WhatsApp Tests Status Sharing with Recent Contacts You’ve Saved, Even If They Haven’t Saved Your Number

WhatsApp is testing a new feature that allows users to share status updates with contacts they have saved but who have not saved them back, as long as there has been a recent interaction between the two. The feature will initially be rolled out in select regions across Android, iOS, and Web versions of the app.

Until now, status updates on WhatsApp were only visible to contacts saved in a user’s address book, those explicitly included in privacy settings, or users mentioned in a group. The new system expands that circle in one specific direction: if you have saved someone’s number and recently messaged or called them, they can now see your status updates, even if they have not saved your number in return.

How the Feature Works

if you have recently messaged or called someone, they can now include you in their personal audience, even if you have not saved them in their address book.

Importantly, WhatsApp has clarified that it does not maintain a centralised server log of these recent interactions. All interaction data is processed directly on the user’s device, keeping the system local rather than cloud-dependent.

Users receiving status updates from unsaved numbers will be able to identify them clearly. The sender’s push name appears at the top of the screen along with their phone number, and a tilde (~) symbol is displayed before their name, a visual indicator that the update is coming from someone not in the recipient’s contact list. By contrast, phone numbers are never displayed when a status is shared by a saved contact, making the distinction easy to spot.

Privacy and Control

Users still retain full control over their privacy settings. The new option simply adds another layer, sharing status updates with accounts the user has recently messaged or called, provided those accounts are saved in the user’s address book.

If a user receives a status update from an unsaved number they are not interested in, they can hide it, stopping future updates from that account without resorting to a full block. Hidden updates can still be reviewed through the contact’s info page or the dedicated hidden Updates section, and visibility can be restored at any time. Users also have the option to report status updates from the overflow menu if the content is found to be inappropriate.

On the question of spam, WhatsApp maintains that the feature is unlikely to increase unwanted content, since status visibility is tied to genuine recent interactions rather than being open to strangers with no prior connection.

Close Friends List Also in Development

The status expansion comes alongside a separate feature still under development, a Close Friends list for status updates. Similar in concept to Instagram’s Close Friends feature, it will allow users to share status updates with a smaller, selected group of trusted contacts, separate from their full contact list. This would give users finer control than the existing “Only share with” privacy setting, enabling more personal moments to be shared selectively.

WhatsApp says it is still refining the Close Friends experience to make it clearer to users exactly who can see their updates within that list.

What Users Should Know

The status-sharing feature is rolling out gradually and may not be available to all users immediately. Those running the latest versions of WhatsApp on Android, iOS, or Web are most likely to receive it first. Users who notice status updates appearing from accounts they do not recognise should check for the tilde symbol and phone number display; these are the app’s built-in signals that the update is from an unsaved number they have previously interacted with.

It is also worth noting that this feature will become especially relevant once WhatsApp introduces usernames later this year. Usernames will allow users to connect without sharing phone numbers, and this interaction-based status system will help bridge the gap, enabling status sharing with accounts identified only by username, without requiring a saved phone number on either side.