How can I hide a chat in WhatsApp?

WhatsApp has become one of the most popular messaging apps, allowing users to stay connected with friends and family easily. With its user-friendly interface and robust features, it’s no wonder billions use WhatsApp daily to chat, call, and share media.

One handy WhatsApp feature is the ability to hide chats you want to keep private or prevent others from seeing. Whether it’s an embarrassing chat or one you don’t want cluttering your main chat list, hiding chats in WhatsApp only takes a few taps.

Why Would You Want to Hide a WhatsApp Chat?

There are a few key reasons you may want to hide WhatsApp chats:

• Privacy – You may have personal or private conversations you don’t want others to easily find.
• Reduce clutter – Hiding inactive chats can declutter your main chat list.
• Avoid embarrassment – Hide goofy or awkward conversations you don’t want seen.
• Focus – Removing distracting chats from the main list can help you focus on important conversations.

While hidden chats don’t delete conversations, they do add a level of privacy and organize your inbox better. Keep in mind the other person can still access the chat on their end as normal.

How to Hide a Chat

Hiding a chat only takes a couple of taps in the WhatsApp app. Here’s how to do it on both iPhone and Android:

iPhone

1. Open WhatsApp and go to the Chats tab.
2. Swipe left on the chat you want to hide.
3. Tap “Hide Chat.”

The chat will now be hidden from the main Chats screen. To view it again:

1. Tap and hold the Chats tab.
2. Tap “Edit” in the top right.
3. Tap “Hidden Chats” at the top.
4. Tap the chat you want to unhide.
5. Tap “Unhide” to move it back to the main Chats list.

Android

1. Open WhatsApp and go to the Chats tab.
2. Long press the chat you want to hide.
3. Tap “Hide chat.”

To view hidden chats on Android:

1. Tap the three dot menu icon.
2. Go to Settings > Chats > Hidden chats.
3. Tap any chat to unhide it.

How to Hide Chats Using WhatsApp Web

You can also hide chats from WhatsApp Web running on your computer:

1. Open web.whatsapp.com in your browser.
2. Open the chat you want to hide.
3. Click the menu button (3 dots icon).
4. Click “Hide chat.”

To view hidden chats:

1. Click your profile photo.
2. Go to Settings > Chats > Hidden chats.

Key Things to Know About Hidden Chats

Here are some key facts about hiding chats in WhatsApp:

• It doesn’t delete or erase conversations – the chat history still exists.
• You can find and unhide chats at any time.
• Hidden chats don’t send notifications or show previews.
• Calls and messages from the chat will still appear in your main Chats list.
• The other user can access the chat normally from their end.

While not a private messaging feature, hiding chats is ideal for decluttering your inbox and keeping certain conversations out of sight.

Can Hidden Chats Be Deleted?

Hiding a chat does not delete it. The chat history remains saved on your device and WhatsApp servers.

If you do want to delete a hidden chat permanently:

1. Unhide the chat first.
2. Open the chat.
3. Tap and hold a message.
4. Choose to delete that message (or delete for everyone).
5. Delete all messages in the chat.

You can also choose to delete or clear the entire chat history from the chat settings. This will permanently erase the messages from your device and the chat backup.

How to Hide Chats on WhatsApp Business

WhatsApp Business works much like the regular WhatsApp app. To hide chats:

1. Open WhatsApp Business and go to the Chats tab.
2. Swipe left on iPhone, or long press on Android, the chat you want to hide.
3. Tap “Hide chat.”

The process to view and unhide chats is the same as it is on regular WhatsApp.

Can You Hide Chats from Specific Contacts?

Unfortunately, WhatsApp doesn’t allow you to easily hide all chats from a specific contact. You have to hide each chat thread individually.

Some workarounds include:

• Create a new contact for the person so conversations appear in a separate thread.
• Block the user so you don’t receive new messages from them.
• Mute notifications from the contact.
• Delete or clear your chat history with the contact.

While not perfect, those options can help limit visibility of chats from certain contacts.

Archiving Vs. Hiding Chats

WhatsApp also allows you to archive chats, which is similar to hiding them. However, there are a few key differences:

Archiving Chats	Hiding Chats
Moves chat to separate Archive tab	Removes chat from main Chat list
Chat remains muted	Chat remains unmuted
Easier to access archive	Added steps to view hidden chats
Chat jumps back to main on new messages	Stays hidden when new messages arrive

In general, hiding chats keeps them more private, while archiving simply moves them out of your way temporarily.

Is It Possible to Hide Chats on WhatsApp Web?

Yes, you can hide individual chats from WhatsApp Web. The process works just like on mobile:

1. Open WhatsApp Web in your desktop browser.
2. Open the chat you want to hide.
3. Click the menu button (3 dots icon).
4. Select “Hide chat.”

The chat will now disappear from your main Chats list. To view hidden chats:

1. Click your profile icon.
2. Go to Settings > Chats > Hidden chats.

You can unhide chats the same way. The ability to hide chats helps keep your WhatsApp Web tidy and private.

