WhatsApp has become one of the most popular messaging platforms in the world, with over 2 billion active users. With so many people using WhatsApp daily, it’s important to know the keyboard shortcuts and hotkeys that can help you save time and effort while chatting. In this comprehensive guide, we will go over all the WhatsApp shortcut keys and commands for desktop and mobile.
WhatsApp Web/Desktop Shortcuts
When using WhatsApp on your computer through the web browser or desktop application, there are some handy shortcut keys that can come in useful.
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + N | Start a new chat |
| Ctrl + Shift + [ | Previous chat |
| Ctrl + Shift + ] | Next chat |
| Ctrl + E | Search chats |
| Ctrl + P | Toggle profile info |
| Ctrl + M | Toggle mute |
| Esc | Close pop-up windows |
These keyboard shortcuts allow you to quickly switch between chats, search your messages, open profile info, mute chats, and more without having to click around with your mouse. They can save you a lot of time once you get used to integrating them into your WhatsApp desktop workflow.
WhatsApp Mobile Shortcuts
On mobile devices like smartphones and tablets, WhatsApp has some convenient shortcuts and tricks using simple taps, swipes, and button presses.
Text Selection and Copy/Paste
One of the most useful WhatsApp mobile shortcuts is text selection. Here’s how to do it:
- Long press on a message bubble – this will select the message and pop up the options menu
- Tap “Select message” – this will highlight the message and show copy/forward icons
- You can tap other messages to select multiple messages
- Tap the Copy or Forward icon to take action on the selected messages
This lets you quickly copy or forward multiple messages without having to long press each one individually.
Recording and Sending Voice Messages
Instead of typing out a long text, you can quickly send voice messages by:
- Press and hold the mic icon in the message box
- Start speaking to record your voice message
- Release your finger to stop and send the message
This is much faster than typing out long texts.
Accessing the Chat Menu
Each chat has a menu with options like mute, wallpaper, search – you can access it by:
- Swiping right on a chat from the left edge of the screen
This menu lets you quickly take actions like muting notifications, searching for past messages, and more.
Replying to Messages
You can quickly reply to a specific message without quoting the whole thing by:
- Long pressing the message you want to reply to
- Tap ‘Reply’ from the pop-up menu
- Type your reply in the message box
Your message will be sent as a reply to the selected message.
Forwarding Messages
Forward any message to a different chat or contact by:
- Long press the message
- Tap the Forward arrow icon
- Select the chat or contact to forward the message to
Starred Messages
You can bookmark important messages by starring them:
- Long press the message you want to star
- Tap the star icon to star the message
To view all your starred messages in one place:
- Tap the 3 dot menu in chat list
- Go to Settings > Starred messages
Quick Replies
Respond to messages faster using quick reply buttons:
- Long press a received message bubble
- Tap the ‘Quick reply’ icon
- Select a pre-written quick reply text or add your custom reply
You can save time by using quick replies for common responses.
Message Scheduling
You can compose messages now and schedule them to be sent later by:
- Typing out your message as normal
- Tap and hold the Send button
- Choose a date and time to schedule the message
Scheduled messages will be sent automatically at the set date and time.
Location Sharing
It’s easy to share your real-time location from WhatsApp:
- Tap the attach icon in a chat
- Choose Location > Share Live Location
- Select how long you want to share your location
The recipient will be able to see your location updating live on a map.
Document Sharing
Share documents from WhatsApp quickly:
- Tap the attach icon in a chat
- Select Document
- Choose a file from your device storage
This lets you instantly send PDFs, slideshows, Word files, and more without leaving WhatsApp.
Photo Editing
Before sending photos, you can edit them within WhatsApp:
- Tap the attach icon and select a photo
- Before sending, tap the edit icon (looks like a pen)
- Edit the image right inside WhatsApp
Options include adding text, stickers, cropping, and drawing on your photos.
Album and Video Compression
Make albums and videos smaller before sending them:
- Tap the attach icon and select an album or video
- Tap the 3 line menu in the top right corner
- Enable ‘Compress photo’ or ‘Compress video’
This will lower the resolution to reduce file size before sending.
Searching Messages
To quickly find messages within a chat:
- Open the individual chat
- Tap the 3 dot menu > Search
- Type keywords to search the chat history
You can find specific messages, photos, links, etc. using WhatsApp’s search feature.
Muting Chats
Mute message notifications from a chat so they don’t distract you:
- Open the chat you want to mute
- Tap the 3 dot menu > Mute notifications
- Select a duration to mute notifications for
The chat will remain muted for the chosen time period.
Conclusion
Mastering WhatsApp keyboard shortcuts, swipes, and taps can help you save a lot of time and effort in your daily messaging. With these handy WhatsApp tips and tricks, you can boost your productivity and take advantage of built-in tools like scheduling messages, compressing media, starred messages, quick replies, and more.
WhatsApp is designed to be fast and efficient to use, especially with keyboard shortcuts on desktop. Getting familiar with the shortcuts, gestures, and menu options covered in this guide will let you chat at the speed of thought!
Here’s a quick recap of some of the top WhatsApp time-saving tips covered:
- Use desktop keyboard shortcuts like Ctrl+N, Ctrl+E, Ctrl+M for quick actions
- Long press messages to easily select, reply, forward or star
- Swipe right in chats to access the menu quickly
- Record voice messages by pressing and holding the mic
- Schedule messages to send later from the Send button
- Share documents, locations and use in-app editing tools
- Mute chats to focus without distractions
With billions of users worldwide, WhatsApp is the most popular messaging app by far. While the basic sending of texts, photos and calls is intuitive, mastering the tips covered here will let you fully utilize WhatsApp and communicate more efficiently than ever.