, you don’t see other people’s either.

Use TrueTo to set your last seen in WhatsApp and your other apps

You can use TrueTo to show or hide your last seen in WhatsApp, and the same kind of setting in your other apps, the way you choose. Get TrueTo on Google Play.

Note: Using TrueTo requires an Android phone and an account.

See also