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Why is WhatsApp not showing online or typing?

There could be a few reasons why WhatsApp might not be showing your online status or typing indicator to others:

Your privacy settings

The most common reason is that you have adjusted your WhatsApp privacy settings to hide your online status and typing indicator from some or all of your contacts. Here’s how to check your settings:

  1. Open WhatsApp and tap the More options icon (3 dots) in the top right
  2. Go to Settings > Account > Privacy
  3. Under “Last seen” and “Profile photo,” you can choose who can see your last seen and profile photo
  4. Under “About,” you can prevent all or specific contacts from seeing your About info
  5. Under “Status,” you can choose who can view your status updates
  6. Under “Read receipts,” you can disable read receipts so contacts can’t see when you’ve read their messages
  7. Under “Typing indicator,” you can disable your typing indicator so contacts can’t see when you’re typing

If you have disabled your typing indicator or limited it to specific contacts, others won’t be able to see when you’re typing. Similarly, if you’ve limited your last seen, contacts restricted from viewing it won’t see when you were last online.

Connection issues

Online and typing status relies on an active internet connection. If you or your contacts are having connectivity problems, your online statuses may not show up even if privacy settings are enabled.

Try checking if WhatsApp is working by sending a test message. If messages aren’t sending, you likely have a network connection issue stopping statuses from updating.

WhatsApp requires an internet connection to operate properly. Make sure your data or Wi-Fi is working properly for all online, typing and messaging features to work.

Closing the app

Your WhatsApp online status is linked to having the app open. If you completely close out of the WhatsApp app, it will show you as offline after a few minutes.

Even if you still have an internet connection, fully quitting the app prevents statuses from updating in real-time since WhatsApp is no longer running.

Phone restrictions

Certain phone settings can also override WhatsApp’s ability to refresh your online status:

  • Battery saver/data saver: Enabling these modes often limits background app refresh to save power. WhatsApp may not be able to update your status if background refresh is disabled.
  • Power saving mode: This restricts background processes to conserve battery life. Your status will appear offline if WhatsApp can’t refresh in the background.
  • Airplane mode: Since it disables all network connectivity, airplane mode will prevent your online status from updating.
  • Do Not Disturb: Some versions of Do Not Disturb can block status refreshes. Check your settings to see its effects on WhatsApp.
  • App power optimization: If battery optimization is enabled for WhatsApp, it could override background updates.

Check your phone’s settings and disable any battery saving or data restrictions impacting WhatsApp to fix this. Your status relies on WhatsApp running actively in the background.

Outdated app

Using an outdated version of WhatsApp could also create issues with your online status not appearing properly. Staying updated ensures you are running the latest version of the app for the best performance.

On Android, open the Play Store, go to Updates and check for a WhatsApp update. On iPhone, go to the App Store, tap your profile icon, and refresh your apps to update WhatsApp if an update is available.

Server issues

In rare cases, server-side problems at WhatsApp can also prevent statuses like online and typing from showing correctly. Issues like temporary outages can create problems until they are resolved.

There’s not much you can do about this besides trying again later. You’ll have to wait for WhatsApp engineers to fix any server-side bugs that are interfering with status reporting.

Banned or blocked contacts

If someone has blocked you on WhatsApp, or you’ve blocked them, you will both appear completely offline to each other, regardless of actual online status.

Similarly, if you are banned from using WhatsApp entirely, all your contacts will see you as perpetually offline on WhatsApp. Try contacting WhatsApp support if you think you’ve been wrongly banned.

Deleted/reinstalled WhatsApp

If you delete your WhatsApp account entirely or uninstall the app, your online status will disappear until you reinstall and setup WhatsApp again. Your status depends on having an active account.

Reinstall WhatsApp and verify your number to start broadcasting your online status again to contacts after a proper reactivation.

Wrong time or date

An incorrect time setting on your phone can also create inconsistencies between your actual online time and last seen status. Always ensure your phone’s date and time are set automatically or manually adjusted for accuracy.

