- Turning off all WhatsApp notifications on iPhone
- Turning off WhatsApp notifications on Android
- Why your phone's settings override WhatsApp's notification settings
- Muting one WhatsApp chat or group instead
- Muting WhatsApp lists, communities and statuses
- Why a WhatsApp notification says WhatsApp instead of a name
- Resetting WhatsApp notification settings
- Hiding message previews on the lock screen
- Frequently asked questions
To turn off WhatsApp notifications, open Settings, tap Notifications and turn off Show notifications for messages and groups, or mute a single chat from its Notifications screen. The catch: your phone's own settings override WhatsApp's, so check both.
WhatsApp can buzz at you from morning until night, and if you run a business, volunteer for a school group or just belong to one very chatty family chat, the constant pinging gets wearing. The good news is that WhatsApp lets you quieten it at three levels: everything, one group or person, or one type of alert. I've set out the route from WhatsApp's help centre for each, plus the catch about your phone's own settings that stops people's changes from working.
Turning off all WhatsApp notifications on iPhone
- Open WhatsApp and tap Settings.
- Tap Notifications.
- Under Message notifications, turn off Show notifications.
- Do the same under Group notifications if you want groups quiet as well.
Further down you'll also see Reaction notifications, which you can switch off if the pings for emoji reactions are the annoying ones, and In-app notifications for the alerts you get while WhatsApp is open. There you can pick None, Banners or Alerts as the style and turn Sounds or Vibrate on or off.
Turning off WhatsApp notifications on Android
On this phone type you get a longer list of switches rather than one big off button. Go to the three dots, then Settings, then Notifications. Under Messages and again under Groups you can:
- Change the Notification tone, or set the Vibrate length.
- Turn Popup notification on or off.
- Change the Light colour.
- Turn Use high priority notifications on or off, which controls previews that appear at the top of your screen.
- Turn Reaction Notifications on or off.
Under the Call section you can set Vibrate and Ringtone. If you want a total silence, the simplest route is your phone's own notification settings for WhatsApp, which brings me to the catch.
Why your phone's settings override WhatsApp's notification settings
WhatsApp's help centre is clear on this: your device settings override WhatsApp settings. If you've silenced all notifications, or silenced WhatsApp specifically, in your phone's settings, nothing you change inside WhatsApp will take effect. The reverse also matters. If you set custom notifications for a chat in WhatsApp, a new notification category appears in your phone's settings with notifications switched on for that custom setting. So if a chat is still buzzing after you muted it elsewhere, check there.
On iPhone, the help pages also mention Focus modes such as Do Not Disturb and Sleep, which can silence WhatsApp at certain times. They add that WhatsApp's own notification settings may override Do Not Disturb, so test it with a quiet message to yourself or a friend.
Muting one WhatsApp chat or group instead
This is often the better fix, because you stay reachable by the people who matter. On Android, open the chat, tap the name, then Notifications, then Mute. For groups it works the same way, and WhatsApp's help pages note that you'll still get notifications for mentions and replies. In a group you can also choose Notify for, then All for every message, or Highlights for mentions, replies, messages from your contacts and other relevant messages.
On iPhone, open the group, tap its name, tap Notifications and choose Mute notifications under Messages or Calls. You can also tap Mute @all mentions if it's the group-wide shout-outs that bother you.
| What you want | Where to look, per WhatsApp's help centre |
|---|---|
| Silence everything | Phone settings for WhatsApp, or Show notifications off in the app |
| Quieten one chat | Open the chat, tap the name, then Notifications, then Mute |
| Keep only mentions in a group | Notify for, then Highlights |
| Stop reaction alerts | Reaction notifications under Notifications |
| Mute a list of contacts | Lists, then Mute for 8 hours, 1 week or always |
Muting WhatsApp lists, communities and statuses
The newer parts of WhatsApp have their own switches. For Favourites or custom lists, you can tap and hold a list in the Chats tab, or go to Settings and Lists, and choose Mute. The options are 8 hours, 1 week or always, your contacts won't see that you muted, and you'll still be notified if you're mentioned. Communities work similarly: open the community, tap and hold a group, and pick Mute notifications and a duration. The announcement group is muted separately.
For status alerts, tap a contact's status, open the menu, and choose Mute notifications. If you'd like to tidy your chat list too, my guide to hiding a WhatsApp chat goes through archive and chat lock.
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Why a WhatsApp notification says WhatsApp instead of a name
If your notifications show just the word WhatsApp rather than a contact name, the help centre says the chat is locked. Locked chats hide the contact name and the message content in notifications, including on the lock screen. To see names again, tap and hold the chat and choose the option to open the lock on it. It's a privacy feature, not a fault.
Resetting WhatsApp notification settings
If you've changed so many things that you've lost track, the help pages say you can reset them. On Android, tap the three dots, then Settings, then Notifications, then the menu and Reset notification settings, then Reset. On iPhone, go to Settings, then Notifications, then Reset notification settings, then Reset. After that you can start again with a clean slate, and the WhatsApp help guides on my site cover other settings worth a look.
Hiding message previews on the lock screen
Sometimes you don't want silence, you want privacy. On Android, WhatsApp's help pages say to open your phone's Settings, go to Notifications, then Notifications on lockscreen, and choose whether to show conversations, hide silent ones, or not show notifications at all. On iPhone, turning off Show preview stops message text appearing in new message notifications.
Frequently asked questions
How do I turn off all WhatsApp notifications?
On iPhone, go to Settings, then Notifications and turn off Show notifications for messages and groups. On Android, use Settings, then Notifications, or silence WhatsApp in your phone's own settings.
Why do I still get WhatsApp notifications after turning them off?
Check the specific chat, any custom notification set for it, and your phone's own notification settings, which override WhatsApp's.
Can I mute a WhatsApp group but still see mentions?
Yes. The help pages say muted groups still give notifications for mentions and replies, and you can also choose Highlights under Notify for.
Does the other person know I muted them?
WhatsApp's help pages say your contacts won't see that you muted the chats in a list.
How do I reset my WhatsApp notification settings?
Go to Settings, then Notifications, then Reset notification settings, then Reset.
