Like many other applications, Whatsapp has some hidden features, so many people are not aware of it. No doubt, Whatsapp is a great app packed with a lot of features. That certain features are hidden does not mean that they are not useful.
Whatsapp is one of the most widely used chatting platforms in the world today. The app tries to make chatting experience better for its users by introducing new features occasionally. Many of these features are really useful, and you would be glad you got to know about them.
If you frequently use Whatsapp for either professional or personal reasons and are looking for ways to enhance your chatting experience, here are some useful Whatsapp hidden features you should know about today.
5 Hidden Whatsapp Features
We have termed these features as ‘hidden’ because many of them get added to the app without users knowing. Take a look at some of the hidden features below.
Type in Bold, Italics, and Strikethrough
Most people just use texts and emojis to express themselves through their keyboards. These days we also have the option of using stickers, GIFs, memes, videos, pictures, etc. However, an overlooked aspect of texting is that text can be formatted.
This means that you can emphasize something by making it bold or italic. Sometimes you may want to strikethrough text as well. Whatapp lets you do all of that, and it is simple.
- To write bold text in Whatsapp, just include asterisks at the start and end like *this*.
- To write in italics in Whatsapp, you can similarly include an underscore like _this_.
- Strikethrough your text in Whatsapp by including the tilde sign ~just like this~.
Use Typewriter Font
Now that we know typing in bold, italics, and strikethrough fonts in Whatsapp is really simple, there’s also a hidden typewriter font feature on Whatsapp.
This takes a bit more effort to use compared to typing bold text in Whatsapp. However, it isn’t all that difficult either. Just enclose your text within three ` symbols. So to write the word “Hi”, for instance, you type “`Hi“`.
Starred Messages
Do you ever find yourself scrolling through tons of texts just to get to that one message you thought was really cute or funny? Or maybe it was a very important text, with some notes.
However, it got lost in all the texts that came after it. Well, the good news is you don’t ever have to scroll through thousands of messages again.
Starred messages are not exactly a hidden feature on Whatsapp as it’s not buried deep down in any menus. Anytime you get a message you think you’ll save for later, just star it.
You can do this simply by long pressing on the message. After that, tap the star icon at the top. You now begin to access starred messages by selecting Starred messages from the three-dot overflow menu on the main screen.
Place Your Favourite Chats on Your Home Screen
Everybody has certain contacts that are their favourites. There is a hidden Whatsapp feature that allows one to place these contacts on your Android home screen. If you’re using a newer version of Android, the OS lets you do that. There are multiple ways to place Whatsapp contact on your home screen.
Use App Shortcuts
App Shortcuts were introduced in Android Nougat over 3 years ago. Whatsapp is one of the apps that supports this feature making it the easiest way to place a contact you frequently text on your home screen. First, long-press on the Whatsapp icon then will be shown a list of the three of your most frequent contacts. Just drag and drop either of them to your home screen.
Use Chat Widget
This is another easy way to place your favourite chat on the home screen via a widget. Even if you are using an older version of Android, you can use this method. To do this, long-press on an empty spot on the home screen or pinch out. Select Widgets from the presented options, then drag and drop the Whatsapp chat widget on your home screen. You will then be asked to select one of your Whatsapp contacts.
Add Shortcut within Whatsapp
Finally, this is the last way to add your favourite contacts to your home screen. This WhatsApp feature is well hidden. To do this, start off by opening your favourite Whatsapp chat thread. Then tap on the three-dot menu icon at the top and select More. Next, select Add shortcut and then either drag and drop the shortcut on the home screen or tap Add automatically.
See New Whatsapp Messages on Your Home Screen
On Android, Whatsapp allows you to view all the new messages on the home screen for a long time. Although this is more of a forgotten feature than a hidden feature, to do this, just go to the widget screen where you can find the original WhatsApp widget. Drag and drop it onto the home screen, and it will show you all your new messages from all chat threads.
Also, check how to enable Whatsapp dark mode here.
Conclusion
As long as Whatsapp continues to provide app updates frequently, there would still be many more hidden features being introduced with those updates. Irrespective, we believe these features discussed above would improve your chatting experience once you begin to use them. Let us know in the comments which of these features you’re just finding out about.