Go to your phone’s Date & Time settings to double check your timezone, date format and automatic time setting to prevent issues due to an incorrect time.

Contacts in another timezone

If your contacts are in a significantly different timezone, the WhatsApp status shown to them may not reflect your real-time status due to the time difference.

For example, if you’re online at noon in New York, a contact in Hong Kong will still show you as offline at midnight their local time.

WhatsApp statuses update live for contacts in the same timezone. The wider the timezone gap, the less accurate your status will appear.

Sync delays

In some cases, there can be a delay in your live status syncing across WhatsApp’s servers, especially if there are connectivity issues.

It may take some time for your online or typing indicator to reach your contacts after it changes. Try disabling and re-enabling your connection to force a refresh.

Glitches

Like any app, WhatsApp can have its share of temporary glitches that affect statuses. Buggy updates or random app issues could prevent your status appearing correctly.

Try common troubleshooting steps like force closing the app, restarting your phone, reinstalling the app or updating WhatsApp to resolve any software bugs.

How to troubleshoot WhatsApp not showing online status

If your online status isn’t appearing correctly on WhatsApp, try these troubleshooting steps:

  1. Check your WhatsApp privacy settings under Account > Privacy and make sure last seen, profile photo and read receipts are enabled for the relevant contacts.
  2. Make sure your internet connection is working properly and try manually refreshing your status by toggling airplane mode.
  3. Force close and restart the WhatsApp app to refresh it.
  4. Update WhatsApp to the latest version from your phone’s app store.
  5. Disable any battery saver restrictions or app power optimization relevant to WhatsApp from your phone settings.
  6. Check your phone’s date, time and timezone settings are correct.
  7. Clear the WhatsApp app cache and data to force a clean refresh.
  8. Uninstall and reinstall WhatsApp to refresh your account status.
  9. Restart your phone to eliminate any software issues.

If none of that works, the issue may be on WhatsApp’s servers. Contact WhatsApp support or try again later to see if the problem resolves itself.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does WhatsApp only show online for some contacts?

This is controlled by your WhatsApp privacy settings. Go to WhatsApp Settings > Account > Privacy and check which contacts can view your last seen, profile photo, about, and status. Limiting any of these to “My Contacts” or specific people will prevent others from seeing details like your online status.

Can you see someone’s WhatsApp status if they blocked you?

No, if someone blocks you on WhatsApp, you will see them permanently offline. They will also not be able see when you are online or typing. Blocking removes all friend/contact statuses from both parties.

Why does WhatsApp status show online even when offline?

If WhatsApp continues showing someone as online even when they are offline, it is likely a caching issue. Try force closing the app or toggling airplane mode to refresh their status. If it persists, they may have connectivity issues delaying a status update.

Does deleting WhatsApp delete your status?

Yes, deleting your WhatsApp account or uninstalling the app removes your online status visibility until you reinstall WhatsApp and reactivate your account. Your profile and all associated status info is erased when deleting WhatsApp.

How can I hide my status?

You can hide your online, typing, profile photo, about info and more by adjusting your privacy settings in WhatsApp. Go to Settings > Account > Privacy and limit visibility of status items to “Nobody” to hide them completely.

Conclusion

A missing online or typing status on WhatsApp typically points to connectivity issues, privacy settings tweaks, or application errors. Check your privacy configurations, network connection, app version, phone settings and account status to troubleshoot problems.

Make sure to disable any battery optimization or power saving modes impacting WhatsApp’s background activity on Android. On iOS, update to the latest WhatsApp version if an update is pending. Reinstalling the app can also help reset any account or caching issues.

If contacts in other countries don’t show accurate live status, keep timezone differences in mind. For any persistent server-side problems, you’ll have to wait for WhatsApp to deploy a fix on their end. Contact WhatsApp support if you feel your account has been incorrectly banned or blocked.

With the right troubleshooting steps, you should be able to get your accurate WhatsApp online status and typing indicator showing again. Just be mindful of privacy settings, network connectivity, power saving modes and app version to avoid issues.