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WhatsApp New Features of the Past Week (November 18, 2025 - November 24, 2025)#

November 24, 2025

New features in WA

Greetings to everyone who follows WhatsApp news! Last week, the messenger's developers introduced several important improvements aimed at increasing privacy and simplifying content management. Here are the key features that will appear in the upcoming updates.

Contents#

A folder Requests for unknown contacts#

WhatsApp is working on a feature that will allow users to receive unknown messages in requests.

How it will work#

WhatsApp is implementing a new system for filtering messages from unknown contacts. A "Who can message me" option will appear in the privacy settings with two options: "Everyone" (messages in chats) and "My contacts" (new messages will go to a separate "Requests" folder). This works similarly to the request system on Instagram.

Why it's needed#

To protect users from spam and unwanted messages, and to organize incoming messages by separating communications with unknown contacts from chats with friends and family.

Status#

This feature is in active development for Android and is expected in a future update.

Centralized Media Hub#

The latest updates to WhatsApp for Mac and the web app include a new media hub.

How it will work#

The sidebar of WhatsApp Web and the Mac version features a new "Media Hub" section, which gathers all recent photos, videos, documents, and links from all chats in one place. You can also search by sender and description, sort by date and file size, and perform bulk actions.

Why it's needed#

To allow users to quickly find recently sent files without having to view each chat individually. This is especially useful in active group conversations.

Status#

This feature is gradually rolling out to WhatsApp Web and WhatsApp for Mac users.

Reserving Usernames from Social Networks#

WhatsApp is working on a feature that will allow users to reserve the same usernames they have on Facebook and Instagram.

How it will work#

Users will be able to reserve a WhatsApp username in advance using their existing Facebook or Instagram usernames. The process includes ownership verification through Meta's Accounts Center. This ensures that no one else can take that username.

Why it's needed#

To ensure consistent cross-platform Meta identification and allow users to keep their existing WhatsApp usernames until the full username system launches.

Status#

This feature is in development for Android. The full launch of the username system is expected in 2026.

Flexible Chat Clearing#

WhatsApp is introducing a chat clearing feature with the ability to delete messages or specific categories of media files.

How it will work#

When clearing a chat, an expanded menu with a selective deletion option will now appear. You can delete all messages while keeping the media, or selectively delete specific file types: videos, photos, stickers, documents, or audio files. The amount of space freed up is displayed before deletion.

Why it's needed#

This feature is designed to give users more precise control over the space and content of their chats, allowing them to delete only unwanted media types rather than entire conversations.

Status#

This feature is being tested in beta for Android and is gradually being rolled out to users.

Quick Error Reporting#

WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that allows users to report bugs by shaking their device.

How it works#

A quick way to submit bug reports is now available: just shake your device. The system automatically takes a screenshot (except for sensitive sections, such as viewing your profile photo) and opens a form to describe the issue.

Why it's needed#

This feature is designed to simplify and speed up the bug reporting process, facilitating faster fixes. Users can disable the feature in settings if they don't need it.

Status#

The feature is available to a limited group of beta testers on Android.

Search by Username Instead of Phone Numbers#

WhatsApp is working on a feature that will display usernames when searching for unknown phone numbers.

How it works#

When searching for an unknown phone number, if the owner has a username, the username, rather than the number, will be displayed in the search results. This helps identify the contact. However, when searching by username, the phone number will not be displayed.

Why it's needed#

This feature is designed to simplify contact identification and improve privacy by gradually reducing the reliance on phone numbers as identifiers.

Status#

This feature is in development for iOS. A full launch is planned for the release of the username system.

Conclusion#

The past week has seen WhatsApp prepare for a fundamental change—the transition to a username system, scheduled for 2026. At the same time, the team is working hard to improve the user experience, offering more granular privacy settings and convenient tools for managing content and support requests.

At GREEN-API, we monitor all WhatsApp updates to provide you with the latest news and solutions for automating your business processes. Stay tuned to get all the latest news!