How to Identify and Disable WhatsApp Read Receipts

Turn off WhatApp read receipts on your iPhone or Android device

By
Nadeem Unuth
Nadeem Unuth
Freelance Contributor
  • University of Mauritius
Nadeem Unuth is a former freelance contributor to Lifewire who specializes in information and communication technology with a focus on VoIP.
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Updated on February 6, 2022
Reviewed by
Jon Fisher
Jon Fisher headshot
Reviewed by Jon Fisher
  • Wichita Technical Institute
Jonathan Fisher is a CompTIA certified technologist with more than 6 years' experience writing for publications like TechNorms and Help Desk Geek.
lifewire's editorial guidelines

What to Know

  • To disable on iPhone: Settings > Account > Privacy and toggle Read Receipts to Off position.
  • To disable on Android: More Options > Settings > Account > Privacy and toggle Read Receipts to Off position.

Here's how to disable read receipts in WhatsApp, so that someone who contacts you won't know when or if you've read their messages. Instructions apply to WhatsApp for iPhone and Android.

Disable Read Receipts in WhatsApp for iPhone

You can disable read receipts on iPhone in a few steps, which turns the feature off for all one-on-one chats.

  1. Open WhatsApp.

  2. Select Settings from the bottom menu.

  3. Select Account.

  4. Select Privacy.

  5. Turn off Read Receipts to disable the feature.

    Turn off Read Receipts in WhatsApp

Disable Read Receipts in WhatsApp for Android

Turning off this feature on Android is similar to iOS and just as easy.

  1. Open WhatsApp and select More Options (three vertical dots).

  2. Select Settings > Account > Privacy.

  3. Turn off Read Receipts.

The WhatsApp Message Info Screen

For more detailed information, the WhatsApp Message Info screen displays when your message was delivered, read, or played by the recipient.

To see the Message Info screen on WhatsApp for iPhone, open a chat with a contact or group and swipe from right to left.

Message details in WhatsApp

To see the Message Info screen on WhatsApp for Android, open a chat with a contact or group, tap and hold your sent message, press the three-dotted menu, and then Info.

About WhatsApp Read Receipts

WhatsApp Read Receipts look like checkmarks. When you send a message, a grey checkmark appears next to the time stamp. Two checkmarks appear upon delivery to the recipient. When the recipient reads it, two blue checkmarks appear. In a group chat, both checkmarks turn blue after every participant of the group chat opens the message.

If you don't see two blue checkmarks next to a message you sent, the recipient hasn't opened it, one of you disabled read receipts, the recipient blocked you, or one of you has connection issues.

Read receipts are a two-way street. If you disable read receipts, you won't be able to tell when others have read yours.

There's no way to disable the read receipts for group chats or play receipts for voice messages on Android or iOS.

Read receipt icons in WhatsApp
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