When you send a message on WhatsApp, it will initially show one check mark to indicate that the message has left your phone and is on its way to the recipient. There are a few different reasons why your message may stay at the single check mark and not progress to two check marks to show it has been delivered and read by the recipient.
Common Reasons for One Tick on WhatsApp
Here are some of the most common reasons why your WhatsApp message may only show one check mark and not progress further:
- The recipient has poor internet connection or is offline. If the recipient doesn’t have an active internet connection when you send the message, it will remain with one tick until they come back online.
- Your message hasn’t had time to deliver yet. It can sometimes take a few minutes for your message to go from one to two ticks as it makes its way to the recipient’s phone.
- The recipient’s phone is switched off or in airplane mode. If their phone is powered down or has connectivity disabled, the message won’t be delivered.
- You or the recipient has privacy settings enabled. If read receipts are disabled, you won’t see the second tick even if they have read the message.
- The recipient’s phone is out of storage space. If their phone is completely out of storage, new messages won’t be able to reach their device.
- Your message has been blocked or deleted. If the recipient has blocked you or deleted the message, it will remain with only one tick.
- Service issues with WhatsApp. Very occasionally issues with the WhatsApp service itself may prevent messages from sending fully.
There are a few steps you can take to troubleshoot and try to resolve the one tick issue with your WhatsApp messages.
Troubleshooting WhatsApp Message Not Delivering
Here are some things to try if your WhatsApp message is stuck on one tick:
- Wait a few minutes. The first step is to wait 5-10 minutes in case the message is just taking time to deliver due to connection issues.
- Check your internet connection and restart your phone. Make sure you have an active internet connection and restart your device.
- Verify the recipient’s last seen status. This will give you an indication if they are offline or having connection problems.
- Check your privacy settings. Go to WhatsApp Settings > Account > Privacy and make sure read receipts are enabled.
- Update WhatsApp. Go to your app store and check for any WhatsApp updates and install if available.
- Resend the message. Try sending your message again directly to the recipient. Repeat a few times if needed.
- Contact the recipient. If all else fails, contact the recipient directly by phone call or other means to confirm if they can receive your messages.
Following these troubleshooting steps will help identify and resolve many of the issues that can cause your WhatsApp message to get stuck on one tick. If the problem persists even after troubleshooting, it likely indicates a compatibility or account issue on the recipient’s device that is out of your control.
Reasons for WhatsApp Showing One Tick
To understand in more detail why your WhatsApp message may not be progressing past the single tick, here are some of the key reasons explained:
Poor Internet Connection
One of the most common reasons your message will show just one tick is poor internet connection issues. Reasons include:
- The recipient is in an area with poor or no connectivity.
- Their phone has slow mobile data speeds or limited mobile data.
- Their WiFi connection has dropped out or is unstable.
- Congestion on the mobile network is preventing messages sending.
One tick means the message has left your phone, but has not yet reached the recipient’s device due to internet issues. The message will remain pending until connectivity improves.
Recipient’s Phone Offline
If the recipient’s phone is switched off, in airplane mode, or has lost power, your message will fail to deliver and show only one tick. Their phone needs to be turned on and connected to the internet to receive pending messages.
Time Delay in Sending
It’s normal for a few minutes delay between a message sending from your phone and reaching the recipient’s device. One tick means it is still making its way through the WhatsApp servers. Allow 5-10 minutes for it to progress to two ticks once delivered.
Read Receipts Disabled
If you or the recipient have disabled read receipts in WhatsApp privacy settings, messages will show one tick when sent and two ticks when delivered, but never progress to showing as read. The message has been received but the read status won’t display.
Recipient’s Phone Out of Storage
If the recipient’s phone has completely run out of storage, new WhatsApp messages won’t be able to reach their device. They need to clear storage space for pending messages to deliver properly.
Blocked or Deleted Message
If the recipient has blocked you or deleted the individual message, it will remain stuck on one tick and fail to deliver. Blocking and message deletion override normal delivery, preventing the message progressing.
Service Issues
In rare cases there may be issues with the WhatsApp service itself that’s preventing messages from sending fully to their recipients. If widespread, this will usually be communicated by WhatsApp. Try sending again later.
