WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps in the world, with over 2 billion users. One of the key features of WhatsApp is voice and video calling, allowing users to easily call their contacts within the app. A common question that arises is whether calls made on WhatsApp can also be muted, just like regular phone calls. The short answer is yes, WhatsApp calls can be muted both by the caller and the recipient. In this article, we’ll explore how muting works on WhatsApp calls and the steps to mute or unmute a call on both Android and iOS devices.
How to Mute a WhatsApp Call on Android
Muting a WhatsApp call on Android devices is easy and straightforward. Here are the steps:
For the Caller
– When on an active WhatsApp call, look for the mute icon in the bottom left corner of the call screen. It looks like a microphone with a strikethrough.
– Tap on the mute icon to mute your microphone. Your contact will no longer be able to hear you, but you’ll still be able to hear them.
– To unmute, simply tap on the mute icon again.
For the Recipient
– When receiving a WhatsApp call, the mute option will be displayed on the incoming call screen. Look for the mute icon in the bottom left.
– Tap on the mute icon before answering the call to mute it. You will be able to see and hear the caller, but they won’t hear you.
– To unmute, tap on the mute icon again during the call. The caller will now be able to hear you.
– Alternatively, you can mute an active call by tapping the mute icon during the call.
Muting WhatsApp calls is a handy way to avoid disturbing your contacts if you’re in a noisy environment. It’s also useful if you need to quickly discuss something privately with someone else in the room during a WhatsApp call.
How to Mute a WhatsApp Call on iPhone
The process for muting or unmuting a WhatsApp call on an iPhone is very similar:
For the Caller
– Once on a call, tap the mute button in the bottom left corner of the screen. It looks like a microphone icon.
– Tapping it will mute your microphone so your contact can’t hear you. Tap it again to unmute.
For the Recipient
– When you get an incoming WhatsApp call, the mute option will show on the incoming call screen. Tap it to mute your mic.
– You can also tap the mute icon during an active call to mute or unmute whenever needed.
The mute button works the same way on both devices. So whether you’re an Android or iPhone user, you can easily control the mic on WhatsApp calls.
Why Would You Want to Mute a WhatsApp Call?
There are a few common reasons you may want to use the mute function on a WhatsApp call:
– To avoid disturbing or distracting the other person if you’re in a noisy environment.
– To be able to talk to someone else briefly in the room without the other person on the call hearing.
– To temporarily pause the conversation if you need to quickly concentrate on something else.
– To listen without actively participating at certain points during a group call.
– If you accidentally dialed someone and want to hang up without them hearing you.
– To prank your friends by tricking them into thinking the call dropped!
So whether you need a moment of privacy, are in a loud place, or just feel like staying quiet, muting is a fast and easy way to control what the other person hears.
What Happens When You Mute a WhatsApp Call?
When you mute a WhatsApp call, you stop transmitting audio from your end of the call. The other person will no longer be able to hear you speaking, background noise from your environment, or any other sounds.
However, muting only affects the audio transmission. Other elements of the call keep functioning normally:
– The video and camera remain on if it’s a video call. The other person can still see you.
– On voice calls, the call timer keeps running even when muted.
– Signal bars and connectivity on both ends remain unaffected.
– You can still hear any audio coming from the other person’s end. Muting is not reciprocal.
– On group calls, muting only mutes your audio feed. Others on the call can still hear and speak to each other.
– Normal call controls like ending, switching to video, putting on hold, etc. still work as usual.
So muting simply silences your microphone feed. The rest of the call experience remains the same. Once you unmute, your audio transmission will resume.
Does Muting a WhatsApp Call End It?
No, muting a call does not end or disconnect the WhatsApp call. When you mute your microphone during a call, it only stops your audio feed from reaching the other participants. The WhatsApp call remains connected normally.
You can remain on a muted call for as long as you want. The call timer will keep elapsing even while muted. To end the call, you will have to manually tap the red phone button as usual.
Unmuting also does not end a call – it simply turns your mic back on. So you can mute and unmute as many times as needed during a call without disconnecting it.
The only way a muted WhatsApp call will disconnect is if either user ends it, or there is loss of internet connectivity affecting the voice/video transmission. But otherwise, muting has no impact on a call continuing.
Can You Mute WhatsApp Calls Before Answering?
Yes, the recipient of a WhatsApp call can mute their microphone even before answering the call. The option to mute is available right on the incoming call screen on both Android and iOS devices.
By tapping the mute button before answering, you can pick up the call while staying muted. This prevents the other person from hearing any background noise or conversations from your end.
Muting before answering is useful if you are expecting a WhatsApp call but will not be able to speak at that moment. You can still see and hear the caller while remaining muted.
However, the caller will not get any indication that you have muted yourself before answering. As far as they can tell, the call has connected normally.
So muting in advance is an easy way to discreetly screen or monitor WhatsApp calls when you are busy. You can then decide to unmute and start conversing when ready.
Can the Other Person Tell if You’ve Muted a WhatsApp Call?
