This is a common question for many messaging app users. The ability to mark messages as unread can be useful for coming back to conversations later, but it also raises privacy concerns. The answer depends on the specific messaging platform.
What Happens When You Mark a Message as Unread
When you mark a message as unread, it basically resets the message back to the state as if you’ve never opened it before. The message will now show up as unread on your end. However, whether it shows up as unread to the sender varies between different messaging apps.
On most platforms, marking a message as unread only affects your view of the messages. For the sender, it will still show up as read with the opened timestamp. However, there are some exceptions.
Messaging Apps Where Sender Can See Unread Status
Here are some examples of major messaging platforms where marking a message as unread will also show it as unread to the sender:
- WhatsApp – If you mark a message as unread on WhatsApp, the sender will see it revert to a single tick indicating delivered but not read. Note that this only applies to one-on-one chats, not group chats.
- Facebook Messenger – Marking a Facebook message as unread will remove the read receipt and change it back to delivered on the sender’s end.
- Instagram Direct – Like Facebook Messenger, marking an Instagram DM as unread will remove the read receipt for the sender.
On these platforms, marking as unread essentially deletes the read receipt. So the other person will see the message as if you’ve never opened it. This can be useful if you want to discreetly come back and reread a conversation later.
Messaging Apps Where Sender Can’t See Unread Status
Here are some popular messaging apps where marking a message as unread will only affect your view:
- iMessage – Marking an iMessage as unread will not change the delivered/read status seen by the sender. It will still show as read for them.
- Signal – On Signal, the sender will not see any difference if you mark a message as unread on your end.
- Telegram – Telegram does not allow senders to see read receipts at all. So marking a Telegram message as unread does not indicate anything to the sender.
- Slack – In both private and group Slack messages, marking a message as unread does not change the status for the sender.
For these apps, marking as unread is only a local change. The sender has no way of knowing you reset the messages back to unread status. This approach provides more privacy, as senders can’t tell if you reopened and reread the messages later.
Does Marking as Unread Notify the Sender?
Apart from changing the read/delivered indicator, marking a message as unread does not proactively notify the sender in any way. There is no separate notification that pops up alerting them of the unread status change.
The only way senders would realize the message was marked unread is if they proactively look at your chat again. Even in apps like WhatsApp where they can see the status revert to unread, there is no proactive alert. It just silently changes back to a delivered indicator.
Can You See When Other People Mark Your Messages as Unread?
For most messaging apps, there is no way to see or detect when the recipient has marked your message as unread on their end. The status change is only visible on the recipient’s inbox view. Exceptions are WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram as noted earlier, where the status actively changes back to delivered/unread for you.
However, for apps like iMessage, Signal, Telegram etc. Where marking as unread has no sender-visible effects, there is no way for you to tell if the recipient marked the message as unread after opening it. The platforms provide no indications or notifications for this user activity.
Tips for Marking Messages as Unread
Here are some tips on how to use unread message markings effectively:
- Be aware that on some apps the sender can see when you mark messages as unread. Use discretion if you want to avoid notifying senders.
- Mark messages as unread soon after opening them. Waiting too long means the sender has already seen the read receipt.
- For privacy, apps like iMessage and Signal are better suited for marking messages as unread after reading.
- Turn off read receipts in apps like WhatsApp and Messenger if you want to read without signaling to the sender.
- Use unread markings to easily find conversations again later for follow up.
- Avoid excessive marking as unread/rereading as it can look odd if the sender notices.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does marking a message as unread remove the ‘Seen’ notification?
Yes, on apps like WhatsApp and Messenger where the sender can see unread status, marking a message as unread removes the ‘Seen’ timestamp or double tick indicator that shows the message was read.
Can someone see when you reopen a conversation after marking it as unread?
No, there is no way for the sender to see if and when you reopened a conversation after marking messages as unread. The status change is only visible on the recipient’s inbox view.
Will marking a message as unread send a notification to the sender?
No, there are no proactive notifications sent to the sender when you mark a message as unread. The only change is reverting to an unread indicator in apps that support it.
Is marking messages as unread bad etiquette?
Excessively marking messages as unread and rereading conversations can come across as odd behavior to the sender. But occasional use for reminder purposes is usually fine etiquette-wise.
Can senders tell I’m using the ‘unread’ feature a lot?
In apps that don’t show unread status to senders, there is no way for them to know if you use the unread feature. But on apps like WhatsApp where they can see the status change back and forth, excessive unread markings will be obvious.
Conclusion
Marking a message as unread is a handy way to come back to conversations later. But whether senders can see this status change depends on the messaging app. WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram notify senders when recipients mark messages as unread. Meanwhile, apps like iMessage, Signal, Telegram etc. only change the unread status locally on your device without the sender knowing.
In general, there are no proactive notifications to senders when you mark messages as unread. You should use discretion on apps where senders can see the status change back to unread or delivered. Overall, unread messages are a useful feature if used appropriately for reminder purposes, not excessive rereading of conversations.
| Platform | Sender Notified When Marked Unread? |
|---|---|
| Yes | |
| Facebook Messenger | Yes |
| Instagram Direct | Yes |
| iMessage | No |
| Signal | No |
| Telegram | No |
| Slack | No |