What the Ticks Mean
To help understand the meaning behind WhatsApp’s different tick statuses, here is what each one signifies:
- One grey tick: Message sent from your phone but still pending delivery to recipient.
- Two grey ticks: Message successfully delivered to recipient’s phone.
- Two blue ticks: Message has been read by the recipient.
The key point is that one grey tick means the message is still making its way to the recipient, while two grey ticks means it has been successfully delivered to their device.
Enabling Read Receipts
To allow your messages on WhatsApp to progress past two grey ticks and show when they’ve been read, you need to enable read receipts:
- Open WhatsApp and tap the 3 dot menu icon
- Go to Settings > Account > Privacy
- Tap ‘Read Receipts’ and enable the option
This will permit your contacts to see when you’ve read their messages, and also allow you to see read statuses on messages you send.
Troubleshooting Tips
Use these troubleshooting tips if your WhatsApp message is stuck on one tick:
| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| Poor internet connection | Check connectivity and retry sending the message |
| Recipient offline | Wait for them to come online again |
| Time delay | Allow a few minutes for the message to deliver |
| Disabled read receipts | Enable read receipts in WhatsApp settings |
| Recipient out of storage | Get recipient to clear space on their phone |
| Blocked or deleted | Ask recipient if they blocked you or deleted the message |
| WhatsApp service issue | Try sending again later as service resumes |
Following these troubleshooting steps will help resolve the common issues that can cause your message to get stuck on one tick.
Preventing One Tick Issues
You can prevent and avoid one tick issues by:
- Checking for connectivity and turning on WiFi or mobile data before sending important messages.
- Verifying the recipient is online and actively using WhatsApp when you need to reach them urgently.
- Enabling read receipts so you can see when critical messages have been opened.
- Asking recipients to clear phone storage if they are frequently unable to receive messages.
Taking these preventative steps will reduce the chances of your WhatsApp messages getting stuck and failing to reach recipients due to one tick issues.
What to Do if One Tick Persists
If you’ve tried all the troubleshooting steps but your message still shows one tick, here is what to do:
- Contact the recipient directly by phone call, SMS or other messaging service.
- Ask them to uninstall and reinstall WhatsApp to resolve any app issues.
- Request they turn their phone fully off and on again.
- Tell them to clear cache and data for WhatsApp from their phone settings.
- Wait and keep trying to resend periodically in case of prolonged network issues.
As a last resort, ask the recipient to reset and wipe their phone to factory settings if no other steps resolve persistent one tick problems.
When to Worry About One Tick
In most cases, one tick issues will resolve themselves with time as connectivity improves. But you should worry and follow up urgently if:
- The message is very urgent or time critical.
- The recipient is typically very responsive on WhatsApp.
- You haven’t had issues reaching them previously.
- It’s unusual or out of character for them not to reply.
- You tried calling them and couldn’t reach them.
If any of these apply, it’s worth investigating further by contacting the recipient through other means or in person to confirm they are okay and didn’t miss your important WhatsApp message.
One Tick Troubleshooting FAQs
Why does my message have one tick for days?
If a message has been stuck on one tick for days, the most likely reasons are the recipient has bad connectivity, their phone is switched off, or they have blocked you. Try contacting them on another platform.
Why does one tick stay for hours?
It’s normal for one tick to last hours if the recipient lives in an area with poor signal, has their phone turned off for lengthy periods, or hasn’t been actively using WhatsApp.
Should I be worried about one tick for 1 day?
It’s often nothing to worry about if one tick persists a whole day, but depends on the urgency of the message. Follow up with the recipient if it was very important.
What happens if I delete chat with one tick?
Deleting a chat with one pending tick will cancel and remove the message so that it never delivers. The recipient won’t see the message in their WhatsApp.
Can I tell if someone deleted my message on one tick?
Unfortunately when stuck on one tick there is no way to distinguish between delivery failure or the recipient deleting the message before receiving it.
Conclusion
Being stuck on one grey tick can be annoying and concerning when you need your WhatsApp message to be delivered. But in most cases it comes down to temporary internet connectivity issues that will resolve themselves soon. Try the troubleshooting steps outlined here to diagnose the cause and get your important messages through to recipients.