There is no built-in indicator that notifies users when someone has muted themselves on a WhatsApp call. So if you mute your mic, the other participant(s) have no definite way to know.
However, there are some signs that may reveal you have muted yourself:
– They will obviously not hear any reactions, responses or background noise from you suddenly. Your audio feed will just stop.
– If video is enabled, they may guess you’re muted if they see you speaking but can’t hear you.
– In a group call, others will be able to tell you’re muted if they stop hearing you talk while still hearing each other.
– If already conversing, your sudden lack of responses could signal you are muted.
– Background noise like music or chatter cutting off abruptly may be a giveaway.
So while not completely undetectable, someone would mostly have to infer based on indirect cues that you have muted yourself. There’s no message or icon that confirms so.
If you want to mute discreetly, try to avoid video calling or give some visual or text acknowledgement occasionally so the other person doesn’t suspect you’ve muted.
Can You Unmute a Muted WhatsApp Call?
Yes, any muted WhatsApp call can be unmuted again with just a simple tap. The mute/unmute control is always accessible during an ongoing call.
On Android, tap the mute icon in the bottom left, which will have changed from muted to unmuted. On iOS, tap the microphone icon to unmute.
Unmuting instantly re-enables your microphone so the other person will be able to hear you again. A muted call can be unmuted and re-muted as many times as needed.
The call remains connected as normal throughout the process of muting, remaining muted, and unmuting. You will not get disconnected from the call at any point.
So don’t worry about accidentally leaving yourself muted – you can always tap to unmute and resume the conversation whenever you want.
Can You Mute Someone Else’s Mic on WhatsApp Call?
Unfortunately, there is no provision within WhatsApp to allow muting another person’s microphone during a call. The mute control only affects your own microphone feed.
On a one-on-one call, you can only mute yourself, not the other person. Even on group calls, each user can only mute or unmute their own mic.
You have no way to force another participant on the call into a muted state against their will. The best you can do is request them to mute their mic if their audio is disturbing.
This is by design to prevent abuse of the feature to restrict someone’s speech without consent. So muting privileges are limited to one’s own mic feed only.
Can You Mute Incoming WhatsApp Calls Automatically?
WhatsApp doesn’t have a built-in setting to automatically mute all incoming calls by default. However, on Android it is possible to automate muting incoming WhatsApp calls with some extra apps.
Apps like MacroDroid or Tasker can be configured to automatically press the mute button whenever a WhatsApp call comes in. This will essentially instantly mute all incoming calls.
The process involves:
– Giving accessibility permissions to the automation app so it can tap on screen elements.
– Setting up a macro/task to detect WhatsApp calls and tap the mute icon.
– Optional additional actions like ending call after x seconds.
So with some tinkering, you can effectively auto-mute WhatsApp calls on Android. But it requires third-party apps and accessibility access.
Unfortunately this type of automation is not readily possible on iOS due to restrictions on how apps can interact with each other. There is no straight-forward way for a third party app to detect and control incoming WhatsApp calls automatically.
Can You Mute WhatsApp Call Notifications?
Yes, it is possible to mute notifications and ringtones for incoming WhatsApp calls specifically, while keeping other notifications audible.
**On Android:**
– Go to WhatsApp app settings > Notifications > Calls
– Toggle off ‘Calls’ to disable call notification sounds and vibration.
**On iPhone:**
– Go to Settings > Notifications > WhatsApp > Calls
– Turn off ‘Allow Notifications’ and ‘Sound’ options for calls.
This will prevent WhatsApp calls from generating any ringtone, vibration or visual banner. You will only see missed call info within WhatsApp itself.
You can take this a step further and disable all WhatsApp notifications the same way for complete Do Not Disturb mode. Just remember to toggle them back on when you want to receive WhatsApp notifications again.
Muting WhatsApp call notifications provides an easy way to avoid disturbances when you don’t want to be alerted to incoming calls immediately. You can check WhatsApp directly when convenient.
What Happens When You Mute WhatsApp Web/Desktop Calls?
Muting behavior on WhatsApp Web and Desktop works just the same as on mobile:
– Only your microphone is muted, other participant(s) can still hear each other
– Video remains enabled on video calls
– You can still hear audio from other participants
– Call remains connected until manually disconnected
– Unmuting restores your audio feed again
The only difference is the mute button location – it’s in the little popup window for the call on Web/Desktop, instead of fixed on the screen like on mobile. But the effect of tapping to mute or unmute is identical.
So regardless of platform, you can reliably mute your mic to avoid transmitting any of your audio during a WhatsApp call while still remaining on the line.
Conclusion
Muting your microphone during WhatsApp calls is an easy yet useful feature to control what the other parties can hear from your end. Both the caller and recipient can mute or unmute as needed, on both mobile and desktop devices.
It causes no disruption to the WhatsApp call connectivity. Proper use of muting allows you to avoid disturbing others in loud environments, take temporary breaks from conversations, privately discuss with people near you, and more.
Now you know how to exercise your selective silence with just a simple tap during any WhatsApp call. So next time you want to shush yourself temporarily on a call, go ahead and hit that mute button!