Can I Hide Group Chats?

Yes, the process for hiding group chats is the same as hiding regular private chats:

1. Open the group chat you want to hide.
2. Tap and hold the chat on iPhone, or long press it on Android.
3. Tap “Hide chat.”

This will hide the group from your main Chats list. Keep in mind:

• You remain a participant of the hidden group.
• You’ll still get messages and notifications from the group.
• Other members can access the group normally.

So hiding is best for decluttering and privacy, not to leave groups secretly.

Can I Hide Chats Using WhatsApp Desktop App?

The desktop app for WhatsApp allows you to hide individual chats on your PC or Mac, just like on mobile and web. To hide a chat:

1. Open the WhatsApp desktop app.
2. Click the chat you want to hide.
3. Click the menu button (3 dots icon).
4. Select “Hide chat.”

The chat will disappear from the main list. You can later find it under Settings > Chats > Hidden chats when you want to unhide it.

Conclusion

Hiding WhatsApp chats is a quick and easy way to add an extra layer of privacy or declutter your inbox. It takes just a few taps to hide individual chats or entire group conversations.

While hidden chats aren’t completely private, they do allow you to tuck away messages you don’t want cluttering up your chat list. Just keep in mind chats aren’t deleted and the other person will still have access.

With billions of users, WhatsApp has become the messaging app of choice for many. Taking the time to archive stale conversations and hide private ones can go a long way in improving your WhatsApp experience.

So if you have chats you’d like to keep hidden from prying eyes or remove distractions from your main inbox, use WhatsApp’s hide feature. It gives you more control over your conversations and privacy.

WhatsApp’s popularity continues to grow year after year. As of January 2023, there are over 2 billion active WhatsApp users worldwide, making it one of the most widely used mobile messaging platforms. This massive user base relies on WhatsApp to stay connected to friends, family, coworkers, and more through convenient features like texting, calling, video chatting, and group messaging.

With such heavy usage, managing your WhatsApp chats effectively becomes crucial. Between constant notifications, important info buried deep in chat histories, and conversations you’d rather keep private, your inbox can quickly become cluttered and chaotic.

That’s where WhatApp’s “hide chat” feature comes in handy. With just a few taps, you can hide chats from your main inbox view for a cleaner, more organized messaging experience. In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about hiding WhatsApp chats on both iPhone and Android.

Benefits of Hiding Chats

Here are some of the advantages to making use of WhatsApp’s hide chat function:

• Reduce clutter – Hide old or inactive chats to declutter your main chat view.
• Focus better – Remove distracting or unimportant chats so you can focus.
• Enhance privacy – Keep private, embarrassing or secret conversations hidden from prying eyes.
• Avoid spam – Hide annoying spam messages or chats you want to mute.
• Clean up chat backups – Hidden chats aren’t included in your chat backup data.

While hidden chats don’t delete your chat history, this ability to customize and tailor your chat list is useful for both privacy and productivity.

How to Hide Chats on iPhone

Hiding a chat on iPhone only takes a couple taps:

1. Open the WhatsApp app and go to your Chats tab.
2. Swipe left on the chat you want to hide.
3. Tap “Hide Chat” to confirm.

The chat will now be removed from your main chat list. To view your hidden chats on iPhone:

1. Tap and hold on the Chats tab.
2. Tap “Edit” in the top right corner.
3. Tap “Hidden Chats” at the top of the screen.

From here, tap on any hidden chat to unhide it. It will move back to your main Chats tab.

How to Hide Chats on Android

Similarly, hiding chats on Android takes two quick steps:

1. Open WhatsApp and go to your Chats tab.
2. Long press the chat you want to hide.
3. Tap “Hide chat” to confirm.

To view or unhide chats on Android:

1. Tap the 3-dot menu button.
2. Go to Settings > Chats > Hidden chats.
3. Tap any hidden chat to unhide it.

Important Details

Here are a few other key details to keep in mind about WhatsApp’s hide chat feature:

• Hidden chats remain on your device and your chat backup.
• The other person can still access the chat normally from their end.
• New messages from hidden chats will still show up in your main chat list.
• You can receive notifications and calls from hidden chats.
• Entire group chats can be hidden, but you remain a participant.

Overall, hiding chats is about organizing your own inbox – not removing conversations or leaving groups secretly. Your chat history remains available if you ever need it.

Conclusion

WhatsApp’s simple hide chat feature enables you to take control of your inbox for less clutter and more privacy. While not a surefire way to make conversations private, it’s an easy tool to clean up and customize your chat environment.

Just tap and hold or swipe left on any chat, group or individual, that you want to tuck away out of sight. Those chats remain available through Hidden Chats if you ever need to access them again.

As WhatsApp continues its meteoric rise to become one of the most used apps worldwide, harnessing tools like hide chats will only improve your messaging experience.